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."
As they rush to save lives, health care workers are updating their own wills and funeral plans The coronavirus crisis has forced those at the front lines of treatment to confront their own mortality. This article highlights a former Navy ER physician.
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.
Doctors Don't Like Fat People The overwhelming belief that patients struggling with overweight/obesity do so out of a weakness in willpower still prevails in the medical community.
Sex Talk Still Stigmatized in the Doctor’s Office Article describes why many patients hesitate to bring up sex and sexual dysfunction in the doctors office, and why many doctors are uncomfortable broaching the topic. Author recommends that patients should not feel uncomfortable raising the topic with physicians if they have a question or concern.
Weight Stigma: Doctors Guilty of Prejudice Against Obese, Too by Lisa Nainggolan Healthcare workers, even those who work at hospitals dedicated to research and treatment of obesity, are biased against those who are obese. The healthcare implications are obvious…and worrisome.
You Can’t Quit Cold Turkey by Tommy Tomlinson Jared Lorenzen set the record for passing touchdowns at the University of Kentucky and later won a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants. His last stop was with the Western Kentucky River Monsters, where at well over 320 pounds, he played quarterback. In this story and video, he shares his perspective on his challenges with weight.
Poor Treatment of Mentally Ill Violates Their Human Rights by Lisa Schlein A follow-on to When Doctors Discriminate by Julianne Garey – learn more about the stigma of discrimination and what the World Health Organization has called “a hidden human rights emergency.”
When Doctors Discriminate by Juliann Garey On average, people who have mental illness die 25 years earlier than those without one. Could this be due (at least in part) to a disparity in the care they receive as a result of healthcare workers’ stigma?