Education
The rural health care crisis and medical education
Decades of job loss, the opioid crisis, and the current pandemic have all shaken the already tenuous health care system of rural America. This is happening in the wealthiest nation on Earth, with a GDP of over 20 trillion dollars. Why is this happening? And how can the medical education system better prepare future physicians…
Read MoreIf I listen hard enough, each patient has a sacred story to share
From a medical perspective, Mr. G’s case seemed straightforward. His GFR had fallen. His kidneys were failing. Dialysis would be required as the best treatment for his renal condition. When I met with Mr. G later in the afternoon, he was in despair. He could not see how dialysis would save his life and expressed…
Read MoreThe impact of current work hour restrictions and OSHA misclassification on house staff health
Over 100,000 medical and surgical resident physicians and fellows (combined, “house staff”) are the first-line physicians for most patients in the nation’s 1,100+ teaching hospitals. Maximum weekly work hours regulated by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) are colloquially cited to be 80 per week. Notably, however, they are 80 hours averaged over…
Read MoreInstead of comparing, let’s nurture the next generation of physicians
Years and years ago, everyone always walked up a mountain of snow and ice barefoot while dragging a carriage behind them to get to school, and their stethoscopes were made of bamboo. They were hard, hard times, and it was a time-honored tradition to hear the talk from our attendings about how hard training used…
Read MoreOn being Asian American: “Where are you really from?”
As a child, I was no stranger to the medical field. In kindergarten, while my classmates brought a pet frog, a family heirloom, or their favorite toy for show-and-tell, I brought a kidney stone the size of a plum. My family unites Eastern and Western medicine; my mother is a licensed acupuncturist, and my father…
Read MoreHuman elements: How Primo Levi brought science to life
He studied at Turin, worked as a chemist until the age of 24, and in 1943 he resisted Nazi occupation of Italy with a group of countrymen. Italian fascists arrested him, turned him over to the Germans, and sent him to Auschwitz in 1944. He arrived on a train packed with six hundred and fifty…
Read MoreSocial services resource overload: How using a simple interactive map can help
Stacks of flyers ranging from local free dinners to legal services collecting in a box or filing cabinet are familiar scenes in student-run clinics (SRCs). To anyone who has worked in social services, maintaining organization and keeping up-to-date resources can be a frustrating and common challenge. Across the nation, SRCs generally serve homeless, at-risk, and…
Read MoreVirtual Triple-I Forum Reviews 2020, Looks Ahead at Risks, Opportunities
Sean Kevelighan, Triple-I CEO Insurance is a business that promotes and demands resilience, and 2020 was a year-long case study in our industry’s ability to respond rapidly to new challenges from a firm financial foundation. Triple-I’s virtual Joint Industry Forum (JIF) provided many examples from a range of industry and academic leaders, along with insightful…
Read MoreEmotional support animals for health care providers
Me: “Hey buddy, how was your day?” Salem: “Meow meow meow!” Me: “Really? That sounds so cool! What else did you do today? I missed you so much!” My favorite part of each day is coming home to my sweet boy, Salem. He is a 2-year-old cat that I adopted from the Capital Area Humane…
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