Social stigma makes the opioid crisis hard to confront (7min) There are many reasons why the opioid crisis is so hard to confront. One of them is social stigma. It often extends beyond users themselves, to their families. People see addiction as a moral weakness, and by extension, the moral weakness of their families.
When drinking ruins your liver - should you qualify for a transplant? When patients develop alcohol liver disease, they are often forced to wait 6 months to prove they can abstain from alcohol before they will be considered for a transplant. Is that a fair amount of time? Is that a fair practice at all?
Withholding surgery: How gaps in policy fail people who inject drugs A recent New York Times article described a harrowing situation faced by some people who inject drugs and develop endocarditis, a life-threatening infection caused by bacteria that enter the bloodstream and settle in the heart. The article described doctors in Tennessee deciding whether to perform repeat costly heart surgeries on patients who were re-infected with endocarditis as a result of ongoing illicit drug use—and at times declining to operate. There are policy failures that are to blame, too, for how and why resources are allocated this way. This looks at those failures and how our bias influences both the policies and how they are applied.
Injecting Drugs can ruin a heart - how many second chances should a user get? A life-threatening heart infection afflicts a growing number of people who inject opioids or meth. Costly surgery can fix it, but the addiction often goes unaddressed.
The Fix (whole episode - 43min) This episode we take a sober look at the throbbing, aching, craving desire states that return people (again and again) to the object of their addiction … and the pills that just might set them free.
Deconstructing White Privilege (22min) Dr. Robin DiAngelo is the author of What Does it Mean to Be White? Developing White Racial Literacy and has been an anti-racist educator, and has heard justifications of racism by white men and women in her workshops for over two decades. This justification, which she calls “white fragility,” is a state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves. These moves include outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stress-inducing situation.
Muslim doctor: My patient refused to let me treat her because of my religion How Dr. Jalal Baig handled a patient who refused to be treated by her because she is Muslim, and how the goodness she draws from that religion helped her cope with the hurtful situation in a positive way.
A Conversation About Race, Fear and Connection Dr. Paul Gross discusses the role racism has played in his life, the power of connection, and how racial inequality continues to impact the healthcare and lives of children to this day.
Why I keep speaking up, even when people mock my accent Safwat Saleem asks us to challenge the definition of "normal" in this speech on racism and finding your voice.
The disturbing reason some African American patients may be undertreated for pain A research study conducted at the University of Virginia reveals the biased opinions that may be underlying poor pain-management care for African Americans.
When Whites Just Don't Get It, Part 6 The job market is not equal for blacks and whites - not even necessarily due to explicit racism, but by at times unconscious, but biased decision-making among white employers.
Deconstructing White Privilege (22min) Dr. Robin DiAngelo is the author of What Does it Mean to Be White? Developing White Racial Literacy and has been an anti-racist educator, and has heard justifications of racism by white men and women in her workshops for over two decades. This justification, which she calls “white fragility,” is a state in which even a minimum amount of racial stress becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves. These moves include outward display of emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and behaviors such as argumentation, silence, and leaving the stress-inducing situation.
Why Black Mothers Die - 12 min A look at why black moms die at a higher rate than white moms, despite status and resources....
Muslim doctor: My patient refused to let me treat her because of my religion How Dr. Jalal Baig handled a patient who refused to be treated by her because she is Muslim, and how the goodness she draws from that religion helped her cope with the hurtful situation in a positive way.
A Conversation About Race, Fear and Connection Dr. Paul Gross discusses the role racism has played in his life, the power of connection, and how racial inequality continues to impact the healthcare and lives of children to this day.
Why I keep speaking up, even when people mock my accent Safwat Saleem asks us to challenge the definition of "normal" in this speech on racism and finding your voice.
Project Implicit A series of implicit association tests that offer insight into our implicit biases.