December 13, 2021 | 1 min read

Grace

By Farah Ali, DO, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Faith plays a significant role in many patients’ lives. Learning more about their beliefs can help us to understand them better and allows us to serve our patients in line with their values. 

November 12, 2018 | 3 min read

Insights From “A Whole New Mind”

Daniel Pink's "A Whole New Mind" highlights the importance of cultivating empathy, humor, and the ability to create meaning.

December 9, 2021 | 4 min read

3 Lessons From Coach Ted Lasso

By Claire Crawford, MSW, PhD, Texas Childrens , Jared Rubenstein, MD, Baylor College of Medicine

Apple TV’s “Ted Lasso” shares a simple message—be kind. We can never truly know what it’s like to walk in another person’s shoes. Curiosity, instead of judgment, helps us give better patient care.

March 4, 2019 | 2 min read

Non-Judging

By Neda Gould, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

What happens when you see your patient through a broader, non-judgmental lens?

August 12, 2025 | 2 min read

Safe and sound care   

Now more than ever, create an affirming healthcare environment for LGBTQIA+ patients by using respectful language and addressing unique care needs.  

April 1, 2020 | 4 min read

Strength in Vulnerability

By Kamna Balhara, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Sarah Clever, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

There is strength in acknowledging our fears individually and facing them collectively.

December 7, 2020 | 3 min read

Flipping the Switch

By Swathi Raman, MD, MPH, LifeBridge Health, Maryland

Shifting away from needing external validation can promote wellness. Self-reflection and awareness of our internal monologue may help with internal validation and improve feelings of self-worth.

November 21, 2019 | 2 min read

The Chosen One

By Ryan Chippendale, MD, Boston University School of Medicine

As a geriatrician, it was still difficult to facilitate compasstionate patient-centered end-of-life care for my grandmother. Honoring patients' goals of care can be challenging when we are intimately invested.

September 8, 2020 | 1 min read

10 Ways to Cultivate Well-being During The Pandemic

It's important to make an effort to improve your sense of well-being to help prevent burnout, especially during the strain of the pandemic.

January 27, 2020 | 3 min read

Ethical Dilemmas in Dementia Care Design

By Diana Anderson, MD, MArch, Clincial Geriatrics Fellow, University of California, San Francisco

Innovative dementia care designs raise moral questions about whether deception of patients is ever ethical. The clinically excellent physician tries to avoid deception at all costs.

June 11, 2019 | 2 min read

Burnt out on Burnout: how to understand what burnout means to you

By Hannah Wilson, MBBS, Harvard Medical School

In order to truly understand and prevent burnout, we must first define what it is that burnout means to each of us.

February 3, 2022 | 2 min read

Perspective Matters

By Souvik Chatterjee, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

As the pandemic continues, I remind myself that my job is to give selflessly to those who are sick. It’s helpful to lean on my team when situations feel especially challenging.

March 31, 2022 | 2 min read

A Lesson in Cultural Humility

By Mengyi "Zed" Zha, MD, Othello, Washington

Working at a community health clinic serving migrant workers from Mexico, I was confronted with a pervasive stereotype that the female patients were “dramatic.” I learned how important it was for patients’ concerns to be taken seriously.   

February 25, 2021 | 2 min read

How You Can Help With Intimate Partner Violence

By Lisa Geller, MPH, Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health crisis and most deadly when a gun is involved. Clinicians should screen patients for IPV, ask about firearm possession, and refer those at risk of IPV to appropriate services.

February 11, 2025 | 6 min read

“The Tao of Medicine” 

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

The clinician's mindful presence and understanding of the patient's full humanity are as crucial to healing as technical skill. Let go of using language to define your experience; instead focus on the wisdom that can be found in the empty spaces between thoughts. 

November 28, 2022 | 2 min read

What to Know About RSV

By Shannon Scott-Vernaglia, MD, Mass General

Let caregivers know that if symptoms are mild, they can watch children at home and encourage fluid intake. If having trouble breathing, the child should be seen right away. 

February 6, 2025 | 2 min read

Code blue 

By Ursula Gately, medical student, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Extreme heat often dominates the climate change conversation, however the dangers of extreme cold may be more perilous. Support patients, particularly those who are unhoused or with housing insecurity, by making sure they know about local warming shelters and advising them to limit exposure to the elements. 

November 13, 2025 | 2 min read

Cognitive shuffle 

For patients with insomnia, coach them to visualize vivid, unrelated images to disrupt rumination and promote sleep onset. You can try it yourself, too! 

November 8, 2021 | 1 min read

Lessons Learned From 30 Years of Night Shifts

By Kimberly Turner, MD, Johns Hopkins Community Physicians

Patience, stamina, and fortitude are important traits to cultivate in medicine at any and all times.

February 18, 2021 | 2 min read

Art is Integral to Healthcare

By Kamna Balhara, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Sarah Clever, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Engaging with art can address some of medicine’s greatest challenges, including recognizing our common humanity.

January 8, 2026 | 2 min read

“Who do you talk to?” 

Ask who patients connect with regularly. If they’re not utilizing their social network, include social prescriptions in the care plan. 

May 15, 2024 | 2 min read

Removing barriers to physician mental health

Taking care of yourself by getting professional help when needed is essential to giving excellent patient care. You can also encourage coworkers to do the same. 

August 25, 2020 | 4 min read

A Real Hero and a Real Human Being

By Andrew Philip, PhD, Primary Care Development Corporation

The pandemic has created more stress for everyone, including healthcare professionals. Finding a relaxing activity to practice regularly can help you persevere.

March 17, 2021 | 3 min read

Making Unconscious Bias Training Work

By Verna Monson, PhD, Minneapolis, Minnesota

To be an antiracist, you must be aware of your own biases and learn from your missteps. And remember that unconscious bias training is only a starting point for dismantling discrimination.

September 8, 2021 | 2 min read

How to Mitigate Caregiver Burnout

By Simone Lescott, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Caring for a loved one can be emotionally exhausting. Remind caregivers to prioritize self-care and encourage them to seek support from others.

May 10, 2022 | 2 min read

Supporting Underrepresented Trainees

By Vivian Altiery De Jesus, MD, MBE, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When witnessing racism, we must support those affected to foster an environment of safety and respect.

October 5, 2023 | 2 min read

When Medication is an Empty Promise (Sudafed) 

By Charles Flexner, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Communicating uncertainty effectively is part of being an excellent physician. This is especially true when it comes to the medications we recommend to patients. 

May 12, 2020 | 1 min read

Jump-start End of Life Discussions With “Death Over Dinner”

By Katie Nelson, PhD(c), MSN, RN, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing

The pandemic has created a sense of urgency around advance care planning and end of life preparations. Resources like "Death Over Dinner" can help broach conversations about death, dying, and the end of life in a non-threatening (and even entertaining) manner.

August 1, 2019 | 3 min read

Mindset and the Power of Yet: A Conversation With Dr. Gurpreet Dhaliwal

Excellent clinicians are also thoughtful mentors. Mentors are like beacons as we navigate our path forward.

January 8, 2020 | 1 min read

Medical Overuse: When the Care we Give Doesn’t Help

By Daniel Morgan, MD, University of Maryland

The clinically excellent clinician must commit to reducing overuse.

January 9, 2020 | 3 min read

Top Tips to Support Yourself While Pregnant and Working in Healthcare

You yourself or clinician colleagues will undoubtedly take parental leave at some point. Clinically excellent clinicians and practices use this as an opportunity to enhance continuity and ensure high quality care.

August 17, 2020 | 1 min read

Top Tips For Starting a New Phase in Your Career

By Christle Nwora, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Making time to care for yourself, asking questions, and letting go of perfection can help you successfully navigate a new chapter in your life.

March 17, 2025 | 7 min read

Caring and uncaring in medicine and beyond 

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

Every moment in medicine, and in life, we have the choice to base our actions in caring.  

January 5, 2019 | 2 min read

Acceptance

By Neda Gould, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When we practice acceptance in the present moment, we free up energy to see more possibilities. We may notice some clarity in our minds and even less tension in the body. There is freedom in acceptance.

April 2, 2019 | 5 min read

Connecting to Historical Roots

By Lee Akst, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

There are a number of important physicians in history, and an appreciation of our past can further our quest for clinical excellence in the present.

March 2, 2022 | 1 min read

Redefining Success

By Jennifer Eitingon, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

My patient on palliative radiation died in the hospital, instead of at home as she wanted. I was reminded that we must always create a treatment plan based on the patient’s goals instead of our own.