Category: KevinMD

What can a doctor do to build confidence?

The journey in medicine is a journey of goal setting.  Doctors set goals all the time. We set the goal to become a doctor then strive to achieve it. Once we decide the chosen specialty, we set the goal for the residency training program we hope to matc…

COVID-19 and coronavirus FAQs

A case study seemed to confirm the presence of asymptomatic transmission within China, where a woman was afebrile with no chest CT abnormalities or laboratory abnormalities. She did not develop the virus, while five of her relatives did. An earlier rep…

Too many scans is bad medicine

A medical diagnostic company recently posted the following tweet: “The best way to beat cancer is early detection. A full-body scan will provide you with a look inside your body and peace of mind.” I wanted to type a reply, but I like to te…

Should nurse practitioners complete medical residencies?

About three months ago, something awful happened. The oncology nurse practitioner (NP) whom I trained for the past two years in my subspecialty decided to seek employment elsewhere in order to have a more flexible work schedule. My team and I lamented …

Being like squid is easy. Don’t be one.

Squid and other cephalopods have the amazing ability to change the color of their skin. In an instant, they can blend into their environment, matching the landscape perfectly to avoid detection. In contrast, they can turn a bright iridescent hue to war…

A letter to her daughter: 8 things I learned from being a doctor and a mother

My dearest daughter, Life is unpredictable. In case I won’t be around one day, here are things I learned from being a doctor and a mother that can guide you always. 1. New level. New devil! There will never be a time outside of death that life wi…

A peek behind that 8-minute $300 doctor visit

If you or a loved one has ever been hospitalized, by day two or two of your hospital stay, you likely remember the doctor visiting you every day but not staying more than seven or eight minutes or 10 to 15 minutes max. It may have felt like he or she w…

When a patient planned to kill a social worker

It all began on Valentine’s Day when I arrived at my office and listened to my messages from the afternoon before. There was only one from a nurse at the state mental hospital. She had just seen, she said, a Mr. Lonnie M. and was calling to alert…

COVID-19 will expose EMTALA and the physician shortage

Coronavirus, a.k.a. COVID-19, is lurking on the edges of the United States.  What it will do here has yet to be seen.  I was initially very concerned since I work on the front lines in community emergency medicine.  For the last week or so, I have felt…

I struggle with my pride in the profession and fear of the health care system

I believe in the practice of medicine and enjoy teaching others this amazing art.  However, after experiencing nine months of interactions through medicine as the daughter of a sick patient, I struggle with my pride in the profession and fear of the he…