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.

April 18, 2023 | 2 min read

Caring for patients who are Muslim during Ramadan (archived 2023)

By Zaina Siraj, medical student, Albany Medical College

Learn the basics about this important holiday. Ask your patients if they are fasting and how you can support their practice if medically possible. 

April 24, 2018 | 2 min read

Equality v. Equity

Working towards giving equitable care, not equal care, should be our focus, especially if we’re aiming to shrink the health disparities gap.

July 11, 2019 | 7 min read

June Art Museum Challenge

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

Art captures both the ordinary and extraordinary moments of human lives throughout history, and offers insights into how to heal ourselves and one another.

July 31, 2019 | 3 min read

The Healing Circle as a Holistic Framework

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

As can be learned from a Native American healer, to heal profoundly, one must holistically integrate mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual aspects of being human.

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.

August 27, 2020 | 3 min read

Finding Balance During Unbalanced Times

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

Spending time “going into and opening our hearts” is healing and restorative. We can do this for ourselves as healers and guide patients through the practice. It’s as simple as slowing down, putting your hand on your heart, and taking three deep breaths.

February 26, 2019 | 4 min read

On “Great” Diagnoses

By Nathan Douthit, MD, Brookwood Baptist Health, Birmingham, Alabama

Making an accurate diagnosis and giving a name to our patient's illness is a crucial component of acceptance and healing for the patient and their family.

January 24, 2019 | 4 min read

Cultivating Caring

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

Compassion begins with caring for ourselves and working to grow as full human beings. It is not just the lives of our patients that depend on us learning this component of caring, the quality of our own lives depend upon learning this as well.

August 30, 2023 | 2 min read

Containing Chaos Through Dance

By Shreya Srivastava, medical student, Albany Medical College

The strength, stamina, emotional understanding, and situational awareness that dancers develop over time can also benefit healthcare professionals.  

March 19, 2020 | 3 min read

Returning to Medicine of the Heart During a Pandemic

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

How can we practice the kind of medicine that we so desperately need right now? Perhaps it is time to return to a medicine of the heart and of the soul.

February 26, 2020 | 2 min read

How to Process Emotions as a Team

By Peter Heikkinen, MDiv, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Excellent clinical teams support each other by reflecting on patient encounters and sharing their emotions.

February 17, 2020 | 1 min read

Insights From “Dying in the Neurological ICU”

By Ambereen Mehta, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Excellent clinicians are aware of the level of uncertainty in which we practice and empathize with the challenge that patients and families face in the face of that uncertainty.

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.

January 9, 2023 | 2 min read

Questions Raised by “There, There” 

By Mike Fingerhood, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Reflecting on our own “there” (the place where we grew up) can trigger conversation that helps us to understand our patients’ “there.” This can strengthen the patient-clinician relationship.

December 22, 2022 | 2 min read

Bittersweet holidays

By Taryn Schuelke, MS, CT, CCLS, Texas Childrens Hospital

Many experience grief during the holidays. Make sure to acknowledge your patients’ feelings and consider encouraging them to heal through ritual. 

August 21, 2019 | 1 min read

Circle Medicine

By David Kopacz, MD, University of Washington

To care for the whole person we need human-based models of medicine that complement our protocol-based medicine.

August 13, 2019 | 2 min read

How Does Bullying Relate to Clinical Excellence?

By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

There is no place in medicine for bullying. It interferes with growth of individuals and collaborations among team members – both of these are critical for serving our patients.

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.

September 13, 2022 | 2 min read

Psychedelics and Health

By Mary Yaden, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Psychedelic therapies have long been feared and avoided. We must acknowledge that there are clinical indications where these treatments are profoundly beneficial.   

June 10, 2019 | 4 min read

Lessons learned from my journey through depression

By Shannon Scott-Vernaglia, MD, Mass General

Being a patient has taught me patience, with myself, with those I care about, and with those I care for as physician. 

May 14, 2019 | 4 min read

Review of “Critical Crash”

By Andre Lijoi, MD, York, Pennsylvania

We all have our woundedness, and our own story is important in the context of caring for our patients. These stories and wounds operate in the background of our consciousness and we must recognize and manage them.

May 2, 2019 | 4 min read

Grieving Unexpected Patient Outcomes

By Stacia Dearmin, MD, Akron Children\'s Hospital

Acknowledging and processing grief can bring healing to the clinician.

April 14, 2022 | 3 min read

Equity and Ethical Considerations With The Use of Psychedelics

By Ian Pocock, LICSW, Washington

Psychedelic medicines may help patients suffering with PTSD and treatment-resistant depression. As with many new therapies, ethical considerations and ensuring equal access for everyone are works in progress.

February 5, 2019 | 2 min read

Creating a Clear Care Map for Patients

By Chris Myers

Showing patients and their families a clear map of their care plan can help bring awareness and healing to patients and families alike.