Category: KevinMD

5 ways we can prevent doctor suicide

For Meg — with sorrow. We have failed to address the scale of suicide and mental illness in the medical profession, which is a global issue. Each of us can help prevent doctor suicide with these five strategies at a locally and worldwide: 1. We can des…

As doctors, our social capital is changing

Retirement has gotten me edgy. Three months after departing, I had begun spending too much time horizontal, which I forced myself to remedy but then finding myself with nothing to do. Moreover, things have gotten more noticeably like Bowling Alone, an …

Patients are not passengers

Health care safety efforts have long focused on improving the behavior of providers and improving the systems of care. A proven model of safety is in the airline industry. There are undoubtedly many parallels between airline safety and health care work…

What a physician would tell his younger self about the use of debt

As Christmas approaches, I have begun seeing ads for things our family “must” have this Christmas. Overspending in December is a common problem I often find when I do a financial makeover for doctors. There is a huge push to buy things duri…

7 reasons why you should prioritize retirement savings over college savings

It is widely recommended in the financial world that you prioritize your retirement savings over college savings for your children. I agree with this advice. Yet, I run into people all the time who are not following it. Perhaps it is because college of…

How physicians can get started with passive income

It’s been a little over two years since I started this journey of blogging about passive income, and I’ve learned so much along the way. The term “passive income” has come to mean something very different to me over these years. I used to t…

There’s no room for ego in health care

I was recently seeing a rather complicated medical patient in the hospital. We were treating both a heart and kidney condition, and things were not going so well. To spare anyone non-medical who is reading this the scientific details of the bodily proc…

Physicians sacrifice a lot to deliver care. Technology shouldn’t ask for more.

I had a great case the other night. Around midnight on a Friday, the hospitalist physician called me to evaluate an incarcerated femoral hernia. I thought this elderly and medically ill patient would likely die no matter what I did. I spent a grim half…

You must make a good first impression with patients

First impressions are critical. We are taught early in our careers that first impressions truly matter. Whether interviewing for medical school or a residency program, our goal is to make a positive first impression in hopes of making the cut at each c…

It’s the little things that can make or break the doctor-patient relationship

“The dermatology profession exists for the primary purpose of caring for the patient. The physician-patient relationship is the central focus of all ethical concerns.” – American Academy of Dermatology, Code of Medical Ethics. The doctor-patient …