Category: primary care

Remembering Kobe Bryant and what basketball can teach us in medicine [PODCAST]

“Through my coaching of girl’s basketball in California’s Central Valley, my daughter and I were fortunate enough to know Kobe as a mentor and coach, and a person who inspired my daughter to be the best through hard work, dedication, and passion….

To better take care of patients, we need to take care of ourselves

We all know by now that the COVID-19 pandemic has changed our world altogether. There is no question that stressors in our lives are more than ever before. This year’s Fall will be the most dangerous of Falls. So what does it mean for the physici…

A medical student’s experience at an urban free clinic

During my first year of medical school, a professor in my clinical skills course shared a timeless adage in medicine: “If you listen closely enough to the patient, they will tell you the diagnosis.” I accepted this statement as a fact of medicine &#821…

Who is taking care of the minority physicians?

Headlines are pouring in, warning us of the impending spikes in coronavirus cases throughout the country and the rise of eerily disturbing cases of children with a mysterious viral rash. All of these alerts appear against the backdrop of the loudest na…

Why telemedicine needs to be a permanent part of Medicare [PODCAST]

“While preparing to assist our patients in the emergency rooms and dedicated COVID-19 wards, our clinic continues to triage patient concerns, creates new care plans, and provides a necessary layer of support, reassurance, and education in a chaot…

Why gardening is the best medicine

My first glimpse into the power of urban gardening was not through bucolic farmer’s markets or verdant nurseries, whose beauty I only came to after medical school. My introduction was in our small suburban backyard of clay soil. My dad planted silvery,…

How physicians can find jobs in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries

Fifteen years ago, my career path took a detour. As a two-physician household, we were managing my husband’s match and my job interviews in the cities he was considering.  Boston, Milwaukee, and Los Angeles – could you get any more diverse? Definitely,…

Why it’s so important for medical students and physicians to write and share their stories [PODCAST]

“I wrote a 55-word story in solidarity with my medical students and colleagues I had invited to share their lived experiences during COVID-19 on our Stories in Medicine blog. I wrote out of a need to “unmask” the guilt and angst of some of my col…

How to recruit more students into family medicine

In 2019, a Policy One-Pager produced by the Robert Graham Center reported that the percentage of the active U.S. physician workforce in primary care practice declined from 32 percent in 2010 to 30 percent in 2018. Although family physicians represent 4…

4 ways to decrease your dread of being on-call

Have you ever been faced with an upcoming shift at work and felt an impending sense of doom? This type of anticipation can be a real killjoy. However, taking calls, working nights, weekends, and holidays is all part of the job, right? Worst. Call. Ever…