The Podcast by KevinMD

"If you are finding yourself with trouble studying or focusing due to the state of the world, or due to changing circumstances in your own household, remember that a delay in this test or in any part of your application is not the end of the world. You need to focus on your health and well-being first so that you have the ability to keep pushing through this marathon of a process (and I don't just mean the application to medical school—there's a whole bunch to do once you get there as well!) Dive into meditation, exercise, and staying in contact with your friends and family. The MCAT, the application, and your dreams of being a physician will still be there when this is all over, so priority #1 is making sure that you are able to jump back into all of this when that time comes." Elisabeth Fassas is a medical student and author of Making Pre-Med Count: Everything I Wish I'd Known Before (Successfully) Applying to Medical School. (https://amzn.to/2DXWu73) She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "COVID-19 and the MCAT: What should premedical students do?" (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/04/covid-19-and-the-mcat-what-should-premedical-students-do.html)

"Much is written about the advantages for primary care physicians and patients of working within a retainer model, direct primary care, concierge-type care model. Little is written about the downside or disadvantages. It is time to shine a light on the benefits and challenges of concierge and standard models through an experienced lens, particularly as drivers of burnout and the primary care shortage loom so large. The phase of a career may be an important factor." Annie Moore is an internal medicine physician. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "A physician leaves concierge medicine after 13 years." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/03/a-physician-leaves-concierge-medicine-after-13-years.html)

What should patients know about diet and its effects on the microbiome? How should primary care clinicians address diet and its effects on the microbiome? What are your tips to address obesity? What are the gastroenterological manifestations of COVID-19? Supriya Rao is a gastroenterologist. She shares her story and her expertise in obesity and the diet-microbiome connection.

"Was I that different? I had severe anxiety necessitating medication, compounded by stress, my own narcissistic tendencies, and a series of life choices—but Jason had something much worse. It all gave me pause. I was now twenty-four, just barely older than Jason when the committee took residence. Would I soon begin hearing voices as well? I supposed that beginning the long and arduous road of medical education while having an infant at home with a lonely wife in a new place more than a thousand miles from our family counted as enough of a stressful event to trigger whatever may lay dormant in my brain." Kyle Bradford Jones is a family physician and can be reached on Twitter @kbjones11. He shares his story and discusses his book, Fallible: A Memoir of a Young Physician's Struggle with Mental Illness. (https://amzn.to/30oJezU)

"Could COVID-19 be an opportunity that brings the plight of health care professionals finally to the forefront? Protect us so we can protect you. Do your part and stay home. Flatten the curve to give health care professionals a chance. Donate PPE. Donate food. And yet through this war, we, health care professionals, along with the entirety of humanity, are united against a common, invisible enemy. We are all human; we all seek to be healthy and happy, all deserving of love and connection. Are we able to remind ourselves that health care professionals have never been so united before? That humanity has never been so united? Can all the health care professionals, no, all of humanity bear the weight of the world together? We can; we must. For our sake. For humanity's sake." Ni-Cheng Liang is a pulmonary physician and founder, the Mindful Healthcare Collective. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Undergoing an appendectomy in a pandemic." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/04/undergoing-an-appendectomy-in-a-pandemic.html)

"We are grateful to be avoiding the need to use draconian measures for resource allocation. We have been afforded the blessing of lead-time here in Los Angeles and have the chance to learn from other parts of the world, as well as other areas within the United States. We are preparing our personal protective equipment, re-organizing team structures and hospital workflow, taking new precautionary measures, and expanding the skillset of providers to maximize manpower. In case resource utilization reaches capacity, frameworks are in place to guide decisions in the most ethical and morally appropriate manner possible, and such frameworks remain available in future disaster scenarios. While we as health care providers address COVID-19 from the frontlines, there are still many ways the public at large can contribute to the battle against this pandemic that we all face, though the storm seems to slowly be calming." Alexander Connelly is an internal medicine physician. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "A Los Angeles response to the pandemic." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/04/a-los-angeles-response-to-the-pandemic.html)

"We are in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it's already very clear that the infection prevention community in the U.S. has never faced such an enormous challenge. We have learned many things that will make us better prepared for the long term. We are far too reliant on single-use disposable products. Having a large supply of cloth surgical gowns and isolation gowns that can be laundered is essential. I'll comment on disposable face masks below. Less reliance on disposables will also be better for the environment." Michael Edmond is an infectious disease physician who blogs at Controversies in Hospital Infection Prevention. He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "Infection preventionists are true heroes, and other things we've learned so far." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/03/infection-preventionists-are-true-heroes-and-other-things-weve-learned-so-far.html)

"People remember stories in your speech. The rest fades away. I learned that pearl of wisdom from studying great literature and telling personal stories, and now teach it to students of speech. Who can forget the stories of The Iliad and The Odyssey having once read the books or heard of these tales of Homer? And when I want to tell a story of a hero, I think of the story detailed in another chapter of the life of my heroic policeman father who rescued hostages and gave wise advice about medical school that has served me well throughout life, that is, Homework; Courage; Never Give Up! Again, people remember stories. They forget statistics, graphs, and most information on slides. Stories that generate emotion have the equivalent of Velcro stickiness to your long-term memory storage." Donald J. Palmisano is a surgeon, an attorney and past president, American Medical Association. He is the author of A Leader's Guide to Giving a Memorable Speech: How to Deliver a Message and Captivate an Audience. (https://amzn.to/2VZu1DW) He shares his story and discusses his KevinMD article, "People remember stories in your speech. The rest fades away." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/05/people-remember-stories-in-your-speech-the-rest-fades-away.html)

"Being a parent in the middle of a pandemic is not easy. Sheltering in place with canceled daycare, school, and college, while also being a doctor or other healthcare worker, working in high-risk, high-intensity situations, presents many challenges. It also presents many opportunities. It is possible to choose thoughts about being a physician and a parent during the COVID-19 situation that can help it feel more like an opportunity and less like a struggle." Jessie Mahoney is a pediatrician and can be reached at Pause & Presence Coaching. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "How parenting in a pandemic is an unexpected opportunity." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/04/how-parenting-in-a-pandemic-is-an-unexpected-opportunity.html)

"Many physicians are looking for alternative sources of income and are looking for ways to diversify their investment portfolio from the volatility of the stock market. Some have heard of real estate syndications, but what exactly is a syndication? For those who have not heard of it, real estate syndications can be an attractive investment vehicle for busy professionals who do not have the time or experience to actively manage real estate. As an investor in a syndication, you can put your capital to work for you, leveraging the benefits of investing in real estate that can provide passive income independent of your time." Cherry Chen is an internal medicine physician and founder, The Real Estate Physician. She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Real estate syndication 101: a physician's guide." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2019/04/real-estate-syndication-101-a-physicians-guide.html)