Category: KevinMD

A physician gun owner’s suggestion

So let’s get down to it.  Everyone is tired of shooting sprees.  If you’re a gun owner, you’re tired of seeing weapons abused and misused to harm the innocent.  If you’re a gun opponent, you feel the same way but can’t imagine why anyone has these weapons in the first place.  I get it.  I […]

Burnout in pediatric intensive care physicians

Burnout has been a descriptive term for years, but lately, psychologists and others have assigned it specific characteristics with a view toward being able actually to study and measure it. One common definition of burnout is a state of chronic stress that leads to physical and emotional exhaustion, cynicism, detachment, and feelings of ineffectiveness. The PICU environment […]

2 biases in medicine, and how to avoid them

Why do we underestimate risk? This phenomenon isn’t unique to politics or natural disasters, and it contradicts our need to prepare for future events. It explains why it is hard to get healthy “millennial invincibles” to sign up for health insurance, why earthquake insurance policies skyrocket after an earthquake, and why people tend to underinvest […]

Women aren’t to blame because the workplace isn’t accommodating

A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine explored the gender roles of career-oriented academic MDs in the workplace juxtaposed with domestic responsibilities. Dr. Jolly and colleagues hypothesized that by examining a specific cohort of younger physicians, more likely exposed to dual-income households, that there would be few, if any, differences in time spent […]

Work-life balance doesn’t have to be a myth

Believe it or not, the topic of work-life balance can be quite controversial. It’s a concept that can seem almost impossible to attain, so some people regard it as a myth: “a pie in the sky” idea of sorts. As surprising as it seems, work-life balance is very much attainable, and my personal experience is […]

Work-life balance doesn’t have to be a myth

Believe it or not, the topic of work-life balance can be quite controversial. It’s a concept that can seem almost impossible to attain, so some people regard it as a myth: “a pie in the sky” idea of sorts. As surprising as it seems, work-life balance is very much attainable, and my personal experience is […]

As you enter medical school: tips from a patient

Since the beginning of a new academic year is fast approaching, here’s some heartfelt advice. You might need it, I hope you read it and heed it. If you’re just beginning your medical school journey, the first line is written specifically for you, but the rest of the piece is pertinent for any doctor, at […]

What’s life like after not matching? A physician’s story.

Match Day is the culmination of a medical student’s education: the day all graduating seniors and non-traditional applicants find out where they will spend the next three to seven years to train in a desired specialty. I fell in love with obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) as it was the perfect way to combine my passion […]

MKSAP: 25-year-old man with dark-colored urine

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 25-year-old man is evaluated for dark-colored urine for 2 days, swelling of the face and hands for 1 day, and severe headaches this morning. He reports having an upper respiratory tract infection 1 week ago with fever, sore throat, and […]

The rewarding and grueling process of residency application

I woke up to the sound of a faint “ding” from my bedside table. It was 5:24 a.m. Shaking off my lethargy, I scrambled over to my phone because the ding meant one thing: my first residency interview invitation. Looking back on that moment, as I responded in the dim light of the morning, I […]