It’s never easy to lose someone you love. Imagine not being able to be at their bedside or say goodbye in person. Imagine losing them and not being able to have more than ten people at their funeral … if you are even able to have a funeral. There…
Category: Infectious disease
To my kids from a mentally exhausted doctor
As I reflect on Independence Day, I think of soldiers that sacrificed their own lives for others – present and future. They knew what they were facing, and yet, continued to push forward. They imperfectly led our nation through unprecedented waters w…
What we can learn from a palliative care chaplain [PODCAST]
“Faced with the prospect of not being able to provide all COVID-19 patients with the life support that they may need, physicians and nurses are working in conditions that have been described as ‘hell.’ How are providers to cope…
Complacency fuels the slow burn of COVID-19
In polarizing politics, it seems that somehow the greater good often misses the very grain that comes together and makes it great — the people. After we blindfolded ourselves to a warning from China and then Italy, New York witnessed the grinding impac…
COVID-19 becomes a magnifying glass for health disparities
The daily email update on COVID-19 affecting our hospital system is a glaring reflection of the health disparities amongst those in marginalized groups. The farther south you go, generally in San Diego, the higher the number of socioeconomically disadv…
The guilt of physician-moms [PODCAST]
“As women physicians, especially physician moms and women physicians of color, we have handled and achieved more than the vast majority of the population, in order to reach our current status of physician. We do because we can. We are Superwomen….
How the pandemic forced this physician to quit
I never thought that I would resign with my last day of work being the same day of my resignation. In fact, I did everything in my power to stay at my job, but the job didn’t want me to stay. COVID brought a sharp focus on the difference between …
A frontline physician has a message for you
To the people who say that wearing a mask perpetuates the conspiracy: Tell that to the health care workers who have put their lives at risk to face firsthand an unknown disease. Tell that to the families of frontline workers who have contracted and suc…
Our public health efforts depend on flexibility and trust
Public health has never been more important. As the coronavirus waxes and wanes, it is crucial that our evolving understanding of COVID-19 translate into our everyday lives. Our collective response to the virus will be much improved with an acknowledgm…
The view from an infectious disease physician in Texas [PODCAST]
“Death is not meant to be rushed. Saying goodbye shouldn’t be rushed. Celebrating a life once lived cannot be rushed. And yet, we must. Taking a moment, a minute, an hour, maybe a day to feel something that normally takes far longer. Because we m…
