Nurses are not getting the protection they need to care for COVID patients, and no one seems to care. Where is the outrage? Nurses are at the COVID patients’ bedside 24/7. We all know the medical staff is not wearing the proper gear at all. If su…
Category: KevinMD
Telemedicine in COVID-19 is a unique challenge for homeless patients
COVID-19 cases in the United States are continuing to rise, with some regions of the country entering a stage of peak infection. Despite growing resources allocated to our public health response, a substantial gap exists in our approach to the care of …
The art of the doctor-patient relationship in the COVID-19 era
This a famous painting named “The Doctor” from 1891 by Luke Fildes. I was first introduced to this by my grandfather, the first physician in our family, an old school traditional family doctor. He cared deeply for his patients, and they loved him for i…
Is there a doctor on board? Yes, but we might not be the right doctor.
My husband and I travel internationally at least three times a year to give courses with live surgical demonstrations of colorectal conditions in children. During the past 13 years making those trips, we had our share of hearing the famous announcement…
Ventilators are only part of the story: We need critical care trained practitioners
The media and policymakers have spent a lot of time focusing on the shortage of ventilators in the country. Elmhurst Hospital in Queens – one of the hardest-hit locations in the country, and where I work – received a donation of 40 desperat…
I am a physician, and I will heal when I can, but I will always provide hope
I don my PPE in the hallway, while the patient is watching the increased commotion outside of their room. They see me enter their room, introduce myself, and then position myself behind their bed. They are covered with a plastic wrap or an intubation b…
Physician burnout in the wake of COVID-19
A doctor who has a contagious disease is not only suffering in terms of their health but also about being incapacitated in performing their life-saving tasks. Doctors with COVID-19 likely increase the community’s disease burden, so the frontline staff …
We must care about our doctors. Especially now.
We are all traumatized by the unfathomable devastation caused by the coronavirus. What can we expect as a result of this national and worldwide trauma? The trauma approach uses posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as a frame to understand trauma. PTSD…
There is no place for USMLE Step 2 CS during a pandemic
As American cities continue to shelter-in-place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, thousands of medical students are in limbo as they wait to see when they will be able to take their licensing examinations. The growing backlog of test-takers is partic…
From a clinician on the frontlines: I can’t stop mentally drafting my obituary
I can’t stop mentally drafting my obituary. A coworker snaps a picture of me in full protective gear, holding a respiratory swab, and I wonder how this photo will age. I wonder about the folly of our actions now, four health care workers seated togethe…
