Resident Reflections: On Freedom Without Fear in America
My last admission on my last call day of the year; only one patient stands between me and freedom. Freedom from the endless calls. Freedom from self-doubt and anxiety. Freedom.
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Resident Physician Contributing Writer
Riverside University Health System
Moazzum is a family medicine resident and public health nerd at Riverside University Health System in California. A former middle school teacher and forever Tar Heel, he leads local initiatives in community health development and physician wellness. He enjoys national parks, spoken word, and attempting to surf.
Community Health Center Funding on Life Support Unless Congress Acts
Just like many Americans, Teresa is a busy mother-of-two with a lot on her plate. When her four-year-old daughter fell ill with the flu, she was grateful that the Child Health Insurance Coverage (CHIP) their family relies on was recently reauthorized in January after four months of funding limbo.
Gunshot Victims Rushed to the Emergency Room: What It’s Like to Be Their Doctor
It seems that each week we learn of a new mass shooting. Gunfire from a legally-purchased AR-15 assault rifle hits innocent high school students, nightclub patrons, and mall-goers. A politician reassures the nation that our brave first responders are bringing the victims to a nearby hospital. The media’s report to the public generally ends, but when I hear “trauma team to ED STAT,” my work only just begins.
Top 5 Reasons You Might Want to Work Locum Tenens After Residency
Every job is different, but my experiences so far have drawn a very stark contrast to life as a resident. Now imagine, if you can: you stroll into work at whatever time you want. You round on your patients, write notes and leave. The rest of the day you give verbal orders over the phone while you hang out at the beach.
Natural Birth
On night shift as an OB/GYN resident, you are not the same person you are when you’re among the living. It might be the long hours, the lack of sleep, or the darkness creeping in from the windows, but your temper is shorter, a pager sounding sends you over the edge, and simple nursing requests leave you sour.
Uncle and Doctor: Terms of Endearment or Old-Fashioned Barriers?
On my first day of intern year, my attending corrected me in the hallway after I introduced myself to a patient by my first name. Following this, I sheepishly adopted a habit of saying “I’m Dr. Last Name” when sticking out my hand to greet a patient. In clinic, the nurses call me “Dr. Last Name,” even when saying a casual hello. When you refer to yourself as a doctor enough times, you start to believe it.
One Code Blue
We coded the woman for forty minutes. She was forty-two, and had two kids, and was perfectly fine yesterday. Now she was gone, or going, her family in the lobby, and no one with any answers.
Another Night in the Emergency Department
Another night in the emergency department in Pittsburgh’s Northside: busy, loud and chaotic. Paramedics pulled patients on stretchers and nurses pushed patients in wheelchairs through the corridors.
Please Stop Saying Thank You
You are so soft / in voice and touch, / gliding through / the mines that are set in
Flying
I have always wanted to fly / but they wouldn’t let me / until I signed a contract / built on blood and tears
Croquet in the Tall Grass
The grass grows tall outside my uncle’s home — he only cuts it when we play croquet. He blazes a crisscrossing trail through the sea of weeds to form a maze-like playing field. We push the white wickets into the earth, grab the mallets, and drop the balls to the ground.
The Patients That Deserve the Most Act the Least Entitled
“How are you doing this morning, Mr. Tracy? Sorry we’re running late. You’ve been waiting an hour.”
Fellow Physician Contributing Writer
Stanford University
Cliff was born and raised in California’s Eastern Sierra. His passions included motocross and ski racing in his hometown of Mammoth Lakes. He attended college at UCLA where he majored in anthropology and excavated pre-contact Guaymi burials on remote Panamanian shores. After graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from UCLA, he went across town to USC for medical school on an academic scholarship. His research focused on surgical education in designing perfused cadaver models and cost-effective means of delivering burn care. He graduated AOA and valedictorian, and matched into Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Stanford. Currently, Cliff is a fellow at Stanford’s Clinical Excellence Research Center on a dedicated sabbatical year learning value-based care, studying health policy, and getting a foundation in health services research. His current investigations include cost-effective delivery systems for burn and breast reconstruction patients, understanding the effects of reimbursement variation on surgeon decision making, and improving resident physician performance through targeting variation. Cliff aspires to be a burn surgeon with the goal of transforming surgical care towards high value models.
More than anything, Cliff loves spending time with his wife Cassandra, who is a patent litigator in Palo Alto. They are raising twin boys, Jake and Charlie, who have quickly become their raison-d'etre. The family of four loves traveling, including their recent trips to Tuscany and Cabo!