Something to Think About

Recently, I found myself on the receiving end of healthcare after breaking my ankle. As a patient, I was reminded how vulnerable it feels to be seen as a diagnosis,...

I watched my mother nod as her doctor explained her lung cancer. She looked like she understood, but neither of us did. Medical language can be confusing, especially when the...

Physicians are often asked how long someone has to live, but the truth is no one can predict an exact timeline. Dying follows a natural process with recognizable signs that...

Clear communication is one of the most powerful tools in healthcare. Healing begins when we sit close, speak simply, and remember that care is about people, not just disease.

Everyone dies. Death will not be conquered. It can be forestalled and that is where the medical model comes in. We learn through trying. The medical rounds physician is correct...

I believe everyone has the right to be told once that they can’t be fixed. It is the physician’s job to compassionately and honestly give that information...  

Because of knowledge we’ve lost when people began dying in places other than home, we judge approaching death by the treatments and procedures used in getting people better...

Someone has to have the courage to say “We’ve done the best we can. We can’t fix you. Let us help you have some quality time”.

The physician is frontline, the top of the pyramid in healthcare. All care follows from there. The physician can set the tone for the entire patient experience. 

When doctors and healthcare professionals place a number on how long someone has to live they are doing that person a disservice.

I want the medical profession, the medical model we find in doctors’ offices and hospitals, to do everything possible to help me not only regain my health, but to return...

Dying isn't like it is in the movies. We don't know what it is like to die from disease or old age and while everyone is going to do it,...