With the coming end of the public health emergency, our three-year pandemic will be officially (if not completely) over, and we will be left to contemplate what’s next. As much as we’d all appreciate a return to normal, we may be better off…
Category: Psychiatry
Finding hope and purpose amidst profound loss [PODCAST]
Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes! In this episode, we speak with Colin Campbell, author of Finding the Words: Working Through Profound Loss with Hope and Purpose. Colin shares his personal experience of losing his children …
The Kentucky Derby: factors that contribute to winning the most prestigious horse race in the world, and what medical training can learn from them
The Kentucky Derby is an annual horse race held in Louisville, Kentucky, on the first Saturday in May. It is considered one of the most prestigious horse races in the world and is the first leg of the Triple Crown of thoroughbred racing, followed by Pr…
Breaking the stigma: Encouraging mental health help-seeking in medical trainees
I won’t judge you for asking for help because that is how I hope you treat me. It took me five years to accept the fact that I needed help. As I pursued athletic endeavors at the highest level in high school and college, my mind developed a twist…
Physician burnout: the impact of social media on mental health and the urgent need for change
Burnout is an increasingly common phenomenon affecting approximately 63 percent of physicians. The etiology is multifactorial, with excessive workloads leading to sleep deprivation and curtailed self-care. Social media is a significant contributor to b…
Medicine is a joke, except no one is laughing
My brother and I like to swap stories about our medical encounters. I suppose our ages – 69 for me and 74 for him – lead to varied encounters and tales. “It’s a sh*t-show,” he tells me from his home on Martha’s Vineyard. “…
Not treating addiction in criminal justice settings violates the 4 ethical principles in medicine
As physicians, we are bound by four ethical principles. Beneficence (acting for the benefit of the patient), nonmaleficence (avoiding the harm of the patient), autonomy (respecting patients’ right to make their own decisions), and justice (fair a…
The cannabis education gap: Why patients are left in the dark
Imagine that you are suffering from chronic pain. The pain keeps you awake at night so you don’t get much sleep. Lack of sleep most nights and the ensuing chronic fatigue causes you some anxiety during the day. Your primary care physician suggests that…
A glimmer of hope for a child with suicidal ideations
Eleven-year-old Abby sat nervously in the emergency department, her eyes darting around the room as she clutched Patches, her beloved stuffed sheep. Her guardian sat beside her, anxiety etched on her face as she explained the situation to me. Abby had …
Are doctors ready to discuss psychedelic therapies with patients?
As I’m pre-charting for my primary care clinic, I see Ms. C on the schedule, whom I know well through our nearly monthly follow-up visits over the past two and a half years of residency. We talk in Spanish as it’s her preferred language. Sh…
