Category: surgery

Resilience is the vaccine med students need right now. Coaching can help.

Whether or not you’re a health care provider, chances are you’ve spent the year thinking, talking, and reading about health care.  We’ve had national conversations about everything from the global pandemic to rising health care costs to rationing resou…

Issues faced by LGBTQ individuals in the operative setting [PODCAST]

“Studies have repeatedly demonstrated a vast majority of pain physicians don’t feel like they have adequate training in meeting the unique needs of this patient population, though most agree that such efforts are very necessary. This disconnect b…

Why this plastic surgeon closed his practice to become a high school science teacher

Imagine turning off your pager forever. If you are a solo-practitioner on call 24 hours a day, I suspect this thought has crossed your mind. Coordinating time off for vacation, being constantly interrupted at your children’s recital or athletic e…

Second victim syndrome: The pain of unexpected and tragic deaths lingers with physicians

You were a twenty-one-year-old Black man. When we received you, your eyes were open I asked if you could hear me You whispered a phone number and “Mom.” To the green sterile operating room With your breaths of anesthesia, Your final conscious moments Y…

I could not save this life with every possible medical tool at my disposal

An excerpt from The Healer’s Burden: Stories and Poems of Professional Grief. Leaning on the door of Trauma Bay 1, I survey the remains of my latest failure. The story is told in the bloody and jumbled instrument trays, monitors now silent and da…

Surgical smoke evacuators and inertia in the time of COVID

As an anesthesiologist, I fully understand that providers in my specialty, along with emergency room and intensive care providers, must care for patients with COVID-19 at close physical range during aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) such as tracheal…

Advice to aspiring medical students on work-life balance

I recently met a student and aspiring surgeon who asked me if I was happy with anesthesiology and a career in medicine in general. I told him that aspiring to medicine is wonderful and that while I am indeed happy with my career choice, it does come wi…

Why can’t I cover my operating rooms?

The practice of anesthesiology is the practice of medicine. People who go to medical school and do a residency in anesthesiology are best equipped to deal with anesthetic delivery because they are qualified physicians before starting four years of spec…

What type of tummy tuck is right for you?

You may already be aware of what a tummy tuck is and who should get one. One thing, perhaps, you’re confused about is what kind of tummy tuck would work best for you. If that is correct, worry not. We’ve got you covered. There are several different typ…

Will women in medicine survive COVID-19?

How are two-career households with children — let alone single-parent households — going to manage with daycare centers and schools closed, perhaps for a long time to come? What damage will this do to career progression and earning potential if one par…