Medical

I am 64 years old. I was a nurse for 34 years, retiring a year, and three months ago, I worked on the medical-surgical floor, ICU, and the last 30 years, in the emergency room. I retired because I’d had enough. This year has changed me. My life no longer revolves around my ER job.…

Saying no is hard. Even harder if you happen to be kind. You want to help, to make people smile, you want them to like you. Saying no doesn’t come easy. We’ve never been taught to say no. Ever since we were toddlers, we’ve been conditioned to say yes. Rolling on the floor in a…

In February, the manufacturer of the weight-loss medication lorcaserin (Belviq, Belviq XR) voluntarily withdrew the drug from the US market at the request of the FDA. This was a result of emerging data showing that people who had taken the drug as part of a large clinical trial had an increased occurrence of cancer five…

The novel coronavirus continues to rage through America, with the total cases standing at more than 210,000 and the death toll at over 5,000. It is without question that our seniors–those 65 years of age or older–will bear the brunt of the health consequences of COVID-19 and the projected American death toll of up to…

It was 2013. High-tech entrepreneurs were excitedly “disrupting” industries, bringing goods and services closer to users. Uber replaced cabs, Kickstarter replaced investors, and telehealth companies offered convenient, at-home medical care over smartphone video. Why waste time going to an office or clinic, especially if you’re not feeling well? Why spend so much money? The physician’s…

This is almost a full month of quarantine for me. I started this journey early before it was a requirement for all, as a physician with a history of a spontaneous coronary artery dissection,  I knew it would be bad if I didn’t stay put. I risk falling victim to an invisible enemy. Now quarantine…

Fat. One tiny word. One voluptuous, full-figured concept. Several weeks ago, amidst a conversation regarding the risk factors for cholelithiasis (i.e., gallstones) during a chief concern small group session for preclinical students, my preceptor ushered in an aurally convenient yet unsettling mnemonic utilizing alliteration that has apparently been in the works among medical education for…

We have all listened repeatedly to the many confused, confusing, and misleading statements coming from the White House in the midst of this pandemic, unprecedented in its scope and existential threat. Responding to all the misstatements would be a full-time job. However, the barrage of reckless comments made about drug treatments for COVID-19 during a…

As I get ready for work, my children, aged 3, 8 and 14, run to me and give me hugs so tight that I catch my breath. It also makes me realize that I have now developed a soft tummy that will need hours in the gym to flatten out. Flatten the curve, so to…