Combating Burnout Through Advocacy: A Resident’s ACGME Journey
One evening, overwhelmed by burnout, I drafted a letter of resignation to my program director and saved it on my computer. The next morning, I deleted the email without sending it.
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Resident Physician Contributing Writer
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Dr. Amanda Pannu is a PGY-4 Chief Resident at the University of Rochester Family Medicine Residency Program. For the past 2 years, she has served as the Resident Representative on the ACGME Review Committee of Family Medicine. She is passionate about education and resident wellbeing. She will be joining The Ohio State University as a core faculty member this summer.
Systems-Based Thinking: How Subconscious Thought Affects Medical Decision Making
System-based thinking describes a set of subconscious thought processes aptly named System 1 and System 2. The profession of medicine relies heavily on SBT — the ability to rapidly diagnose, treat, and improvise during stressful situations is dependent on these systems, which develop and mature throughout one’s training.
A Modest Proposal: There is No Substitute for Time in Medicine
Physician burnout has emerged as an increasingly concerning phenomenon in medicine. As high as 51% of physicians in a Medscape survey report symptoms of burnout. Doctors face higher demands with less time and support. Academic medical centers, which historically have been insulated from outside forces, are now seeing larger patient censuses, leaving less time for physicians to work through each patient’s case carefully.
Locker Room Culture in Medicine
“Locker room culture” is a common trope that has been used to describe medical community of the recent past. Current practitioners will say that culture is, unfortunately, still prevalent.
I Think He is Ready
Mrs. Red Jacket sat at the bedside in her isolation gown which covered her red jacket. She had left her walker outside her husband’s room. Mrs. Red Jacket held his hand and gazed out the window while he was sleeping.
Morning Coffee
I often arrive before sunrise and leave long after sunset, enduring unpredictable and challenging schedules while juggling multiple competing responsibilities.
Hope Lost and Found
At the beginning of my intern year, I bought a ukulele. I started intern year at a sprint, like anyone does, arms full of hope. This was quickly extinguished, lost in an atmosphere so devoid of hope that it all flew out of my arms to settle into places so far apart, it might as well have been floating in the vacuum of space.
Kusama: On Humanism in Psychiatry
I first heard of Yayoi Kusama last year when her spellbinding exhibit came to the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C. Admittedly late to the international zeitgeist of Kusama, what initially drew me in was her story — a Japanese-American avant-garde artist who suffered from severe mental illness and successfully transformed that suffering into riveting artwork.
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.
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.
Attending Physician Contributing Writer
Guam Memorial Hospital
John Dougherty went to medical school at Northwestern University and residency at New York University. He is board certified in internal medicine and practices at Guam Memorial Hospital in Tamuning, Guam, and Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska.