Protestors don't scare or intimidate this virus

Here are the stories you missed on KevinMD. Thank you for your continuing readership. --------------------------------------------------------------- Here are the stories you missed on [KevinMD](. Thank you for your continuing readership. --------------------------------------------------------------- Sponsors [Deliver clinical information to care teams when and where it matters most](. Watch this on-demand webinar to learn how your organization can improve crisis management and make care collaboration easier with [smarter, faster, clinical communications](. As you make plans to [reopen your medical practice during COVID-19]( consider following these 10 recommendations to [keep patients and office staff safe](. [With hundreds of telehealth solutions on the market]( and with a wide range of capabilities, how can you move quickly to implement a HIPAA-compliant solution for your practice? Plan your telehealth strategy by [downloading our eGuide](. [Tax planning for physicians]( updated with recent COVID-19 changes. Learn how to save taxes and keep more of what you make by registering for [this month’s webinars]( Make the Most of Your Home Office and Maximize Your C Corporation Fringe Benefits. --------------------------------------------------------------- KevinMD Plus: May 4, 2020 [Protestors 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 […] [Young physicians belong on the battlefront]( In the last month, we have seen surgeons and shrinks alike leave the comfort of their suburban perches in order to fight on the front lines of the coronavirus war in America. While it should be inspiring to watch retired physicians return to the field to engage in the battle of their lifetimes, we should […] [The pandemic reinforces the need of listening to patients]( Three months ago, none of us thought we would be shifting our practices from office visits and hospital rounds to telemedicine and virtual check-ins. In fact, we would have not only denied it was possible, but touted concern for the decline in patient care. As pandemic concerns reached the United States in March, telemedicine visits […] [The patient who no-shows]( “Your patient just had their 6th no-show, this exceeds our policy limit, please call to investigate barriers to care, also we recommend formal dismissal from the clinic.” The message regarding one of my obstetric patients was waiting when I opened my inbox this morning. In our primary care office, we have a policy regarding “no-shows”: […] [The 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 […] [The 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 […] [A doctor’s pro wrestler husband]( My father would have liked to know Dr. Young’s husband, Tad. Tad is a professional wrestler, the world-class wrestling kind, complete with lots of belts and awards (or so I want to believe). My father, he’s been dead a long time. He liked both boxing and wrestling, probably wrestling more. My mother liked boxing, but […] [A physician’s personal experience with sepsis and ventilator support]( The coronavirus pandemic has turned the world, and all of its citizens, around, never to be the same again. As an ICU and ventilator survivor, I focus on the drama of the patient’s room, and the reality of what is truly a tragic experience. Nineteen-ninety-eight seems like yesterday, and while it was 22 years ago, […] [Reopening Georgia is a gamble. Here’s why.]( When I first heard that my state is planning to reopen soon, I was shocked. I was busily seeing patients that day when I received an alert on my phone. Perplexed and stunned, I couldn’t help but to stop what I was doing, reached for some hand sanitizer, so that I could actually pick up […] [My 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 […] [Lockdown 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 […] [Why 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 […] [The 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 […] [Public health requires a broader, longer-term assessment of the pandemic]( Many government officials have begun to lift some restrictions on elective surgeries and procedures for hospitals. This means that some of those of us in medical professions not on the COVID-19 front lines will be returning to a workload closer to the pre-pandemic phase soon. For weeks, my radiology department has been relatively empty. Some […] [To combat COVID-19, we endanger our doctors in training]( American hospitals are quickly running out of resources during this devastating time. It’s not simply a lack of protective equipment and COVID-19 testing – health care workers are rapidly becoming exposed, which limits their ability to care for patients. One particularly vulnerable resource in danger of being exhausted: doctors in training. Historically, the American health […] [The parallels between basketball and pandemic medicine]( Michael Jordan. Kobe Bryant. Yao Ming. These are the biggest names in the basketball world, and all three were my superheroes growing up. Even though I’d never had the chance to meet them, to see how they carried themselves on and off the court-inspired me to push myself, to find out what my limits were […] [Dr. Fauci is being used as a political pawn. It’s time for that to stop.]( Dr. Anthony Fauci looks tired. His voice is raspy at times. He has become the face of resistance to the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. He is present at the daily White House briefings and various networks throughout the day, allaying people’s fears and answering questions. He does yeoman service to this country. Do we […] [After the pandemic, would I choose medicine again?]( Several weeks ago, after hearing that I plan to begin medical school this August, someone asked me if I still would have chosen to become a physician had I known about COVID-19. When I submitted my AMCAS application one year ago, I never imagined that I would be waiting in quarantine, wondering whether I will […] [Doctors, how are you holding up? You could answer in one of 5 ways.]( Multiple times a week, I get messages asking some variation of, “How are you holding up?” I am neither an anesthesiologist, critical care, or ER physician, so I’m not three inches away from exposure while intubating patients with coronavirus. I am also not a nurse or respiratory therapist in a room dozen of times a […] [How the USMLE fails COVID-19]( Since the first case of COVID-19 on January 21st, there have been countless stories highlighting the healthcare heroes. Individuals are risking their lives and demonstrating unanticipated sacrifices to close the wounds on a bleeding healthcare system. Amongst those watching these stories are students of future healthcare professions, getting a glimpse at what their lives might […] [Eliminating religious exemptions from school vaccination in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic]( Coronavirus has essentially altered life for the foreseeable future, and it’s clear to experts this public health crisis will only be defeated with development and implementation of a vaccine. While Coronavirus has shown us what life is can be without ONE vaccine, there is still the issue of acceptance of vaccines we already have. The […] [Who will care for the caregivers?]( Coronavirus is not going away anytime soon. Health care workers are already exhausted. How will the U.S. maintain a medical workforce over the long term? There is no plan in place. Hospitals started reorganizing and developing virus infection protocols weeks ago. Most health care workers have been in PPE for weeks. They are wearing masks, […] [Do masks promote a false sense of security?]( With the CDC reversing their guidelines and now recommending that the general public wear masks, many states are quickly requiring them. While wearing a mask is something tangible that people can do to feel safe and makes for a nice post on Instagram, they will, unfortunately, do little, if anything, to stop this pandemic. In […] [COVID-19 isolation doesn’t have to lead to overeating]( If you’ve felt an uptick in urges to munch and crunch your way through the day since COVID-19 has revamped our lives, you’re not alone. It’s hard enough not to fall prey to emotional and mindless eating in the best of times. Enduring skyrocketing stress while hunkered down, we need compassion for what we’re experiencing […] [Medical school testing boards are profiteering during a pandemic]( Medical students are experiencing a number of unprecedented changes in how their education is delivered. Because of COVID-19, objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) and anatomy instruction are now virtual, and exams are being remotely proctored. Leadership at medical schools, following guidance from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), suspended clinical rotations as of March […] [Coronavirus and my doctor daughter]( In March, I began receiving photographs on my social media apps of my daughter’s Match Day celebration seven years ago at Tulane Medical School. It was a glorious day, in particular, because my daughter got her first choice: Not only would she be an internal medicine resident at a top-tier hospital in New York, with […] [To every physician from the psychiatrists who are here to support you]( We know that the past two months haven’t been easy. We know about the sleepless nights, anger, tears, depression, and anxiety. We know all of this because we know what trauma does to a person, and you are in the middle of experiencing a repeated trauma. The trauma of watching patients die in ways you’ve […] [A unifying voice in the storm]( I’m pretty sure we are herding cats. No, I don’t mean the American public, though, to be honest, it could definitely apply right now. What I’m talking about is the medical community at large. The pandemic exposed major gaps in the American healthcare system. Not only were we unprepared for a pandemic, we weren’t prepared […] [I’m a new doctor, and I’m scared about the other threat to my colleagues’ lives]( In late March, on what is known as Match Day, graduating medical students like myself found out where we would continue training as residents. This has always been an exciting but stressful time. This year it is more than that. On top of the countless challenges of starting residency, we are becoming doctors on the […] [A family physician is redeployed to the emergency department.]( Two years ago, I shared my thoughts on the joy of family medicine. Two years ago, I was a senior resident working in Ann Arbor, thinking about who I will be when I graduate. Two years ago, my biggest worry was if I could finish my notes in time for sign out and meet friends […] --------------------------------------------------------------- If a friend sent you this email and you want to subscribe, go to [KevinMD](. --------------------------------------------------------------- 345 Hudson Street New York NY 10014 USA [Unsubscribe]( | [Change Subscriber Options](