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October 28, 2020 | 1 min read

Preventing Dry Eye in the Zoom Era

By Sharon Solomon, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Increased online activities during the pandemic has caused higher rates of dry eye for many. All clinicians should encourage their patients to take regular short breaks from screens.

March 16, 2022 | 1 min read

How to Support Patients With Autism Post-Pandemic

By Ayman Mukerji Houseman, MS, MSW, New York City

When caring for patients with autism who are moving back to in-person interactions, suggest changes that are gradual with input from patients and their caregivers.

A shire in Shropshire. Author's photo.

January 29, 2019 | 7 min read

“Good Doctoring”

By Taylor Purvis, MD, St. Vincent Medical Center, Bridgeport, CT

Reflections from a medical student on the practice of medicine as captured in the novels "The Bad Doctor," by Ian Williams, and "A Fortunate Man," by John Berger & Jean Mohr.

July 10, 2018 | <1 min read

Better Dementia Care Through Music

By Michele Bellantoni, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Having your older patients listen to music can be an effective way to reduce dementia-related behavioral disturbances.

Three common zebras (Equus quagga), Kruger National Park, South Africa.

August 18, 2020 | 2 min read

Zebras Are Out There

By Eric Last, DO, Northwell Health, Wantagh, New York

Looking at the big picture and verifying details will help you consider diagnoses that may be unlikely, but still possible.

If a patient doesn’t appear to understand what you’re saying despite repeated efforts, ask how they learn best. Perhaps draw a diagram and/or use an analogy.

March 20, 2025 | 3 min read

Falling up

By Emily Ma, medical student, Johns Hopkins Medicine

The transition from pediatric to adult care poses significant challenges for patients with disabilities. Healthcare professionals can help by seeking to improve access and continuity of care.

May 6, 2021 | 3 min read

Plus ça Change: The Rise And Rise of Syphilis

By Matthew Hamill, MBChB, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Syphilis cases have reached an all-time high. To turn the tide, the first thing we need to do is ask patients an open-ended question about sexual activity, like "When was the last time you had sex?"

June 18, 2019 | 2 min read

Navigating the Uncertain: A Book Review of “The Laws of Medicine”

Siddhartha Mukherjee, MD, provides a framework to reconcile the uncertainties we constantly experience in our practice of medicine in his book, "The Laws of Medicine."

January 11, 2024 | 2 min read

Book review of “Changing how we think about ‘difficult’ patients”

By Jennifer Lycette, MD, rural oncologist in the Pacific Northwest

When caring for a patient whom I found challenging, I reminded myself that my negative reaction had less to do with the patient and more to do with me.

September 27, 2021 | 2 min read

How to Communicate Clearly About Medication Directions

By Jeffrey Millstein, MD, Penn Medicine

Always use simple language with patients when giving directions about how to take medication, and check for understanding.

November 25, 2025 | 2 min read

Be the other someone in the near-empty room

For patients without family present, pause to say, “I’m here with you.” Offer chaplaincy, social work, and volunteers to accompany dying patients in their final moments.

June 25, 2018 | 2 min read

On The Professional Formation of Doctors

By Margaret Chisolm, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

By getting out of the business of knowledge and skills and returning to the work of professional formation, not only will medical schools and their patients win, but doctors—and the profession of medicine as a whole—will too.

March 27, 2018 | 2 min read

12 Things I Wish I’d Known 50 Years Ago

By Randy Barker, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine, retired

Twelve things I would tell my younger self—all the things I didn’t know then, but wish I had.

July 26, 2018 | 1 min read

A Taste of Their Own Medicine

By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Videos spreading misinformation to patients, promoting unproven therapies, can spread like wildfire on social media. We are sharing another video to fight fire with fire.

March 10, 2022 | 2 min read

Balanced conversations about weight

By Colleen Schreyer, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Clinicians can treat weight as simply one more piece of health information that they incorporate into a holistic care plans. This can mitigate stigma and foster empathy.

January 14, 2019 | 2 min read

We’re Getting CLOSLER to the Super Bowl!

By Wilma Ferthler, MD, Rural Country Doctor, Northeast Kingdom, Vermont

Football-inspired clinical pearls from Vermont family physician Dr. Wilma Ferthler teach us how to be better clinicians.

July 18, 2023 | 1 min read

Can a chatbot be a clinician’s friend?

By Adam Poliak, PhD, Bryn Mawr College, Eric Leas, PhD, Mark Dredze, PhD, Johns Hopkins University

ChatGPT can draft seemingly empathic answers to patient questions on medical portals. This may help clinicians respond more efficiently to their patients’ concerns.

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 10, 2025 | 2 min read

The B12 fix

By Selvi Rajagopal, MD, MPH, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Clinicians should remember to watch for fatigue in patients shifting to plant-based diets; a B12 test can reveal a significant, reversible cause of feeling poorly.

Ruth and Carl J. Shapiro Gallery (Gallery 232), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, featuring "Daughters of Edward Darley Boit," by John Singer Sargent (American, 1856–1925). Photograph by Flora Smyth Zahra.

June 6, 2019 | 7 min read

May Art Museum Challenge

By Flora Smyth Zahra, MA Clin Ed, DRestDent RCS, FHEA, Kings College London, Margaret Chisolm, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

The art museum is a space that has lessons to teach about clinical excellence, and fosters both the personal development and professional identity formation of clinicians.

January 9, 2024 | 3 min read

Dust and distrust

By Matthew Kelly, PhD, MPH, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Infection-related epidemics, like AIDS and COVID, teach us much about caring. To provide humanistic care, clinicians must continuously endeavor to assess and build trust with patients.

September 16, 2021 | 1 min read

Recognize, Synthesize, Execute

By Harisa Spahic, Medical Student, Johns Hopkins University

Reflecting about the inspiring clinicians that I’ve shadowed, I noticed that they have a gift for synthesizing information in a way that’s clear and appropriate for the patient.

November 21, 2025 | 2 min read

The promise and pitfalls of GLP-1s

This new class of weight loss drugs is not a magic fix. Work with patients to set realistic goals, start low and titrate slowly, and counsel on GI risks.

November 2, 2022 | 2 min read

Psychedelics to Quit Smoking?

By Matthew Johnson, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Patients may ask about using psilocybin to stop smoking. While being actively studied, please remind them that it’s still illegal and not necessarily risk-free.

An example of a trompe l’oeil in a geriatric hospital setting. Copyright by the author.

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.

July 11, 2024 | 2 min read

Protecting the most vulnerable from heat-related illnesses (archives, 2024)

By Joanna Cohen, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When caring for patients during heat waves, healthcare professionals should be aware of social determinants of health—like no air conditioning at home. Clinicians should know the available resources to recommend, such as cooling centers within the communities they serve.

If weather permits, advise patients to plan their feast outside this Thanksgiving,

November 12, 2020 | 1 min read

How to Have Healthy Holidays

Helping patients plan safe get-togethers can slow the spread of COVID-19. Following guidelines may allow patients to connect with their family.

March 8, 2022 | 3 min read

Tips For Assessing The Intensity of Pain

By Brian Lee, MD, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine, David Madder, DO, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When assessing pain, we often ask patients to assign it a number between 0 and 10. Asking about the effect of pain on behavior and functional status can often give us a more meaningful understanding.

March 18, 2019 | 2 min read

The Truth About Sex

By Khalil Ghanem, MD, PhD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

How you phrase questions when obtaining a sexual history can mitigate the impact of social desirability bias and enhance the accuracy of the information that is obtained.

July 17, 2023 | 3 min read

Choreographing Clinical Care

By Hanghang Wang, MD, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Exceptional patient care is akin to a ballet performance. Synergistic team interactions, thoughtful decisions, and deliberate actions are all critical steps in the dance of patient care.

August 10, 2020 | 2 min read

Debriefing after death (archives, 2020)

By Christopher Bennett, MD, Stanford University

Reflecting on a patient's death as a team provides an opportunity to process emotions and strengthen team dynamics.

February 27, 2025 | 2 min read

Behind the mirror: teen eating disorders

By Jasmine Reese, MD, MPH, Johns Hopkins Medicine

You don't have to be an eating disorder specialist to make a difference; every healthcare professional can play a vital role in early intervention. Knowing local resources and showing compassion can guide patients toward recovery.

April 27, 2021 | 2 min read

Lessons Learned From Cancer During COVID

By Catherine Ling, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Encourage and support patients to schedule preventative screenings delayed during the pandemic. These are critical to ensure your patients’ health.

Treponema pallidum Syphilis bacterium, the bacterium responsible for the dangerous sexually transmitted infection, syphilis.

January 8, 2024 | 3 min read

Combatting the syphilis epidemic

By Zach Lorenz, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Rates of syphilis and other sexually transmitted infections are skyrocketing. It’s imperative that we have candid conversations with patients about their sexual behaviors.

3d illustration of a simulation of the coronavirus virus floating in a prison

September 20, 2021 | 3 min read

Moving Beyond Tuskegee

By Imani McElroy, MD, MPH, Mass General

I was able to help my incarcerated brother understand the benefits of COVID vaccination. He appreciated my input and became an advocate to convince other inmates. Much was learned about interacting with those who are vaccine hesitant—read the piece for my pearls.

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!

October 17, 2022 | 2 min read

Working With The Media For The Public Good

By Maria Simbra, MD

Clinicians can communicate health messages effectively by using memorable stories to share the main message and understanding the reporter’s constraints.

January 15, 2020 | 1 min read

Extra Minutes

By Scott Newsome, DO, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Every extra minute a clinician spends with a patient is worth it.

July 10, 2024 | 2 min read

Lessons from earlier in life: bagging groceries

The service industry principles I learned while working in a grocery store apply to medicine. These include prioritizing customer needs, actively listening, and appreciating colleagues.

A perfectly imperfect brown-eyed Susan.

October 29, 2020 | 2 min read

Embracing Imperfection

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

To help with imposter syndrome, practice habits that increase your confidence.

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.

July 13, 2023 | 2 min read

5 More Ways Social Workers Can Help Patients

By Abbey Becker, LMSW, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Hospital social workers can gather missing information essential to patient care. They can also assist patients in completing advance directives.

August 3, 2020 | 1 min read

Book Review of “Elderhood”

By Michelle Gyenes, MS, Columbia Mailman School of Public Health

Ageism is a form of discrimination that contributes to poor health outcomes. To mitigate its effects, we must enact policies that address biases in ourselves, our workplaces, and our communities.

February 12, 2025 | 1 min read

Insights from the book “Decoding Greatness”

By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Achieving greatness in any field is not only about talent or practice; it’s also about studying the successes of those who are exemplary. In medicine, observing and analyzing the approaches of admirable colleagues can allow us to grow and evolve toward being more clinically excellent.

April 21, 2021 | 2 min read

Opioid Monitoring in Primary Care

By Jeffrey Millstein, MD, Penn Medicine

Discussions about opioid use with patients must be approached with curiosity and concern, rather than suspicion. Implemented with sensitivity, opioid monitoring programs can strengthen the clinician-patient relationship.

June 3, 2019 | 1 min read

Every Piece of Data Matters

By Rabih Geha, MD, University of California San Francisco

Bolded, flagged, or typed in a different color, an abnormal result demands the mind’s eye in many modern EMRs, but it is equally important to direct our gaze to the quietly normal labs; not uncommonly, they may be screaming a powerful clue.

January 4, 2024 | 1 min read

Searching for the solution

By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Improving clinical reasoning skills is a career-long journey where we feel like an expert one day and a novice the next. Commitment to growth and learning from mistakes are absolutely required.

September 13, 2021 | 4 min read

Only Connect

By Susrutha “Sus” Kotwal, MBBS, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Missing a diagnosis made me realize the value of a thorough physical exam. It can often illuminate the cause of the illness.

November 10, 2025 | 1 min read

Takeaways from the book “Bankroll your mind”

Attention invested in small moments—like a few screen‑free minutes at the start of a patient encounter—can compound into a trusting patient-clinician relationship.

October 12, 2022 | 1 min read

Equity and Inclusion: Beyond The Recognition Phase

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

Increasing the diversity of minority clinicians is a first step in combatting racism in medicine. We must also ensure that curricula are free of stereotypes and bias.