Medical Humanities: the Rx for Uncertainty? Renowned physician author Danielle Ofri makes the case for how the humanities offer not only well-being for physicians but also make us better doctors through growing wisdom from knowledge and building creativity, all of which help us embrace the inherent uncertainty in medicine.
Say her name: Dr. Susan Moore Op ed about the life and death of Dr. Susan Moore, a black family physician who died of COVID in December, after recording a post relating her racist treatment while a patient.
PPE-clad doctor comforts lonely elderly covid 19 patient The doctor's new role: family member, hug, hand...heartbreaking photo shows PPE-clad doctor comforting lonely, elderly covid-19 patient
Reentry This is a NEJM perspective piece written by a palliative care doctor in NYC in light of the COVID pandemic. A snippet: "From March to June 2020, I led a palliative care team embedded in our hospital’s Covid ICU. We spoke to countless families over the phone and by Zoom calls to tell them their loved ones were critically ill, getting sicker, and eventually, dying. When the prognosis seemed dire, we recommended transitioning to comfort-focused care. And in patients’ final hours and days, we held iPads at their bedsides so that family members around the world could say goodbye."
Interview with Danielle Ofri, Author of What Doctors Feel (26:33) Discussion of the impact a provider’s emotional reaction has on the way we treat patients. Also discusses relationships between providers and patients.
At the Bedside: Stay Stoic, or Display Emotion, by Barron H. Lerner, MD For years, students were taught to avoid demonstrating emotion to patients, without consideration of the individual provider-patient relationship. While many still argue for emotional distance in the name of objectivity, newer research questions this approach.