Someone once described war as: “Long periods of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.” Similar to flying: “Hours and hours of sheer boredom punctuated by moments of stark panic.” My life is like that: Fairly mundane, ro…
Category: Radiology
The value of our time is equal
Funny (not necessarily “haha,” but sometimes that, too) how things sometimes start. Somehow something got in my shoe. It’s sort of like the sock that disappears in the dryer. We don’t know how it happens, but it seems to. In cas…
Inequity contributes to burnout among new academic physicians
I was still a resident in May 2013. My new long-distance girlfriend gave me directions to take the train from the airport to the opposite side of her massive metroplex. As is likely common for a hayseed like me, I got lost finding the correct rail stat…
A satirical response to an orthopedic surgeon’s letter to radiologists
A satirical response to “An open letter to radiologists from a jilted orthopedic surgeon.” “I feel as though there is a deepening rift between our two specialties.” You ask why the chasm has widened between our specialties. Well…
An open letter to radiologists from a jilted orthopedic surgeon
This article is satire. As an orthopedic surgeon, it has always been clear that our specialties benefit from a somewhat symbiotic relationship. We feed you patients, and you often return the favor by providing us with the needed confirmation to operate…
The exciting future of our physical exam with point-of-care ultrasound
In a 1968 episode of Star Trek, Captain Kirk is kidnapped by humanoid aliens, tortured unrelentingly, and shackled to the ceiling by his wrists. Science officer Spock and Dr. McCoy find him disheveled and minimally responsive. They release him from the…
Going to the molecular level to think big about cancer
In the next few years, the biggest advancements in cancer care may occur at the smallest level, the level of individual molecules. By imaging individual molecules on cancer cells, malignancies can be detected when they are smaller and more easily treat…
When your institution has a less than 1% hiring rate for Black residents [PODCAST]
“As soon as I realized we had so few Black residents, I began to ask around to find out if there were reasons why. One person brought up the fact that we happen to be the smaller institution between 3 other larger universities within an hour away…
Think you have an iodine allergy? You may want to reconsider. [PODCAST]
“Iodine-based contrast agents are widely used for CT and other X-ray studies. They light up blood vessels and enhance perfusing tissue. These agents are essential for diagnosing everything from clots, to tumor, to bleeding. Unfortunately, many pa…
When your institution has a less than 1% hiring rate for Black residents
The other day I was in the main hallway outside of our radiology reading rooms, which is lined with picture frames of all the residency senior classes dating back to the 1980s. I’m new to the institution, so it was nice to see all the prior residents. …
