“There will always be suffering. It flows through life like water …” Those famous lyrics sung by Nick Cave in his Lime-Tree Arbour ring true for many of us. They take on an entirely different layer of meaning for physicians. Even the very journey…
Category: KevinMD
What I wish I knew on the residency interview trail
I still remember the warm, fuzzy feeling of receiving my first few interview invitations. Unlike medical school, I received much more “love” from residency programs. Since I was part of the inaugural class of a new medical school, I interviewed for a lot of programs: 16 anesthesiology, six transitional years, and three preliminary medicine programs. […]
Female physicians prioritize patients over profits
Gender politics aside, let’s talk about why the way doctors get paid matters to you as a patient. Female physicians don’t just get paid less because they prioritize their families, they get paid less because they prioritize patients. In the fee-for-service model, doctors are paid per patient visit, so the more patients they see, the […]
Expanding the scope of emergency medicine
Yes, this is a piece on observation medicine as the expansion of our specialty. My oh my, have things changes since my days of training where I learned to care for all comers irrespective of their money, background, color or creed. I learned to stabilize, evaluate and treat then admit or discharge. Clearly, I’m simplifying though, historically, our […]
Expanding the scope of emergency medicine
Yes, this is a piece on observation medicine as the expansion of our specialty. My oh my, have things changes since my days of training where I learned to care for all comers irrespective of their money, background, color or creed. I learned to stabilize, evaluate and treat then admit or discharge. Clearly, I’m simplifying though, historically, our […]
How do I keep my kids out of the ER this Halloween?
I have worked most of the last 20 Halloweens in the pediatric emergency department (ED), so I’ve seen how a split second can ruin your child’s holiday. Here are some things you can do to plan ahead and avoid the ED. 1. Avoid trip hazards It’s a recipe for mishap. Your child is in a […]
How much is micromanagement of your time worth?
Some of us like to micromanage. Obviously, this trait is useful only for certain tasks that you need to accomplish. Managing money can take some attention to detail, but fortunately, many issues work themselves out if you follow broad principles. How much you should micromanage your daily expenditures really depends on your own tolerance and […]
Millennials want convenient care
The Kaiser Health News article, “Spurred By Convenience, Millennials Often Spurn The ‘Family Doctor’ Model,” caught my eye. Millennial patients want “convenience, fast service, connectivity, and price transparency” while doctors and health experts worry about “fragmented or unnecessary care, including the misuse of antibiotics” and loss of “care that is coordinated and longitudinal.” It’s as […]
Should a HIPAA-questionable good deed go unpunished?
On a Saturday morning, Michael, a physician, was making his way through the hospital atrium after his weekend rounds. On his way out, he noticed a family he knew well. They were talking quietly and appeared distraught. He asked them if they were okay. They said that the husband’s mother had been admitted overnight with […]
The man that scares me and the man I love
There is a man. He is in my house. I don’t know where he came from. But he just came into my house. And now he is living there. And I am afraid of him. I do not know who he is. There is a man in my house. I am so scared. I don’t […]
