A guest column by the American College of Physicians, exclusive to KevinMD.com. I recently saw a new patient who came to our practice following a lengthy hospitalization. He is in his 80s with a fairly complex medical history typical of many in this age range. Yet, after carefully sifting through my first introduction to this […]
I’m not much of a tennis fan, but I am a fan of Serena Williams. Who wouldn’t be after hearing her story? Her rise to the upper echelon of athletics was remarkable, and her longevity is incomparable. All the while, she has challenged the sporting world’s notions about who and what an elite tennis player […]
If someone asked you on day one of medical school, as a fresh-faced first year, to name the essential components of a successful career, what would you have answered? A solid education? Good test scores? Publications? An $800 otoscope? Some are more obvious than others. Who of the enlightened among us would have mentioned a […]
Although I would never describe the business of primary care medicine as cutting edge, there are a number of innovations that have come and gone during my short tenure running a medical practice. The business of medicine is fascinating and leaves much room for personalization and creativity. I have been lucky to operate at the forefront of […]
I am a terrible coder. I think I am a pretty good doctor, but when it comes to coding, the process of figuring out which billing code to pick to assign to a bill for an office visit, I am hopeless. No matter how many times I have had the rules explained to me, or […]
There are at least 50 words in the Eskimo languages for snow, 25 in mainstream Swedish, and supposedly 180 or so in the Sami language of the nomadic inhabitants of the northernmost parts of Norway, Sweden, and Finland. But there are even more words than that for “chest pain” among my patients, many of whom […]
“Oh, you’re a psychiatrist? I hope you won’t analyze me!” I never know what people actually mean when they say that upon learning that I work as a psychiatrist. I think they’re saying, “I hope you’re not going to spend our time together trying to discern my flaws.” Nobody wants people to seek out, highlight, and […]
Gratitude may be more beneficial than we commonly suppose. One recent study asked subjects to write a note of thanks to someone and then estimate how surprised and happy the recipient would feel – an impact that they consistently underestimated. Another study assessed the health benefits of writing thank you notes. The researchers found that […]
Following one of my recent articles on how physicians can improve their communication skills and ultimately help attain better patient outcomes, I received an interesting comment from a physician. It went something like this: “Sorry, but I’m not an actor.” This response typifies a small (but not insignificant) subset of responses I get when I’m […]
When we studied ward attending rounds, the thought process represented the top attribute that learners valued. Learners can learn facts from textbooks, but using those facts requires experience and role modeling. I have given many lectures on clinical reasoning, and I have attended many lectures on clinical reasoning. These lectures can entertain, but one lecture […]
