Category: OB/GYN

A medical student after an OB/GYN rotation: Here’s what he learned

On one of my first days on the labor and delivery ward, one of the attending obstetricians asked me what area of medicine I was interested in. When I said that I was applying into neurology this year, she said, “Ah! The other end of the body!” After a …

A medical student after an OB/GYN rotation: Here’s what he learned

On one of my first days on the labor and delivery ward, one of the attending obstetricians asked me what area of medicine I was interested in. When I said that I was applying into neurology this year, she said, “Ah! The other end of the body!” After a …

A proximate cause of wrongful death

An excerpt from Wrongful Deaths. “We will name Memorial Hospital, Dr. Julie Stone, Dr. Vijay Gupta, and ICU nurse Tracy Miller in a malpractice suit involving the wrongful death of Ivy Jackson.” Venjer appeared apologetic. “But Dr. Torrins is correct. …

The doctor is in, but please check your bias at the door

“What’s the deal with your people?” As a baffled second-year resident, I looked up through my scrub mask at the Caucasian female attending with whom I was operating. I had an idea about what she was referring to as I overheard her complain about a labo…

The Ellen Show broadcasts potentially harmful information about ovarian cancer screening

Ethical OB/GYNs everywhere sighed heavily when they realized from the action on their Facebook and Twitter feeds that the Ellen Show broadcasted incorrect and potentially harmful information about ovarian cancer screening to almost 4 million people. Mi…

On labor and delivery, there is an “I” in team

I’ve had this idea brewing for a while. It’s taken a while for it to form shape, to work its way from a random niggling thought in my head to something I can articulate with the passion and determination it inspires in me. On labor and delivery: There is an “I” in team. Yes, I […]

Flu vaccination in pregnant women reduces risk of hospitalization

Influenza is the leading cause of vaccine-preventable deaths in the United States. Influenza also tops the list of the burden of disease and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) according to a Eurosurveillance article. The flu is more likely to cause severe illness and harm pregnant women as compared to women who are not pregnant. Changes in the immune […]

Going to the gynecologist isn’t just about Pap smears

Some days, work frustrates me. Yes, we all have our frustrations. Maybe the traffic is slow, and you get to work late. Maybe you spill your coffee on your work clothes as you walk into your office. Maybe someone calls in sick, and you are short of help at work. But my frustration has to […]

How physicians’ grit is being taken advantage of

A vivid memory stands out from my career. Driving home from the hospital at 3 a.m., I reflected upon my most recent patient’s middle of the night delivery. It wasn’t an easy delivery, as they often aren’t. However, in the end, we had a healthy mom and baby and the family couldn’t have been happier […]

My future as both a mother and a physician

My parents were married at the College of Physicians. They picked a location that was not tied to either of their family’s religions but still sated a ceremonial need. A justice of the peace filled the role of a rabbi or priest, and they got married under the only doctrine they both held sacred: the […]