Opinion
The loss of letters
Upon my skinny, adaptable desk the other day sat a white envelope that was hand addressed to me. It was postmarked more than 2 weeks before.
Opinion
Time for a rest
I asked some docs when they thought this feeling of exhaustion first began. We agreed that the pandemic, doubledemic, tripledemic, backlog have...
Opinion
Sick call
A recent Medscape survey of physicians found that 85% said they had come to work sick in 2022.
Opinion
The ‘root cause’ visit
“How did we miss out on that?” “What?” my physician friend replied as we stood in line at the coffee cart. “Root cause. I mean, we invented this...
Opinion
Dignity
We've driven medicine to the efficient and left little of the dignity it seems.
Opinion
Dig like an archaeologist
He was a fit man in his 40s. Thick legs. Maybe he was long-distance walker? The bones of his right arm were more developed than his left – a right...
Opinion
‘I shall harm’
Nocebo, from the Latin “I shall harm,” is the dark counterpart to the placebo.
Opinion
“How long, how long to sing this song?”
I thought about my patient’s suffering and the brutal injustice of fate. It feels like it’s everywhere lately.
Opinion
One weird trick to fight burnout
Why do some older workers recharge daily and carry on while many younger ones say the daily grind is burning them out?
Opinion
The work after work
Are you a super doer, reluctant doer, admin denier, or admin avoider?
Opinion
‘We don’t want to be an inspiration’
Although acknowledgment is appreciated, the women I work alongside don’t need me to be inspired by them.
Opinion
To a perfect day
Attempting a perfect day or perfect surgery or a perfect pour over coffee is a fun game, but perfectionism has an insidious side.
Opinion
Is it OK to just be satisfied?
It is possible to talk to a patient for a brief moment and just know if he or she is a satisficer or a maximizer.
Opinion
Words from the wise
When there’s time, consider asking for advice from those elders who happen to have an appointment with you.
Opinion
Timeless stories
Listening to a patient's tales is one of the benefits of being a physician.