As someone who has long worked on health equity issues and with patients who look, speak and think differently from me I have always held that the impacts of cultural concordance between caregivers and their patients are perhaps over-exaggerated. Time, compassion, a willingness to learn, and sufficient empathy could in my mind allow a physician […]
Book Review for New Year – Atomic Habits
Going into the new year, I am certain most of us have resolutions or goals we hope to achieve, especially with the dismal climate of 2020. One of my own professional and personal goals is to read more scientific literature and stay up-to-date on COVID-19 news. I feel this is especially important as a medical […]
Book Review – The Checklist Manifesto
It is so easy to become caught up in the tasks you must complete daily, not only at work in the medical field but also in your daily life. In this short, concise piece, Atul Gawande illustrates how the answer to reducing medical errors and accidental omissions in the operating room may be simpler than […]
Hope in the New Year
This new year, I am feeling hopeful. I feel there is promise. I am so grateful for our scientists. I am so grateful for the advancements in medicine. I believe in science and I sure do believe in medicine. What a career path I have chosen to exemplify both! What a year 2020 has been—a […]
This Intern Year Moment Validated Why I Became A Physician
A mentor once told me to document every special moment and positive words my patients would share with me. He told me that there will be times in my career and my journey where I will have rainy days. If I document the sunny days with rainbows, I’ll always be able to remind myself why […]
Zoom Interviews: Resident Perspective
Crazy to think that around this time I was finishing my interviews and now I am on the other side having the privilege of interviewing amazing candidates for our program. To be perfectly honest, I feel for all of the candidates this year applying for residency given the current circumstances. Not only have audition rotations […]
Self-Care Favorites
I wanted to use this post for some fun light-hearted favorite items that I like to use during residency not only for my own personal well-being but also as essential items that help me during my long days. On-Call Bag: I might have mentioned this little bag before but I wanted to go into detail […]
Book Review: The Great Influenza
The Great Influenza, by John M Barry, chronicles the cataclysm that was the 1918-1919 Spanish Flu pandemic. It follows the efforts of a handful of scientists as they raced to understand the disease that was sweeping across the globe and their desperate quest to develop therapies that could save lives. Barry grippingly captures the horror […]
The Language of Addiction
Words matter, and even more so in medicine. There has been a movement in the last several years to adopt a person-first language of disease that emphasizes the humanity of each individual and divests them from any diseases they might have. Thus, someone is not a diabetic or a schizophrenic, they are a person with […]
SMART Goals for 2021
2020 was a difficult year on many levels. The pandemic, police violence, and a contentious election all cast a shadow over this past year and with so many things that seem wrong with the world, it would be easy to fall into despair. But the new year is a time for hope and a time […]
