Medical
Rising to the moment COVID demands: How to insure all Americans in pandemic times
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented upheaval of the U.S. health care system. For decades the United States has stood out among peer nations as the only country with no universal health care system. And now we are learning just how problematic it is to tie insurance to employment — an unintended consequence of…
Read MoreThe unsettling result of a negative coronavirus test
As a psychologist, I have long been aware of some of the emotional impacts that illnesses like COVID-19 can have on individuals and families. I never imagined that I would experience some of these impacts directly. Furthermore, I never could have guessed what it would feel like to be told I tested negative for COVID-19…
Read MoreThe unspoken death toll of COVID-19: suicide
Today I woke up to the news that a fellow physician died by suicide. As I read the article, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. My eyes watered. They still do, as I write this piece. Although I did not personally know Dr. Lorna M. Breen, an ER doctor in New York City, the loss…
Read MoreThe new meaning of the phrase, “going viral”
The phrase “going viral” will probably never evoke the same benign meaning or be used in such an innocent fashion as it was prior to January 2020. One might attribute its evolution into popular vernacular to Richard Dawkins, who coined the word “meme” in his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, as a concept for evolutionary…
Read MoreWeight loss can help head off lasting damage caused by fatty liver
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common cause of liver disease in the United States, and is estimated to affect up to a quarter of adults in the world. It is defined by excess fat accumulating in the liver and usually occurs in people with obesity, high blood sugars (diabetes), abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride…
Read MoreWhy you should support physician health plans
Some physicians have opined their belief that physician health plans (PHP) are contributing to the increasing physician suicidality. These beliefs have been used to attack PHPs and unfortunately, steer those in need to other resources or even have those in need not getting help. Blaming the PHP for suicide is like blaming the physician who…
Read MoreLockdown panic syndrome, and how to fix it
The worldwide pandemic over COVID-19, and the heavy-handed government response to it, has generated a wide range of reaction among patients. As a family physician and a psychiatrist, we have seen some patients adapting well. On the other hand, many feel anxious over the thought of getting the illness or experience other negative emotional responses…
Read MoreProtestors don’t scare or intimidate this virus
They scream and holler and march. Open up the U.S. This is a hoax. Coronavirus is deadly. Invisible as the virus makes its trek across our U.S. Across the universe. Nurses and doctors and respiratory therapists are being named heroes. Signs and banners and free meals and cookies and doughnuts and loads of adoration come…
Read MoreMy rose-colored glasses are my secret instrument for survival
A dear midwife teacher of mine, during my intern year as an OB/GYN, told me, “You need to stop wearing those rose-colored glasses.” She told me I had to take them off to be able to understand the depth and breadth of what my patients were telling me, so I could read between the lines…
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