Life is filled with millions of unique moments - some are challenging, many are routine, and a few are so lovely they really standout. This week held moments in all of those categories; I’ll skip the hard ones this time around and share the best.
Read MoreI got COVID for the first time this week - three years into the pandemic and three months after I left clinical medicine. It seems ironic that despite all the time spent caring for COVID-positive patients (and my family, who all got it earlier in the pandemic), it was a regional meeting with other family physicians that finally did it. Figures. That’s the ‘rona.
Read MoreI wondered what the last day would be like - would I be happy or sad? anxious or excited? exhausted or energized? Would the patient interactions on that day feel different than those of the previous 20 years? And what would life feel like the day AFTER the last day?
Read MoreOne of my favorite photos is from August of 1989. I was moving to college for my freshman year on a hot summer day, all dressed up and inappropriately carrying a leather jacket for some reason known only to my teenaged self. The car was crammed to the seams with all the things I thought I might need, and I was ready to head out. Someone captured a picture of my dad and me, just before I left. We are both smiling at the camera and I remember how excited I was to take off and start this new chapter in my life.
Read MoreThis morning, I heard a meadlowlark outside. This bird’s song always makes me think of spring, and of hope. It made me think about all the meadowlarks in my own life, especially those who made such a difference in the last week. You know these folks, too: they build hope using their actions and words, they help us think of spring. We will make it to spring, and summer, and the end of the coronavirus pandemic. Thanks, meadowlarks. Keep singing; we need you.
Read MoreAs an early career family physician, I was blessed with three incredible mentors. From these family docs, I learned the science of medicine, and more importantly, I realized the necessity of practicing the art. I’ve been working on sharing my gratitude with those who make my life better on the regular, so I’m taking time to say thanks to those who shared so much with me and helped “grow me up” to be the family physician I am.
Read MoreI’ve “had my snorkel up” the last couple of months. My senior partner introduced me to the phrase after I started practice in Rooks County, so perhaps it is unique to our group. If you take a minute to reflect on the words, you’ll know what they mean: I was underwater and one big wave away from losing my lifeline to the surface.
Read MoreThings are different when you live half-way between Kansas City and Denver. You can’t pop down the street to a great Ethiopian restaurant or head to the mega-mall for a last minute Christmas gift, for example. And there is no anonymity; news in a small community travels quickly, and everyone is part of the community. The line between patient and friend rarely exists. My home address and phone number are in the phonebook; it wouldn’t matter if they were unlisted because everyone knows where I live anyway. And I’m good with that fact.
Read MoreDid you know that an overwhelming majority of US adults want to talk to their family physician about their end of life wishes? And that only 15-20% actually do so? This paradox exists for many reasons: discomfort on the part of both patient and physician, culture that accepts a bare minimum of advance care planning, not enough time to have the conversation, lack of training for clinicians and fear on the part of patients they may be bringing the topic up “too early” for it to be meaningful.
The health care system in the US is highly advanced and has the capacity and technology to do a lot TO our patients. We should instead strive for a better system: medicine that provides care FOR our patients.
Read MoreI like to say “yes” to new opportunities. It is fun to try out different types of work, learn new information, stretch my brain and grow my abilities. Sometimes “yes” leads down an exciting new path and sometimes it results in a dead end; either way, I always learn something about myself and frequently about the subject.
As I took on more projects (and got older!), there were various points in my life where I could no longer stretch the hours in the day to cover the volume of work to be done. Initially, I did the same thing we all do: I tried to work harder + faster + better + longer to get everything done. Eventually, I realized my life needed a reset and sorted out a way to prioritize the current things on my plate and make room for the next new thing I really wanted to do.
Read MoreI have been practicing full scope, rural family medicine for 18 years now and I still don’t know everything I need to know. When I come upon a puzzle I don’t know how to solve, I joke with patients that I need to “phone a friend” to get help with the answer.
Some days, I am privileged to be the friend someone else is phoning for a tough problem; those opportunities allow me to give back just a little bit of the support I have received over the course of my career. If your number is in my contacts app, it’s time to say thanks. You know I’ll be calling you for more great advice real soon.
Read MoreI have always lived by the philosophy that my mission wasn’t to change the world; it was to change the space I’m in, to find nearby opportunity that I have the ability to impact and improve. I love the space I’m in now. I am ready to expand that space if selected to join the AAFP Board of Directors next year. And I accept the obligation of that position to further change the healthcare space for family physicians and their patients.
Read MoreI started a gratitude journal recently - a reminder to myself that despite some crazy moments, many things in my life are GOOD. After just a day of jotting down people, events and things that I was thankful for, I felt lifted by the task. The list stretched quite long in the ensuing week, and I wanted to share a few of my favorites.
Read MoreThe Kansas motto refers to the pioneering spirit of the early settlers and acknowledges difficult times on the way to becoming a state. With every journey there are tricky bits; times when the pieces don’t fit together nicely and you have to rearrange your travel plans to reach your destination. Leadership has been my journey, and I find that those tricky bits are the places on the trip I learn the most.
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