Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

The power of online physician platforms

Louis J. Riccardo, DO
Physician
March 30, 2022
6 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

I have nothing but praise for online physician platforms, like KevinMD. Mental health has been a major issue among physicians, including me, and secrecy and bottling up these depressive feelings tends to worsen depression. Being open and writing my heart out is a coping mechanism and is one of the coping mechanisms (in addition to altruism) that has prevented me from relapsing and going back to my life of dealing and using cannabis and ecstasy.

You may have all heard of Dr. Lorna Breen and how she committed suicide due to stressors from the COVID pandemic; in fact, President Biden recently passed a law named after her to help providers with mental illness. But I hypothesize that this is only half the story. I hypothesize that the other half is that due to the social expectations that health care providers are supposed to suffer in silence (as venting is a sign of weakness), she had to bottle up her emotions and was unable to blog on the worldwide web, tell the world about how she feels, and reach out to the world for help or advice.

I have been able to blog and tell the world about how I feel and about how I still sometimes crave ecstasy and cannabis, about how I still have flashbacks of how I failed the COMLEX board exams despite them being easier than the USMLE exams, and about how I wonder why I make more mistakes in patient care than my peers due to my bipolar depression and concentration issues due to my racing thoughts due to bipolar depression.

I have been able to recruit mentees and am starting to give advice and scholarship money to mentees linking my name at the end of each article I write. Altruism is said to be a mature coping mechanism. And that is a coping mechanism that I am able to use (in addition to writing) instead of going back to my old ways of trafficking and abusing cannabis and ecstasy.

I am receiving a lot of positive reviews and comments through my website. These positive reviews help make up for any feelings of worthlessness or irritability I feel due to negative reviews written about me online and negative complaints filed by patients against me to my hospital administration.

And most important, many physician platforms are free. It is similar to McDonald’s. When I was younger, I would go to McDonald’s frequently and use their air conditioning, seating, lighting, and restrooms for free. In exchange, I would tell other people how much I like McDonald’s, and if anyone needs any advice as to which restaurant to go to or needs directions to McDonald’s, I would help them out. I was like a free marketer for Mcdonald’s. And due to a lot of other people doing this as well, Mcdonald’s grew and grew. Thankfully, McDonald’s has grown more than other fast-food restaurants due to this strategy of letting people use their facilities for free.

Physician platforms help providers open up and share their feelings. I plead you to do this in the name of physician mental health. It is a lot better to be open and let everyone (from fellow health care providers to President Joe Biden) know about how you feel than suffer in silence.

Louis J. Riccardo is a family physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Mental health issues and the African American community

March 30, 2022 Kevin 0
…
Next

Inside the race to conquer the COVID-19 pandemic [PODCAST]

March 30, 2022 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Psychiatry

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Mental health issues and the African American community
Next Post >
Inside the race to conquer the COVID-19 pandemic [PODCAST]

More by Louis J. Riccardo, DO

  • Writing letters for vaccine and mask exemptions

    Louis J. Riccardo, DO
  • Failing the boards doesn’t make you a bad doctor

    Louis J. Riccardo, DO
  • A case for legalizing marijuana and ecstasy

    Louis J. Riccardo, DO

Related Posts

  • Why academic medicine needs to value physician contributions to online platforms

    Ariela L. Marshall, MD
  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • 5 must-haves for great physician online profiles

    Brian R. Dooley
  • How online physician reviews can be fake news

    Deborah Burton, MD
  • How to balance confidence and humility online

    Brian A. Primack, MD, PhD
  • 3 ways to advance the credibility of online health information

    Robert Pearl, MD

More in Physician

  • The hidden factor in physician burnout: How the climate crisis is contributing to the erosion of well-being

    Elizabeth Cerceo, MD
  • Raw humanity on night float: inspiring patient encounters and overcoming challenges

    Johnathan Yao, MD, MPH
  • Revolutionizing emergency medicine: Overcoming long-term challenges with innovative solutions for physicians and patients

    Anonymous
  • The pediatric health care system tested to the limits: an inside look at the “at capacity” period during the tripledemic

    Jacqueline Bolt, MD
  • How chronic illness and disability are portrayed in media and the importance of daily choices for improved quality of life

    Juliet Morgan and Meghan Jobson
  • How biased language and stigmatizing labels affect patient care and treatment

    Joan Naidorf, DO
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • A patient’s perspective on the diminishing relationship between doctors and patients

      Michele Luckenbaugh | Conditions
    • Unmasking wage disparity in health care: the truth behind the Elmhurst Hospital physician strike

      Kevin Pho, MD | KevinMD
    • Why affirmative action is crucial for health equity and social justice in medicine

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Policy
    • How electronic health records preserve patients’ legacies in the words of oncologists

      Marc Braunstein, MD, PhD | Physician
    • Unmasking the brutal reality of gun violence in America: a call to action for unity and meaningful change

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Policy
    • Emulating Michael Jordan’s winning mindset: a path to success for health care professionals and entrepreneurs

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • The growing threat to transgender health care: implications for patients, providers, and trainees

      Carson Hartlage | Policy
    • Breaking point: the 5 reasons American doctors are dreaming of walking away from medicine

      Amol Shrikhande, MD | Physician
    • “Is your surgeon really skilled? The hidden threat to public safety in medicine.

      Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD | Physician
    • It’s time to replace the 0 to 10 pain intensity scale with a better measure

      Mark Sullivan, MD and Jane Ballantyne, MD | Conditions
    • Breaking the cycle of racism in health care: a call for anti-racist action

      Tomi Mitchell, MD | Policy
    • Revolutionize your practice: the value-based care model that reduces physician burnout

      Chandravadan Patel, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden factor in physician burnout: How the climate crisis is contributing to the erosion of well-being

      Elizabeth Cerceo, MD | Physician
    • The surprising medical mystery of a “good” Hitler: How a rescued kitten revealed a rare movement disorder

      Teresella Gondolo, MD | Conditions
    • The power of coaching for physicians: transforming thoughts, changing lives

      Kim Downey, PT | Conditions
    • Why doctors aren’t to blame for the U.S. opioid crisis [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Raw humanity on night float: inspiring patient encounters and overcoming challenges

      Johnathan Yao, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Is AI the solution for the shortage of nephrologists? ChatGPT weighs in.

      Amol Shrikhande, MD | Tech

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Want to Solve the Nurse Shortage?
  • Why Are Female Doctors Sued Nearly Half as Often as Male Doctors?
  • What Drug Did FDA Just Approve for COVID?
  • PET Scan for Alzheimer's Dx; Predicting Colon Cancer Survival
  • What Happens When We Classify Kids' Weight as a 'Disease'?

Meeting Coverage

  • No Access to Routine Healthcare Biggest Barrier to HPV Vaccination
  • Trial Results Spark Talk of Curing More Metastatic Cervical Cancers
  • Cross-Border Collaboration Improves Survival in Pediatric Leukemia Patients
  • Monoclonal Antibody Reduced Need For Transfusions in Low-Risk MDS
  • Less-Invasive Surgery for Pancreatic Cancer Proves Safe, Effective
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • A patient’s perspective on the diminishing relationship between doctors and patients

      Michele Luckenbaugh | Conditions
    • Unmasking wage disparity in health care: the truth behind the Elmhurst Hospital physician strike

      Kevin Pho, MD | KevinMD
    • Why affirmative action is crucial for health equity and social justice in medicine

      Katrina Gipson, MD, MPH | Policy
    • How electronic health records preserve patients’ legacies in the words of oncologists

      Marc Braunstein, MD, PhD | Physician
    • Unmasking the brutal reality of gun violence in America: a call to action for unity and meaningful change

      Osmund Agbo, MD | Policy
    • Emulating Michael Jordan’s winning mindset: a path to success for health care professionals and entrepreneurs

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • The growing threat to transgender health care: implications for patients, providers, and trainees

      Carson Hartlage | Policy
    • Breaking point: the 5 reasons American doctors are dreaming of walking away from medicine

      Amol Shrikhande, MD | Physician
    • “Is your surgeon really skilled? The hidden threat to public safety in medicine.

      Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD | Physician
    • It’s time to replace the 0 to 10 pain intensity scale with a better measure

      Mark Sullivan, MD and Jane Ballantyne, MD | Conditions
    • Breaking the cycle of racism in health care: a call for anti-racist action

      Tomi Mitchell, MD | Policy
    • Revolutionize your practice: the value-based care model that reduces physician burnout

      Chandravadan Patel, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden factor in physician burnout: How the climate crisis is contributing to the erosion of well-being

      Elizabeth Cerceo, MD | Physician
    • The surprising medical mystery of a “good” Hitler: How a rescued kitten revealed a rare movement disorder

      Teresella Gondolo, MD | Conditions
    • The power of coaching for physicians: transforming thoughts, changing lives

      Kim Downey, PT | Conditions
    • Why doctors aren’t to blame for the U.S. opioid crisis [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Raw humanity on night float: inspiring patient encounters and overcoming challenges

      Johnathan Yao, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Is AI the solution for the shortage of nephrologists? ChatGPT weighs in.

      Amol Shrikhande, MD | Tech

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...