The Podcast by KevinMD

"The weekend after Isabelle's discharge, I take my shoes outside onto the driveway. The sky is a brilliant blue, and green tinges of leaves poke through shells of buds; the wind slips through my fleece. I scrub the spots of blood with an antibacterial wipe, and tan shoe polish comes off instead, leaving the burgundy spots haloed and dark. Next, I smear shoe polish into the leather and brush away the brown curds of polish with a horsehair brush. The drops of blood remain. All these years later, those spots are still there, and I think of Isabelle every time I wear those tan shoes. And like those marks on my shoes, memories of babies and families remain etched in my mind—stories of failures, tragedies, successes, and joys. Our patients become an inextricable part of our lives. We carry their stories with us." Benjamin Rattray is a neonatologist. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "Our patients become an inextricable part of our lives." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"The way to do this is by recognizing the power of words. I don't mean fervently declaring one's position and arguing why those who disagree are wrong. There has been way too much of this, and health professionals are no exception. Rather what's needed to deliver the best health outcomes for the most people is listening, engaging and having something to offer that misinformation peddlers don't — interventions that work. It's also time to recognize the importance of innovating how those of us in health professions communicate. COVID has made it clear that getting your message across is an essential part of health care — the best interventions in the world can do nothing if people do not believe in them. Effective communication strategies should be pursued, studied, innovated and taught with the same rigor as the biological aspects of medicine. Biomedical innovation has been a resounding success in creating vaccines and treatments to fight the COVID pandemic. Now let's put the same effort into understanding how to tackle the health care concerns of different communities and how to reach across the political divide with empathy. That's how we end the misinformation pandemic." Ellen F. Foxman is an immunologist. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "How to end the misinformation pandemic." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"Stress is just part of the alcohol con trick. And the truth is that every benefit we have ever imagined alcohol giving us it doesn't. It is a drug, and it works the same way as all other drugs. Many of my clients are doctors and nurses, and some are in the role of advisor for alcohol issues, and yet are themselves caught in the alcohol trap. This shows how endemic the problems are and how little is understood. The great news here is that when you start waking up to the truth, you are beginning to get wise, and that gives you the power to get wiser still." Michaela Weaver is an alcohol coach. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Stress: Is it time to expose the alcohol con?" Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"Crowdfunding models of paying for health care maximize the probability that all members' eligible bills will be paid in full each month. These models come without the burdens of skyrocketing premiums and deductibles. Unlike traditional models, members aren't chained to yearly contracts and have more flexibility and autonomy with crowdfunded models." Andy Schoonover is a health care executive. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "Open enrollment: It's time to leave your insurance plan behind." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"Virtually everyone understands the importance of major medical insurance as it relates to unexpected high-dollar care for severe injuries and significant medical conditions, but the value equation for health insurance is quite different when applied to coverage for primary care services. The full potential cost for primary care services is neither expensive nor unpredictable. Routine and preventive care and the management of most acute illnesses and the majority of chronic disease processes by primary care physicians would be quite affordable for most Americans even if they had no health insurance. The involvement of health insurance in the relationship between patients and their primary care physicians introduces several major challenges and disadvantages. Here are the six primary areas of concern." Troy A. Burns is an internal medicine physician and author of Medical Answers Now!: How Direct Primary Care Guarantees Fast Access to Your Doctor. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "6 major disadvantages of insurance involvement in primary care." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"The data are remarkable and promising, though beyond the numbers is a bigger picture. Each data point represents a life – a mother, uncle, grandparent, loved one, friend. Technological advances in image guidance and therapeutic delivery are allowing us to extend life – and quality of life – for patients who previously thought they were facing sudden death. Seeing these patients celebrate another birthday, travel somewhere new, and achieve major milestones is humbling and what drives my work every day. I believe these improved survival findings are just the tip of the iceberg. With MRI-guided radiation therapy, we're changing the paradigm in the treatment of pancreatic cancer, and I venture to guess that through continued awareness, research and innovation, I may be fortunate enough to present findings that rival even these someday soon." Michael Chuong is a radiation oncologist. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "How MRI-guided radiation therapy is changing the paradigm in pancreatic cancer." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"The unvaccinated patient is the addicted person, the overweight patient, the smoker in the waiting room. Our antipathy toward them endangers their health, maybe their lives. The unvaccinated will not be convinced with stigma. They will be convinced with integrity, sincerity, and love. Stigmatization has never been an effective health intervention. And that's exactly what these reflexive responses to the unvaccinated are. It's not righteousness, as if righteousness ever helped in an examining room. These days, maintaining grace and an open heart to the unvaccinated is the most ethical practice a physician can undertake." Stephanie Sun is an internal medicine physician. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Anger toward the unvaccinated will only cause more harm." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"Physicians, nurses, advanced practice providers, medical assistants, and other health care workers are a finite resource. They don't grow on trees. And, though we all seem to deny it, they are human. The physicians I coach often wonder what they are doing wrong that their lives feel impossible. They are baffled by their inability to finish work on time, get the number of open charts down, clear their in-basket. They worry about the effects on their families and on their health and about whether they will later regret the long hours at work or charting at home when their children are hoping to engage with them. Poor work-life integration, when the needs of work and personal life collide, is a contributor to clinician burnout." Diane W. Shannon is an internal medicine physician and physician coach and can be reached at her self-titled site, Diane W. Shannon. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Hello, health care organization leader, are you listening?" Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"Six air changes per hour and HEPA grade filtration of indoor air for our children is an investment in their futures for long beyond when the COVID-19 pandemic fades from view. We know there is poor indoor air quality in multiple schools, from inadequate ventilation to air pollution to wildfire smoke. Kids learn better and have less absenteeism in healthy air. COVID-19 has just added fuel to that fire. Let this be a torch to light our way forward to healthy indoor air- starting right now. Most importantly, we need to make sure this opportunity is available to all children, particularly those who have often been left behind in this pandemic. Heartbreakingly, there are kids who never logged on last year or showed up to school, and may have families afraid to send them this year. There are federal funds available from the COVID-19 relief bills to ensure that we can provide this assistance even to already financially-distressed schools. Nothing will ever make our children completely safe, which is the persistent ache of being a parent. However, they deserve a school year in person if possible, and we as the adults in their lives, should do our best to make sure they get it. Don't buy your kids' teachers apples this year. Get them some HEPA filters." Erika Maria Moseson is a pulmonary and critical care physician. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Clearing the air our kids share: a prescription for healthy schools." Reflect and earn 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 CME for this episode.

"I imagine I would have, as I'm sure so many others do, headed to the Internet, reading both accurate and inaccurate information. While much of my visit with my genetic counselor feels like a blur, I left that meeting with a list of answered questions, referrals to specialists, contact information for virtual support groups, and a friend by my side holding my hand. I am grateful that I know about my mutation and live by the phrase "knowledge is power." But when I imagine the thousands of people receiving the news that they have Lynch through a report, I prefer to believe that knowledge is power only when it is accompanied by context and support. March is colon cancer awareness month, and March 22nd is Lynch Syndrome Awareness Day. There is no better time to make a plan to talk about the history of cancer in your family with your loved ones, including the tough topic of colon and rectal cancers; consult a genetic counselor. And arm yourself not only with knowledge but context and support." Kerry E. Evers is a psychologist. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "With Lynch Syndrome, knowledge alone isn't power."