Medical

In the HBO miniseries Chernobyl, there’s a scene where one of the supervisors, Dyatlov, is told there has been a breach of the nuclear reactor. When he hears that their radiation detectors are maxing out at 3.6 Roetgen, he casually responds, “3.6 Roetgen … not great … not terrible.” He was obviously wrong. The United…

Upon walking through the revolving door that guards the hospital’s main entrance, I was ushered by security staff to join the queues of my peers, also seeking passage to their respective posts. “The new policy,” the officer explained, examining my hospital ID to confirm that I am, indeed, an employee. Visitors are no longer allowed.…

Right now, many people are hoping for a vaccine to protect against the new coronavirus. While that’s still on the horizon, new research suggests that families who do vaccinate their children may not be following the recommended schedule. Vaccines are given on a schedule for a reason: to protect children from vaccine-preventable disease. Experts designed…

These are tremendous times that we have never faced before. A novel virus, lack of preparation time, and a healthcare system that already runs at near capacity, we have a disaster of epic proportions on our hands.  What can we do? What should we do? How can I help even if I am not on…

I am an anesthesiologist. I am trained to stay calm when everything surrounding me is going downhill. In the OR, I am the anchor. The steady hand, the ready plans. I work with skilled CRNAs who are an integral part of the team.  We do critical care medicine every day. We don’t run from the…

Many moons ago, in the 1970’s era, when no imposition from physically brutal on-call schedules to laudable scut to demeaning attendings was outside the boundaries of the house staff training curriculum, our leaders informed us that we were being introduced to the worst-case medical environment.  That familiarity with setting aside our own creature comforts would…

Physicians are, without a doubt, some of the most educated professionals around. You spend endless hours studying, taking tests, and jumping through academic hoops in the name of good grades and patient care. But is the education you are receiving truly preparing you for the practice of medicine today? Health care is now considered almost…

We are health care workers. We are doctors, advanced care practitioners, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, and so much more. We are on the frontlines. We are our parents’ children, and we are parents to our young children. For the first time, we are at an extremely high risk of being quarantined by the same beast…

Prayer is a funny thing. I guess it’s like an N95 protective mask to guard you against COVID-19. You don’t realize how valuable and precious it is until you’re without it, and sadly we are all running low. For the past 25 years of my career as an emergency physician, I bet my partner Dr.…