September 20th, 2016
Academic Near Miss
Jamie Riches, DO
I began one of my PGY2 medical oncology rotations alongside my co-resident: an MD/PhD, fast-track (pre-matched into fellowship) future oncologist. Among my three interns that rotation, two were “Harvard kids.” Needless to say, I was intimidated. My colleague and counterpart not only had the entire catalogue of genomic alterations at the tip of his tongue, […]
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 […]
August 1st, 2016
Four-Oh-Wunk
April Edwards, MD
I’m April, and I’m the incoming PGY-5 Chief for the Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Residency in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Just last month, I had my 4th graduation from something since I finished high school. Residency, it turns out, is long and hard. I’ve spent tons of hours practicing the art of sphincter control each time that […]
July 15th, 2016
What Is Resilience?
Jamie Riches, DO
NEJM Journal Watch is happy to welcome a new panel of Chief Resident bloggers for the 2016-2017 academic year. Here’s a sample of what our new bloggers will be discussing, starting on August 1! “Resilience” is defined as the capability of a strained body to recover its size and shape after deformation caused especially by compressive stress. […]
June 24th, 2016
The Scam of Medicine
Ahmad Yousaf, MD
“Oh no, she’s calling again.” I look at the caller ID in the Chiefs’ office where I sit with one of my co-Chiefs. It is the Documentation Lady. Her call is as regular as BMs with C. diff: Profuse, excessive, associated with a lot of hot air and a bunch of crap, but inevitable. We play […]
June 17th, 2016
My Last Day in Greece
Ahmad Yousaf, MD
Reflections and observations from my last day in Greece as part of the SAMS (Syrian American Medical Society) medical mission for Syrian refugees: 1) It rained during clinic hours. It was a bit inconvenient for the team. For the refugees, it was catastrophic. Their tents, already damaged, allow the drops of precipitation to find their ways in and soak […]
May 23rd, 2016
My Third Day in Greece
Ahmad Yousaf, MD
1) At one point today in the Idomini refugee camp, I was playing catch with a beautiful baby girl in between some of the tents. She could not have been much older than my own daughter and, like my daughter, would throw the ball backwards over her head instead of towards me and then would […]
May 22nd, 2016
My Second Day in Greece
Ahmad Yousaf, MD
1) The following are real conversations the team has had with patients/refugees in our short time here: Young lady who came in with urinary symptoms: “How old are you?” “I am 27 years old… I hope this is the last year of my life.” Teenage male: “I have to get out of here. I’ve spent 3 months of my […]
May 21st, 2016
My First Day in Greece
Ahmad Yousaf, MD
I am participating in the SAMS (Syrian American Medical Society) medical mission in Greece. 1) Loneliness is truly the darkest consequence of this crisis. The Syrian people haven’t just been kicked out of their homes. They were stripped away from their neighborhoods, friends, and family via death, destruction, sickness, and tough decisions that they had to make about splitting […]
May 13th, 2016
“Be Careful. He’s Violent.”
Briana Buckner, MD
“Be careful. He’s violent.” That was the way sign out began for Mr. T. The intern continued, “He has been in the hospital forever because he was kicked out of his nursing home. Good luck. And, oh yeah… he’s blind.” Puzzled, I looked at my list of patients and, not sure whether I should write […]
2021-2022 Chief Resident Panel
Abdullah Al-abcha, MD
Mikita Arora, MD
Madiha Khan, DO
Khalid A. Shalaby, MBBCh
Brandon Temte, DO
Resident chiefs in hospital, internal, and family medicine
Learn more about Insights on Residency Training.
