The nicest patient I’ve ever met was Mr. Harris. I first met him in the ED with his son and daughter by his side, noticing a foley bag filled with bright red blood. He was an elderly gentleman with ALS and was brought by his children for hematuri…
Category: primary care
4 steps to de-escalate hostile people [PODCAST]
Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes! “The boundaries of unacceptable behavior have eroded in the past few years. Politicians, law enforcement, movie stars, health care providers, the health care system, and society, in g…
Football pervades our society so we must be prepared to deal with it
It’s not that I hate football; truly I don’t. I try hard to get into it. I scan the sports page to become familiar with names, rivalries, predictions, and opinions. I tune in to Sports Extra on Sunday nights for the weekend analysis and wra…
How this primary care doctor found his dream practice
Eleven years ago, I escaped the drudgery of the corporate medicine hamster wheel to set up a solo family practice where I could be my own boss and practice medicine my way. After 38 wonderful years as a family doctor, I am ready to retire. I hope to gi…
As doctors, caring is our poetry
Poiesis is a Greek term that evolved into the word poetry in English. According to Wikipedia, in philosophy, poiesis is “the activity in which a person brings something into being which did not exist before. Etymologically derived from the ancien…
You need to ask these questions to teens starting hormone therapy
In medical practice today, we have all types of providers in charge of birth control counseling and treatment: medical doctors, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, licensed vocational nurses, and even medical assistants who report to their licensed…
The recent closing of Amazon Care shows the magnitude of the challenge in changing health care
Amazon recently announced plans to shut down Amazon Care, an in-home and virtual health care service. The reasons cited were attributed to a significant overlap of services with the One Medical chain of clinics, which Amazon purchased in July of this y…
Use connectivity to rise above our individual and collective challenges
With so much disconnect in our world right now, it can be a challenge for some to find ways to stay connected to meaningful things, people, places, and events. I won’t belabor my own list of disconnectedness, but I imagine many of your lists are …
Physicians did not go to provider school
“If both of you are the same, then one of you is unnecessary.” That’s one of my brother-in-law’s favorite quotes, and I think it’s applicable to the ongoing debate for physicians to be called “physicians” inste…
A scientific lens on life and intuition
An excerpt from On the Path to Health, Wellbeing, and Fulfilment. Scientific research provides us with answers, and in return gives us other questions. And, when its reach is recognized, it inevitably instills a sense of awe and wonder. What science ha…
