Medical
How physicians can share health information and manage dissent online [PODCAST]
“In the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am both hopeful and inspired as well as disappointed. I see those angry that their ideas or opinions conflict with science. Instead of the steady path and hard work of building bridges, they create division. I see many capitalizing on fear and uncertainty, weaving a compelling story…
Read MoreThe loss of a paycheck is a major traumatic situation. The loss of life is worse.
It’s mid-summer. Time for family vacations, camping trips, backyard barbeques with family and friends, all the great things we look forward to during those cold days of winter. However, where do most of us find ourselves right now? I’ll tell you where: In the clutches of COVID-19 and with no end in sight to its…
Read MoreA medical student walks out of a class. The silence that follows is what hurts most.
As a medical student, I was finally starting my clinical rotations, a time of great anticipation and celebration among medical students and their families. After two years of book learning, I was going to be called “doctor” and wear my short white doctor’s coat. I was thrilled! As we gathered in the lecture hall, and…
Read MorePhysicians’ role in bridging the COVID-19 health recommendations divide
It has been a summer of disconcerting milestones for the US. Over 4 million people have now been infected with the novel coronavirus, and over 140,000 have lost their lives according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The country reported over 77,000 new cases on July 16, a single-day record at the time. Thirty-nine states…
Read MoreAvoiding COVID-19 when following the guidelines seems impossible
By now, we all know the drill: Maintain physical distance. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Avoid people who are sick and stay away from others if you are sick. While these measures may seem simple enough, they are not easy to keep up month after month. Yet they are likely to be with us…
Read More#Medbikini unmasks bias and forces the retraction of a journal article
#Medbikini started trending on twitter after a scientifically written article published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Vascular Surgery examined social network behavior. The article entitled, “Prevalence of unprofessional social media content among young vascular surgeons,” intended to objectively and scientifically provide answers to “evaluate the extent of unprofessional social media content among recent vascular surgery…
Read MoreIs now the time for single payer?
With the news that nearly $6 million Americans have lost their employer-sponsored health due to COVID, it is finally time to ask ourselves: is the “American Model” of health care working? The “American Model” is a system of fragmentation: one in which changing jobs can mean lapses in insurance, moving to a new state can…
Read MoreWhat physicians today can learn from the history of surgery [PODCAST]
“Billroth spent long hours dissecting cadavers and planning on surgical interventions. He was able to pioneer abdominal surgery with careful preparation and strict adherence to meticulous antiseptic technique. Animal experimentation and cadaveric-rehearsed surgery emboldened the Viennese professor; perhaps the abdomen could be entered. Nothing short of a ‘godlike creative spirit,’ as Mukherjee calls it, would…
Read MoreCoronavirus takes a toll on IMGs: anxieties over USMLE Step 1 becoming pass/fail
The NBME has announced that the USMLE Step 1 exam is changing from graded on a curve to pass/fail no earlier than Jan 1, 2022. This announcement came before the coronavirus pandemic took hold and significantly disrupted pretty much everything, including medical education. Since then, given widespread Prometric center closures, study schedule disruptions, altered medical…
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