Category: KevinMD

How failing Step 1 helped me pass the boards. Twice.

I remember the day well. The dean of my medical school called me directly. As soon as she announced herself on the other end of the line, I knew it was bad news. Deans don’t tend to make social calls, and I was right. She was calling to tell me that I …

Why you shouldn’t be happy with $137 insulin

Eli Lilly and Co. recently announced with some fanfare that it was manufacturing a generic version of its own best-selling insulin brand, Humalog, which it would sell for half off — $137.35 versus about $275. David Ricks, the chief executive of Lilly, …

Why you shouldn’t be happy with $137 insulin

Eli Lilly and Co. recently announced with some fanfare that it was manufacturing a generic version of its own best-selling insulin brand, Humalog, which it would sell for half off — $137.35 versus about $275. David Ricks, the chief executive of Lilly, …

OB/GYNs are getting old and tired. Who’s going to be left to deliver your children?  

I’m a 46-year-old OB/GYN. I’ve been on call at least as often as every fourth night for my entire career. Let that sink in for a minute. How many people get up and answer phone calls, remove ectopic pregnancies, deliver babies, and do C-sections every …

Getting my MBA 30 years after my MD

After my term as a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force, I could join the Air Force Reserves, go back to school or work as a pediatrician. I chose school and work. I had no specific “why,” since I earned the VA educational fund…

Are you a physician living paycheck to paycheck?

Physicians leave training with expectations of earning a generous income and dreams of an extravagant lifestyle. They go from years as a struggling resident to a working individual with a stable income. Once they become attendings, their salaries skyro…

All doctors sign forms they haven’t read. Is there a better way?

Recently, I was called to task — and probably rightly so — for signing something I know I didn’t read. This was several months ago, when one of my partners was out on family medical leave, and we divided up all of the coverage of her …

My caffeine-free residency

A kind resident or attending asks me, “I’m going for a coffee run. Can I get you anything?” I politely decline. “You sure?” “Yeah, I’m actually doing a caffeine-free residency.” A mix of utter disbelief a…

Why so many doctors won’t break bad news to patients

After nearly 40 years as an internist, Dr. Ron Naito knew what the sky-high results of his blood test meant. And it wasn’t good. But when he turned to his doctors last summer to confirm the dire diagnosis — stage 4 pancreatic cancer — he learned the ne…

The patchwork quilt of my medical care

I was cleaning out the top shelf of my closet — a location where, hypothetically, treasures can be found. I came upon something that was wrapped in a nondescript brown paper bag that smelled oddly of mothballs. I cautiously reached inside and found an …