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.  

March 20, 2019 | 4 min read

Social History as Story

By Colleen Farrell, MD, New York University

We cannot understand our patients’ bodies if we do not understand something about who they are as human beings,

April 13, 2020 | 3 min read

Social Distancing, Not Emotional Distancing

By Loveleena Virk, MD, Kaiser Permanente, Oakland Medical Center, California.

Creating space to recognize and manage feelings of helplessness is critical to prevent burnout and maintain wellness during the pandemic. We share strategies in this piece to help you cope during these challenging times.

March 24, 2022 | 3 min read

Life-Work Balance

By Deirdre Johnston, MBBCh, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

To mitigate burnout, remember the things that used to fascinate and inspire you before you became a clinician.   

December 2, 2021 | 3 min read

TikTok: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

By Colleen Schreyer, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

For patients who are on social media, encourage them to engage with pro-mental health content on TikTok by watching, liking, and sharing.

November 23, 2020 | 3 min read

Working With Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence

By Galina Portnoy, PhD, Yale School of Medicine

In addition to identifying survivors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), complementary efforts are needed to detect those at risk of perpetrating IPV to prevent future incidents.

May 4, 2021 | 1 min read

Love as a social determinant of health (archived 2021)

By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Many feel happier and healthier when feeling loved and sharing their love. Encouraging our patients to share love through meaningful personal relationships will improve their health and well-being.

October 26, 2021 | 3 min read

What is The Scope of a Clinician’s Work?

By Margaret Chisolm, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

We must help our patients achieve a state where body, mind, and spirit are working as a whole. We can help them do more than survive. Let’s help them thrive!

May 15, 2024 | 2 min read

Removing barriers to physician mental health

By Laura Hanyok, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

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. 

April 28, 2021 | 4 min read

The Social Determinants of Clinician Health

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

When half of clinicians are burned out, we clearly need to fix our workplaces. In the meantime, we also need to care for ourselves, our patients, and each other.

August 29, 2024 | 1 min read

Where do you live?  

Clinicians must go beyond medical diagnoses and address social determinants of health, such as housing instability. Finding the best hospital discharge solution may require creativity and team collaboration. 

April 2, 2020 | 4 min read

Staying Connected Inside and Out During the Pandemic

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

Finding creative ways to connect to ourselves and to others is more important than ever in these days of social distancing.

October 27, 2021 | 4 min read

Digital Media Addiction: It’s Complicated

By Natalie Gukasyan, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

It’s tempting to resort to simple explanations for complex behaviors like digital media use. Deep relationships with patients can help you understand what’s behind the behavior. 

October 19, 2020 | 2 min read

Book Review of “One by One by One”

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

Never underestimate the power of teamwork in caring for patients. What can feel impossible for one person may be accomplished with the collaboration and support of others.

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.

October 22, 2020 | 2 min read

Patient voting matters

By Patrick Hemming, MD, Duke University

Clinicians are in a position of influence and can encourage patients to vote. Expressing confidence in patients’ ability to make a difference as a voter may motivate them to take action.

November 19, 2018 | 2 min read

Learning from Learners

By Margaret Chisolm, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Teaching is the best way to learn. In the end, I am not only a teacher and my residents are not only learners, but we are both a little of each.

July 21, 2022 | 7 min read

Building Cultures of Caring

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

We must care for ourselves to care for others. One great place to start is practicing self-compassion.

January 18, 2022 | 4 min read

How to Make New Habits Stick, Part 3

By Howard Chang, Medical Student, Johns Hopkins Medicine

We can break bad habits in our own lives and help patients do the same by making them unattractive, difficult, unsatisfying, and removing triggers.

July 14, 2020 | 5 min read

Top 10 Tips For Great Sleep During the Pandemic

By Logan Schneider, MD, Stanford Medicine

Great sleep is a foundation of health—both for healthcare professionals and our patients. Because sleep can be disturbed with the stress of the pandemic, it's important to commit to sleep-promoting habits and routines.

May 30, 2019 | 9 min read

Confessions of a Female Doctor who Questions Gender Equity Movements Like TIME’S UP Healthcare

By Kali Cyrus, MD, MPH, Johns Hopkins Medicine

We have to embrace humility and first accept that we have biases, prejudices, and privileges in certain contexts. We must then do the hard work of recognizing when our biases show up in interactions, examine our past experiences that contributed to the development of our biases, and acknowledge the hurt that may be caused by our biases to ourselves and others. If we truly want to stop harassment and create equity, we have to do this emotional work every day. And we should do it to stop harassment and create equity for not just women, but for everyone.

April 7, 2022 | 3 min read

Doom Your Gloom

By Crystal Favorito, pre-med, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Ask your patients about their online behaviors. Doomscrolling—consuming large quantities of negative news online—is an often underrecognized cause of anxiety. 

June 21, 2018 | 6 min read

How Home Ventilator Care Helped My Patients

By Mattan Schuchman, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Learning how to work with patients on ventilators at home has been a gratifying challenge.

September 21, 2022 | 1 min read

Finding Passion, Purpose, and Meaning

By Carisa Parrish, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When experiencing burnout on the job, enjoying activities outside of work may lead to greater happiness and life satisfaction, until your passion for work returns. 

April 8, 2021 | 3 min read

How to Support Teens’ Mental Health During The Pandemic

By Leslie Miller, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Now more than ever, it's critical for parents to check in with their teens on a regular basis. Encourage parents to ask their children directly how they’re doing and to validate that these are hard times.

August 20, 2019 | 5 min read

How to Make Family Dinner Happen at Least Once a Week

By David Cohen, MD, Rutgers Health, Mital Patel-Cohen, MD, Summit Medical Group

Excellent clinicians have to make time for wellness and family bonding. Prioritizing a family dinner at least once a week is one way to do this.

July 30, 2024 | 3 min read

Unplug to recharge 

By Jennifer Katzenstein, PhD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

When I engaged in a personal digital detox, I noticed my ability to focus on patients improved. Two ideas to try are setting screen-time limits and establishing tech-free zones. 

October 6, 2021 | 2 min read

Helping Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence During COVID

By Jennifer Knetig, PhD, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare, Kelly Buckholdt, PhD, Veterans Health Administration, Taylor Ceroni, PhD, Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health

Intimate partner violence has increased during the pandemic. Clinicians must ask patients about their safety and know where to refer.

June 13, 2019 | 6 min read

How to Talk With a Vaccine Skeptic

By Dharushana Muthulingam, MD, Yale School of Medicine

You cannot treat those who challenge you with contempt. Conversations must be navigated with respect and compassion.

April 23, 2025 | 3 min read

Teamwork Rx

Medical team huddles are a powerful practice to foster unity. This routine promotes teamwork, collaboration, and respect. 

March 9, 2022 | 6 min read

Being a naturalist to improve the health of all

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

Listening and closely observing patients, in the way we appreciate and notice nature, can promote humanistic care and clinician well-being.

August 31, 2023 | 4 min read

You Are Safe With Me

By Alia Bodnar, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

We must create safe spaces for all patients by listening closely and viewing their feedback as an opportunity to learn and give better care.