How to (almost) never have a bad shift

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As an added bonus, anyone who takes the [F3 Assessment]( will get a free copy of our e-book Money Insights for Physicians. --------------------------------------------------------------- KevinMD Plus: Oct 5, 2020 [How to (almost) never have a bad shift]( Walking through the sliding glass doors at 10:55 p.m. on a Monday, I found myself wondering if it would be a good shift or a bad shift. In emergency medicine, a “good shift” has to strike many delicate balances. It can’t be too busy, but it also can’t be too Q-Word-That-Must-Not-Be-Named. It should have some […] [The Trump health update that raises more questions]( A brief press conference at Walter Reed Medical Center on Saturday sought to provide answers, but may only have raised more questions about President Trump’s clinical status since his COVID-19 diagnosis. The main point of contention between White House physician Sean Conley, DO, and reporters was if the president ever received supplemental oxygen. Conley said […] [The business of women’s health: an economic burden with simple solutions]( We have been discussing the importance of women’s health for decades without significant advancement for the issues at hand. I propose a new perspective on the topic that focuses on the financial health of a business. As physicians, we do not even consider the full extent to which women’s health can impact our own business. […] [Are physicians the stewards of healing that they are meant to be?]( I am a board-certified endocrinologist, and I have been in practice for 15 years. I have seen and helped thousands of patients with various endocrine disorders over the years, and I have really gotten to understand in depth the conditions that I have specialized in. Approximately one year ago, after I have learned about the […] [Inside the mind of the surgeon writer [PODCAST]]( Explore why this general surgeon wrote a novel, and how writing helps with the stresses that accompany a surgery career. What is his #1 tip for those interested in surgery? What are the challenges facing the profession today? How can surgeons find that elusive work-play balance? And why should aspiring doctors start a journal? Arthur […] [If you really want to make a dent in physician suicide, talk about your own feelings]( September, National Suicide Prevention Month, is coming to a close. National Physician Suicide Awareness Day was September 17. What happens now that September’s over? All month, I’ve wanted to write this post. I’ve been hesitant because I’ve been grieving the loss of a dear friend who took his own life on August 30. He wasn’t […] [How the health care system fails to match its hype]( No player received as much media-generated attention heading into Super Bowl LIV as Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. All eyes were on him and, when it mattered most, the young signal-caller came through, bringing his team back from a 10-point deficit to win it all. Mahomes, 24, could teach American health care a valuable […] [Shelter in the age of COVID]( “Oh, a storm is threatening My very life today If I don’t get some shelter Ooh yeah, I’m gonna fade away.” -The Rolling Stones Shelter. It’s a safe-sounding word, a comforting word, a good ending to the story word. We have all needed shelter at one time or another in life if just to lay […] [Addressing suicide is a shared burden across health care professions]( Early on the morning of September 11th, 2017, already a solemn day for our nation, a light went out due to suicide. Our father, Patrick Vezeau, was an oral surgeon near the end of an accomplished career who quietly fought a lifelong battle with depression. He embodied the heights of achievement in his profession, and, […] [Unmasking inequality: the power of community organization during COVID-19]( In medical school, I was charged with caring for Ms. R, a 47-year-old woman with type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and rheumatoid arthritis. She had been flagged as a high priority patient through the student-run free clinic (SRFC) and assigned to me for long-term follow-up. This signified seeing her during monthly check-ups, scheduling her appointments with […] [COVID-19 through the eyes of my kids [PODCAST]]( “Living the surreal experience of the COVID-19 pandemic challenges us on multiple levels. As a physician, I feel the responsibility to understand the magnitude of the situation and implement the best measures to protect my patients, trainees, my family, and myself. I experience the fear of getting sick or losing a loved one and the […] [Infertility as a physician: the gift of perspective]( As physicians, we know all too well how life can change in an instant. How tomorrow is never promised. This knowledge can sometimes feel overwhelming, but it is also a gift. Because we know how precious life is. I am a physician—but I am also a patient. An infertility patient, for whom each passing year […] [How to be an empathetic and compassionate communicator]( One of the most annoying things for any professional, is to be face-to-face with the person you are serving—whether it be your customer, client, or patient—in the limited time available to you, and feel that your attention is being diverted from the main problem at hand. It happens to all of us; we are all […] [COVID-19 and the college experience]( Everyone seems to be walking about in disbelief. College educators and administrators are shocked. Public health officials are incredulous. Politicians are confused, and news reporters are busily shaking their heads at the numbers. Physicians, my colleagues across the country, are beside themselves. And all of this head-scratching and hand-wringing is because students went back to […] [The mysterious White House testing scheme that did not protect Trump]( President Donald Trump’s COVID-19 diagnosis is raising fresh questions about the White House’s strategy for testing and containing the virus for a president whose cavalier attitude about the coronavirus has persisted since it landed on American shores. The president has said others are tested before getting close to him, appearing to hold it as an […] [America needs to invest in proactive patient outreach now]( The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced multiple new threats for physical and mental health. The novel coronavirus itself continues to infect more than 30,000 Americans as we enter the influenza season. The pandemic, economic devastation, and racial reckoning have led to a tripling of emotional distress. Essential preventive services such as cancer screenings, childhood vaccination, maintenance visits for […] [How coronavirus took my grandfather’s life [PODCAST]]( “One of the calls you dread making as a doctor is telling a family member their loved one is dying. That was the call I received when my grandfather decompensated. We grow accustomed to making the call as clinicians, but we never expect to get it ourselves. I felt for his pulse. Slow but faint. […] [Physicians sometimes need to deviate from established policies]( Some time ago, I performed a colonoscopy on a patient who was having serious internal bleeding. He had already received multiple transfusions since he was admitted to the hospital. After obtaining informed consent for the procedure, I performed the colon exam. I encountered blood throughout the entire colon, but saw no definite bleeding site, raising the possibility that […] --------------------------------------------------------------- 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](