Paul Pender, MD, Vxtra Health Director of Digital Health Communications Recently I heard my primary care physician compare the stress and frustration of her hospital-based electronic medical record (EMR) to that of COVID, and she said that her EMR system was worse! After the shock wore off, I attempted to understand what that meant from [...]
Changing direction once established is not easy, but it can be rewarding. I recently read the essay on KevinMD from a physician who shifted gears to her own business after some discouraging experiences in “the system.” During her residency, her attending physician asked her what her purpose was in becoming a physician. To her credit, [...]
(The following Letter to the Editor was submitted on December 21, 2020.) The December 15, 2020 edition of the JAMA Network has seven articles on the subject of trust. The challenge for physicians post-pandemic is to focus on what we can accomplish as individuals and on what goals for our profession, and for society in [...]
I wrote Rebuilding Trust in Healthcare: A Doctor’s Prescription for a Post-Pandemic America without expecting to develop it further into an audiobook. But as the book’s popularity has grown in such a short time, I hired a professional actor as a narrator, and I can say that I am thrilled with the performance of Nick [...]
A powerful communications medium, with the chance to get into someone else’s mind and connect through experience. Sometimes the experience is vicarious, because not everyone has lived what the storyteller has. But the storyteller’s words can have a profound effect, and the listener can appreciate what is told within a recognizable context. The works of [...]
What better way to launch a book signing tour than with a bunch of golfing buddies? The short answer: there is no better way. First, you have a captive audience. Two foursomes playing golf on Columbus Day weekend make for good times among friends. These gentlemen golfers received a “swag bag” from me containing a [...]
Great news! I was a guest on Dr. Randall Cook’s podcast, Rx for Success, and the audio can be downloaded on September 14, 2020 at www.rxforsuccesspodcast.com. We discuss the release of my new book, Rebuilding Trust in Healthcare: A Doctor’s Prescription for a Post-Pandemic America. Those embarking on a career in medicine receive some tips, [...]
Winding Down, Facing Up: Insights Gained on the Road to Retirement, published on February 16, 2020, addresses issues raised in experiencing burnout, leaving a medical practice, and finding another calling. A message of hope and of redirection of professional energy (in my case toward writing), suggests that dark moods can be a temporary state that [...]
The invitation came in my email from my older sister, Shirley, in late January 2020. Hi Paul, It was great seeing you for lunch and we look forward to next month when we can celebrate your birthday. I’ll be flying into Phoenix to see Sue in mid-March for a long weekend (Thurs. March 12 – [...]
It is a busy time of year. I made my rounds to collect my skis after tuning, to pick up items for our Christmas guests, to get my haircut and to claim my new eyeglasses. I drove to my golf course and took a half-hour walk on snow-covered paths with my dog. Dropped him at [...]