Girl Doc Survival Guide

This is a continuation of my conversation with Dr. Stephanie Preston, and she covers what she means by an altruistic urge (we are hardwired to help when someone is clearly vulnerable, there isn't high risk, we have the skill, and we know we can make a difference). The bystander effect and burnout can be combatted by understanding this altruistic urge and recognizing that it is not empathy tha...

" Sports hysteria " is a type of emotional contagion, where fans of the same team are all carried away by the same emotion. Dr. Stephanie Preston is a researcher of emotions and decision making, and she talks about how not displaying emotion is also a type of emotional contagion and is likely a consequence of the fact that we don't want to transmit out-of-control or negative emotion...

Bottom line (spoiler alert!): You just have to say no! Start with one time...and go from there. Saying no is important to combatting the system problem of burnout while we wait for the system to make changes. I (and others I know, especially in academia) have trouble saying no, and starting small with one thing does help. Dr. Schukow also recently wrote an article related to his intern year (in pr...

A lot of the topics that are covered in this podcast are things that I never learned in medical school or training, and yet concepts that I think are very useful as a physician, mother, and person. Dr. Whang listens in every week, and as a surgeon, the concept that he has found most useful is emotional intelligence - that emotions can be used as a source of strength. Dr. Whang agrees with me that...

Dr. Gigerenzer explains to me how to make better decisions under uncertainty via use of heuristics, intuition, and narratives. Dr. Gerd Gigerenzer, PhD is Director of the Harding Center for Risk Literacy at the University of Potsdam, Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg and partner of Simply Rational - The Institute for Decisions . He is former Director of the Center for Adaptive Behavior and Co...

I was confused about "heuristics"! It is always so exciting when I learn something new that makes things clearer to me. According to Dr. Gigerenzer, heuristics are NOT the same as cognitive bias. Cognitive bias describes PAST behavior, often in situations of so-called "risk" (the economic term) (that actually means that all variables are known). Heuristics guide what can be DON...

I initially misinterpreted Dr. Goodale's research on the duplex account of high-level vision (listen to hear how), and yet his insights into visual perception are fascinating. We also touch on gas lighting (not gaslighting) and how that relates to visual perception of form; ultimately, it is humbling to recognize that there is much that physicians don't know (and didn't know) about...

It is much easier for us to have compassion for others as compared to self-compassion. Dr. Yu Tse Heng studies self-compassion and humannizing the workplace, and her research supports that self-compassion helps promote other compassion, and vice versa. Speaking with Yu Tse has made me even more willing to be self-compassionate; maybe the same will be the case for listeners. Dr. Yu Tse Heng, PhD is...

Shame is overrated, according to Dr. Towery, who recently won the 2022 Shame Attacking World Championship ! Dr. Towery also goes over mindset shifts as related to the growth mindset, and how thoughts shape feelings as well as behaviors. Dr. Jacob Towery, MD is Adjunct Clinical Faculty at Stanford University School of Medicine. He has been featured in The New York Times   and The Washington Post ....

Dr. Irwin Braverman conceptualized visits to an art museum and observation of an unknown painting as a useful visual exercise for doctors to improve observational skills. He touches on the backstory behind this program, what he thinks emotional intelligence is, why he doesn't think it can be taught, and having no regrets. Dr. Irwin Braverman, MD is Professor Emeritus of Dermatology at Yale Un...

Dr. Vinh Chung continues our conversation on inspirational leadership, the barriers that physicians often face in leading well, and acts of service. Dr. Vinh Chung, MD is a dermatologist and Mohs surgeon who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer. He obtained a BA in biology at Harvard University and earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He was a Fulbright Schol...

Dr. Vinh Chung introduces me to the concept of moral injury and how that leads to physician burnout. He also begins to talk about leadership that goes beyond power and authority to a place of trust and inspiration. Dr. Vinh Chung, MD is a dermatologist and Mohs surgeon who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer. He obtained a BA in biology at Harvard University and earned his me...

Compassion is one of the words that is variably defined, depending on who you talk to, and this is true in psychology vs. business/management circles. In this episode, Dr. Kira Schabram talks about compassion as a process of noticing, empathizing, and DOING. She also covers what it means for compassion to be a muscle, and how self-compassion and other compassion actually are working that SAME musc...

I last spoke with Dr. Michi Shinohara on burnout, and this episode delves into burnout and how self-care vs. other care can be a remedy for the particular symptoms of burnout: exhaustion, inefficacy, and cynicism. Dr. Kira Schabram, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Management at the University of Washington Foster School of Business. She received her PhD from the University of British Columbia, he...

A "calling" is defined as something that gives you personal, social, or moral significance. For me, and for many physicians, the practice of medicine is a calling. Those in pursuit of a calling generally are on one of three different paths: the identity path, the contribution path, and the practice path. Dr. Kira Schabram goes over her research in this area and talks about why the practi...

I love Dr. Heymann's concept of a red file and a sunshine file - listen in to hear how the red file relates to deliberate practice ! I also appreciate how he recites the Maimonedes prayer about every 3 months, and his insight into growing emotional intelligence over a lifetime. Dr. Warren R. Heymann, MD is Head of the Division of Dermatology as well as a Professor of Dermatology and of Pediat...

This is a summary of the connections among all the conversations I've had in the last few months. This is for YOU! if you are short on time and have missed listening in. The ultimate message is that together we can change the existing cultures and systems around us, for the better. 

Listen in as Tim talks about flexibility, bread, overdiagnosis and shame. Dr. Timothy McCalmont is Professor Emeritus of the Departments of Pathology and Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco. He was Co-Director of the UCSF Dermatopathology Service for 25 years as well as the Editor of the Journal of Cutaneous Pathology. His BS in Biochemistry and MD are from Iowa State University,...

Greed should not be a factor in patient care, and yet more and more it seems to be. Dr. Donald Berwick has a wonderful article titled Salve Lucrum in JAMA , and I highly recommend it. He touches on how his father inspired and inspires him, the importance of community and connection, and the small steps we can take to fight greed. Dr. Donald M. Berwick, MD, MPP, FRCP , is President Emeritus and Sen...

If you are like me and are not totally familiar with the difference between narrative and medical listening, listening to this episode can make a difference in how patients are listened to. There is a difference between the medical story and the patient story, although they are closely intertwined. Dr. Johanna F. Shapiro, PhD was Director of the Program in Medical Humanities & Arts, in the Dep...

Join me in a conversation with Dr. Johanna Shapiro , in which we talk about emotions and the importance of empathy and humanizing both patients and doctors. Dr. Johanna F. Shapiro, PhD was Director of the Program in Medical Humanities & Arts, in the Department of Family Medicine, at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine. She is a Professor Emerita in Family Medicine. She rece...

Join me in my conversation with Dr. Rebecca Miller who has extensive experience in the healthcare arena, both as a highly trained psychiatrist and as a patient. We touch on a trip to the Pyrenees, parenthood, and cogntive bias as pertaining to the misdiagnosis of early onset Parkinson's disease. Dr. Rebecca Miller, PhD attended Barnard College-Columbia University as an undergraduate, received...

It sounds overly simple, but hear why the question, How are you feeling? is so key in interactions like doctor-patient ones, but really, all of our relatinoships. An open-ended question like that can truly keep the door open on validating others' emotions, avoiding unintentionally suggesting that the way someone is feeling is not normative.  Dr. Chris Cipriano is an expert in social and emoti...

Dr. Michael Dewsnap lends his insights as a medical educator in leadership on the role of reflection in integrating the lived experience and emotional intelligence. He addressed the hidden curriculum, and given that physician time is valuable and limited, channeling the lived experience is likely key in developing the skill of emotional intelligence. Dr. Michael Dewsnap, PhD, MSEd is the Executive...

The experience of being a patient is inextricably linked to the experience of being a doctor. Bess Siegal is one of my longest term friends (she's known me over half of my life!), and she was diagnosed with (presumed) lung cancer in 2020. We talk about the importance of tissue/pathologic diagnosis, the doctor-patient relationship, what we do with cell phone numbers (!), and how asking for hel...