This is the final installment of Dr. Asha Shajahan’s essay series on being a healthcare worker during a pandemic. Read the first, second and third installments. Day Nine: Gratitude Social distancing was getting to me and I was craving to go out to dinner with friends to my favorite Italian restaurant for some quality carbonara. I
This is the third installment of Dr. Asha Shajahan’s essay series on being a healthcare worker during a pandemic. Read the first and second. Day Seven: My Off Day When the pandemic started, before I was pulled to work the COVID-19 inpatient unit, I spent three days a week volunteering at a homeless shelter. I
This is the second installment of Dr. Asha Shajahan’s essay series on being a healthcare worker during a pandemic. Read the first part here. Day 4: The Economic Impact of COVID-19 The Emergency Command Center of the hospital had good news; the patient census was going down. The number of discharges and successful weans off the
This is the first installment of Dr. Asha Shajahan’s essay series on being a healthcare worker during a pandemic. Day One: Superheroes I left home nervously for my first COVID-19 unit shift. I had seen COVID-19 patients in my outpatient office and also seen homeless patients on the streets, but this was different. These patients
I walked into the examining room and she had her face buried in her hands. She looked up at me with her tear filled eyes and said, “Doctor, I’m scared.” I see the fear in her eyes and in many patients seen since COVID-19 has hit. Her reaction is warranted. These are unprecedented times, and
Walking down the aisle of my local grocery store, I noticed that they were out of paper towels, masks, and antibacterial wipes. Just like with H1N1, SARS and MERS, the panic has started. Is there really a reason to be frightened here in the U.S. or is this all hype? Here’s the real talk. Coronavirus
It looks like a flash drive and can be charged in a USB port, but it’s not a data storage device. Instead, it delivers high levels of nicotine, making the product extremely addictive. Vaping rates have surged among teens. In 2018, a national tobacco youth survey found that over 3.6 million middle school and high
I walked outside the neurologist’s office of the renowned institution where I had just been told of the devastating diagnosis for my mother. After explaining her condition to me in a low-lit, sterile examining room, the eyes of his training residents on me, he said, “You can give her the diagnosis in a way she
Many patients have been coming to my office bringing their young children for well child checks and complaining that due to the measles outbreak, they are opting not to travel. Here is some advice for those who don’t want measles to stand in the way of vacation. Give the vaccine early– If your child is
I used to work at a Montessori preschool and was amazed by the differences in the children. Some were calm, some were hyper, some were loud, others quiet. But then there was one child where I felt something more serious was occurring. He would throw a tantrum every time he had to put on his jacket.