Insights on Residency Training

October 25th, 2018

Part of the Equation, but Not Equal

Ashley McMullen, MD

Fall is finally here — the weather is changing, good TV shows are back on, and, for residency programs, interview season is fast approaching. That means it is time, once again, to choose the next class of interns to take the formative next step in their careers. In this process of selecting a few from […]

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September 12th, 2018

Good Things Take Time

Ashley McMullen, MD

My Patient The day I met you was early in my second year of Internal Medicine residency. After much of my internship had been spent on arduous inpatient rotations, I was finally ready to lead my own team of young doctors and students on a high-acuity wards service. Yet, in my continuity clinic, I was […]

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October 17th, 2017

Be Human. Be Memorable.

Karmen Wielunski, DO

My dad died on May 11, 2003. It was Mothers’ Day. I was 18 years old. Those are the easy facts. The more difficult ones are those detailing the events that led to his death. My dad was so many things — a brilliant geologist, a loving father, an inventor, a pilot, and a Vietnam […]

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September 27th, 2017

Thoughts on Caring for Sexual-Minority Patients

David Herman, MD

According to recent polling, approximately 4% of the population of the U.S. identifies as gay, lesbian, or bisexual, which equates to more than 10 million people scattered from coast to coast. In truth, this number likely underestimates the true prevalence. Despite the progress that we have made as a nation towards LGB acceptance and equality, […]

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September 18th, 2017

Beast Mode Is Back! When Actions Speak Louder

John Junyoung Lee, MD

Cal Football I bleed blue and gold. No, I am not talking about Michigan, West Virginia, or Notre Dame. I am definitely not talking about UCLA Bruins (by the way, UCLA fans, a bruin is a brown bear). That’s right — I am a die-hard Cal Bears fan. Thanks to Cal football, and particularly to legendary Marshawn […]

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May 16th, 2017

Constructive Criticism

Joseph Cooper, MD

Here are some questions that are still on my mind as I approach the tail end of my chief year. I’m thinking about the best ways to offer constructive feedback. What is the best way to approach a struggling learner? What is the best way to give guidance and feedback without being perceived as a tyrant […]

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February 24th, 2017

Z71.1: Worried Well

April Edwards, MD

I took my dog to the vet today. You’d think this would be a straightforward sort of thing for a medical professional. You’d be wrong. When I woke my dog up at 5:15am (my new daily start time, as it’s apparently the only way I can find time to do board questions, and is also the […]

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December 22nd, 2016

“Pimping”: Malignant or Not?

Joseph Cooper, MD

One of the most respected and skilled clinician-educators (and, of course, he is an Infectious Diseases specialist) at our institute came into my office, sat down, and immediately starting eating pretzels. “Let me know what you think about this,” he said between bites. He went on to recapitulate a recent interaction he had with the members […]

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October 7th, 2016

Work Mimics Life: A Failed Attempt at Separation

Amanda Breviu, MD

As physicians, we generally attempt to separate our personal lives from our work. Some of this comes from modeling behavior of others during training, some comes with further experiences in coping with the patients we encounter. I recently had the pleasure of caring for an elderly gentleman who was brought into the hospital by his loving wife […]

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August 15th, 2016

Patient Education

Jamie Riches, DO

We had known Ms. B. for weeks. She was a “bounce-back” to the unit. Every day, an intern would enter the ICU room and ask, “How do you feel?” “OK.” Do you have any pain?” “No.” “Any trouble breathing?” “No.” “Tightness in your chest?” “No.” “No? OK.” I was the senior resident following the case, 1 […]

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