An excerpt from Narrative Medicine: Harnessing the Power of Storytelling through Essays.
I work for an organization that manages the medical and mental health needs of children and adults who are severely and persistently ill. Typical diagnoses in the population I serve include intellectual/developmental disorder, autism spectrum disorder, disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance use disorder, and many other conditions that impact mood, cognition, reality testing, conduct, and …
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Trauma in the form of war is one of the worst forms of trauma to endure. How do people remain objective about events and the involved nations when they have been directly or indirectly affected by war?
For example, how are Holocaust survivors and their families able to unemotionally relate to present-day German citizens? How do the descendants of the more than 2,000 allied civilians who were imprisoned in the infamous …
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Do you remember times when your dreams, hopes, and aspirations were crushed by teachers and other authority figures? We’ve all encountered such times. These experiences shape our character in negative ways and can lead to devastating psychological effects. This kind of negative influence can greatly impact our self-esteem and self-worth, instilling a deep-seated fear of failure. It can cause us to question our abilities and potential, leading to imposter syndrome.
Repeated …
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In the realm of medicine, cause-and-effect relationships are those where a specific cause, such as a disease, condition, or treatment, directly leads to a specific outcome or effect. An example of this is the established fact that smoking causes lung cancer. Similarly, it is well-documented that regular, heavy alcohol consumption directly leads to liver cirrhosis.
On the other hand, phrases like “associated with,” “linked to,” and “tied to” denote a correlation …
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The sad news of Princess Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis is a sound reminder of the sanctity of a person’s health status and their right to privacy.
I wasn’t sure which adjective I should use to describe Kate’s diagnosis – “sad,” “tragic,” or “devastating.” All are equally true, depending on whose perspective you consider. No doubt a cancer diagnosis is “sad” in the public’s eyes and even harsher in Kate’s. In my …
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“Get Over It” is a 1994 album track that marked the Eagles’ reunion after a 14-year hiatus. The tune reached number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
The song was written by band members Don Henley and Glenn Frey (1948-2016). Henley is known for his biting, often cynical lyrics, and “Get Over It” is no exception. The song is a commentary on the ‘victim mentality’ that the songwriters felt was …
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An excerpt from Narrative Medicine: The Fifth Vital Sign.
“If you don’t take a temperature, you can’t find a fever.”
— Samuel Shem, The House of God
I enrolled in a creative writing course at a local university to better understand the parameters of narrative medicine. I learned about the pillars of the narrative, such as poetry and creative nonfiction, and our class …
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This essay is part satire. The trouble is, I don’t know which part.
As far as I know, time travel is fodder for science fiction thrillers and movies. It doesn’t actually exist on Earth. However, I can time travel in my mind, and I do it frequently, reminiscing about the 40 years between the time I completed my psychiatric residency (in 1984) and now. What has changed in my specialty in …
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It’s been said that the challenges neurodiverse people face are the ones that neurotypical people view as easy, and vice versa. It speaks to the hard-wired diversity of cognitive styles and perspectives among different individuals.
Neurotypical people, who generally fit within the societal norms of cognitive functioning, might find certain tasks or social situations easier due to their alignment with mainstream expectations. On the other hand, neurodivergent individuals, who have variations …
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Dr. Shaun Murphy (played by Freddie Highmore) stars in ABC’s The Good Doctor, a television drama that centers around an autistic surgeon whose job at the hospital was frequently threatened and would be lost if it were not for the practical and emotional support from the hospital president.
I don’t know how many “Doctor Murphys” practice medicine in real life – autism spectrum disorder (ASD) prevails in about 1% to 2% …
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I read about a psychiatrist whose interests are in medical ethics and the improvement of medical care for youth coping with the complexities related to neurodivergence and significant mental health conditions. Additionally, she specializes in work with twice-exceptional (2e) individuals – those with exceptional talents and abilities who also navigate challenges related to disabilities or psychiatric illness.
Neurodivergence and 2e individuals are fairly new concepts for me. Back in the day, …
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Stealth firing is a term used to describe the cold, unexpected firing of employees by their managers and/or individuals from human resources (HR) departments – sometimes without the manager’s awareness and even after years of loyalty for some. The Bureau of Labor Statistics cannot adequately track this statistic because its definition lacks precision, but it is not uncommon in certain practice areas, such as law, tech, and financial firms. The …
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I read an essay advocating the disclosure of personal trauma on medical school applications as a means of overcoming stigma and taboo often associated with rape and other forms of trauma. The authors lamented that a culture of silence persists in medicine despite movements such as #MeToo. They concluded: “We, as physicians, have a duty to reduce shame to promote recovery in both our patients and in ourselves.”
Not …
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An excerpt from Medicine on Fire: A Narrative Travelogue.
I regret not keeping a diary or journal to write about patient encounters and interactions with peers, residents and attendings, not to mention the sundry characters connected to the academic health center where I trained and practiced. Had I done that, I would have had a lot more material to write about, and my …
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Closing a residency program can significantly disrupt a physician’s training. In 2019, the closure of Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia forced 570 residents to find new placements. First-year residents discovered a week before they started that the hospital was closing after its owner filed for bankruptcy.
Fast forward to January 2024. Within days, two additional residency training programs in the Philadelphia area announced closures.
Albert Einstein Medical Center said it was ending its …
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Following a Congressional hearing into antisemitic harassment on the campuses of Harvard, MIT, and the University of Pennsylvania, there were several changes in leadership at Penn. Jonathan A. Epstein, MD, was named interim dean at Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine, replacing J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, who became interim university president.
Epstein, 62, is a cardiologist and researcher who trained at Harvard and has been at Penn since 1996, most recently …
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Since the December 5, 2023, Congressional hearing into antisemitic harassment at Penn, Harvard, and MIT, I was shocked to learn how universities, large and small, public and private, have been hijacked by extreme right-wing leaders connected directly or indirectly to the GOP.
Examples include:
Youngstown State University bypassed the normal search process to select its new president, Republican U.S. Representative Bill Johnson. Johnson has no experience in academia and voted with dozens …
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When the University of Pennsylvania’s president Liz Magill was forced to resign her position due to her equivocal stance regarding antisemitic harassment on Penn’s campus, J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, was soon announced as her interim successor. Jameson had served as executive vice president of Penn’s health system and dean of the Perelman School of Medicine since 2011.
Jameson is a prominent molecular endocrinologist, author of over 350 scientific …
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A Harvard medical school student realized in his third year that he had lost his desire to become a doctor. Nevertheless, the student decided to complete his fourth year and obtain his MD degree. The student is now planning for a career in pharma or even comedy. Some individuals who read his online essay found the student’s decision-making comical in itself. Overall, their comments were evenly divided about the …
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