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Patients hide their food allergy, and few doctors speak up Oct 30, 2026

Show notes

On a Hulu comedy, a man hides his shellfish allergy from a coworker. When the reaction starts, he takes Benadryl. Lianne Mandelbaum is a food allergy advocate, president of the No Nut Traveler, and airline correspondent for Allergic Living. This episode is based on her article "Why a Hulu comedy's food allergy myths are dangerous," published on KevinMD. You will hear why she says every beat of that plot is a myth, starting with the idea that Benadryl treats anaphylaxis and ending with the show's diagnosis of adrenaline poisoning. She cites a global survey of 4,704 people in which 31 percent said they hid a food allergy to avoid getting in trouble or being mocked. Lianne then traces what that silence costs, including a college student who treated himself, told no one, drove to the hospital alone, and died in the parking lot. She also explains what changed in the latest airline rulemaking, and what she is asking clinicians to do about it.

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U.S. health care won't be fixed until everyone can see a doctor Oct 29, 2026

Show notes

Almost 50 years into practice, a cardiologist says American health care is getting worse by the day. Peter R. Kowey specializes in heart rhythm disorders and ran a cardiology division for 25 years. This episode is based on his article "Why a broken health care system keeps getting worse," published on KevinMD. You'll hear how the lack of universal health care puts cost into almost every exam room decision, from tests to prescriptions. He describes administrators setting 15- to 20-minute visits to generate revenue, and why he says physicians ceded that control themselves. You'll also hear why he doubts more medical schools will fix the doctor shortage, and how hard it is for foreign-trained specialists to practice here. His fixes start with basics: cheaper drugs, care for everyone, more use of nurse practitioners and physician assistants for high blood pressure and diabetes, and bipartisan pressure on lawmakers. Hear why he warns even his wealthy neighbors that no one is immune.

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Joining a private practice? Get the partnership terms in writing first. Oct 28, 2026

Show notes

Being offered partnership in a medical practice is usually good news, but not always. One physician paid $60,000 to buy in, then signed a contract making her cover all of a $325,000 bonus her two partners had given themselves. That meant $9,000 a month out of her pay, and leaving would keep her liable for a third of the office leases until she was replaced. Health law attorney and Physician Agreements Health Law founder Dennis Hursh discusses his KevinMD article "The partnership offer that cost her $325,000." He estimates he has reviewed four or five dozen partnership agreements and found only two really bad deals. You'll hear what to ask for in your first employment agreement, while you can still negotiate: the practice's finances, the shareholder agreement, the buy-in method, and partnership criteria. He also covers a partner title with no ownership or vote, a clause giving one founder 60 percent of every vote, and which decisions should be unanimous. Stay for the gut check and questions to ask before becoming anyone's business partner.

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Self-care isn't self-indulgence, and burnout isn't only a personal problem Oct 27, 2026

Show notes

Doctors and nurses are trained to take excellent care of other people's health, and often don't look after their own. Close to half the health care workforce has burnout, and it shows in rounded shoulders, lower back problems, and little time to process a patient's death. Internal medicine and critical care physician Narinder Singh Parhar discusses his KevinMD article "The health care workforce crisis we keep ignoring." With nearly four decades in hospital and ICU medicine, he explains why clinicians treat self-care as self-indulgence and what feeds burnout, from training culture to productivity demands. You'll hear what you can do yourself, from exercise that strengthens your back and hips to regular meals and sleep. He makes the case for asking for protected meal time, seeking mental health support, and banding together with colleagues. Health systems have their part too: appropriate staffing, less unnecessary documentation, AI tools that save physician time, and healthy leadership role models. Stay for the whole plan, from what you can change yourself to what your health system has to do.

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Why malpractice lawsuits are rarer but more expensive than ever Oct 26, 2026

Show notes

Doctors are sued far less often than they were 25 years ago, but the average malpractice payout has never been higher. Robert E. White, Jr., president of The Doctors Company, has spent 58 years in malpractice insurance. This episode is based on his article "Why medical malpractice claims cost more than ever," published on KevinMD. You'll hear why he thinks tort reform and a patient safety push that began in 1999 drove lawsuits down. He explains how nuclear verdicts of $10 million or more raise the average settlement, even though they get settled for less. You'll also learn why insurers now pay on more of the claims that are filed, keeping pressure on premiums. He warns that obstetricians and other high-risk specialists may drop parts of their practice if premiums climb, leaving patients without care. He asks physicians to answer the call when organized medicine pushes for reform. Hear what patients say when asked why they sued, and why more time with them could head off many cases.

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Active sitting: Why ergonomic chairs and standing desks fail Oct 25, 2026

Show notes

The office chairs most of us sit in all day have little science behind them, and the popular fixes may not be much better. Turner Osler is a trauma surgeon and epidemiologist. This episode is based on his article "How the benefits of active sitting change desk work," published on KevinMD. You will hear why life table analyses suggest the people who sit the most lose about two years of life, where the 90-90-90 posture came from, and why lumbar support has largely failed. You will hear what goes wrong with kneeling chairs and yoga balls, and why he says standing desks are even worse, citing a 2018 Ontario study of 6,300 people followed for 12 years in which heart disease was doubled in the group that stood. You will also learn how active sitting builds movement into the workday by changing the environment rather than relying on willpower, and what a moving surface could do for people who use a standing desk. Press play for why you do not have to accept the chair you are sitting in.

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Fired for seeing her own patients: moral injury and life after medicine Oct 24, 2026

Show notes

A physician was fired by the doctors she had trained, in part because she preferred to see her own patients herself. Moral injury, she argues, does not require 100-hour weeks. Sarah A. Vlach is a physiatrist and sports medicine physician. This episode is based on her article "Moral injury doesn't care how many hours you worked," published on KevinMD. You will hear how her working conditions slowly deteriorated, including nine months without a medical assistant, and why her first response was to knuckle down and work harder. She describes how financial incentives like RVUs now shape decisions in both corporate and private practice, and why she sees a two-track system forming as more clinicians move to cash-based care. She offers advice for new physicians starting out with large loans, and she explains how the Physician Support Line and writing about the experience helped her. Press play to hear what she wishes she had done sooner, and why she has found there is life after being a physician.

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Disability claim denied? Your chart notes may be why. Oct 23, 2026

Show notes

The words you put in a patient's chart can be used to deny their disability claim. A note that says "stable" or "improved" can mean one thing to you and another to the insurer. Jennifer Hess, an ERISA disability attorney and Riemer Hess partner, represents physicians and other professionals in long-term disability claims. This episode is based on her article "Why your patient's disability claim was denied," published on KevinMD. You'll hear why a fixed return-to-work date on a disability form can get benefits cut off, and what to write instead. You'll also learn how to add context to notes about improvement, pain, or depression, and why a short narrative letter can go a long way. Jennifer explains why you can ask insurers to put their questions in writing instead of answering on a surprise call. She also makes the case for checking your own disability policy, since you could one day be on the other side of the table. Hear what to write, what to leave out, and what to read before you sign.

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

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Doctors lose hours to admin work that AI or an assistant could do Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

Many doctors who run their own practices spend hours on work someone else could do. One practice owner who charges $300 an hour was his own receptionist, verifying insurance all night and stepping away from a family dinner to take a patient's call. Central AI and Wing Assistant CEO Karan Kanwar discusses his KevinMD article "The physician opportunity cost nobody puts on a bill." He argues that this time, along with the revenue lost when calls go unanswered, never shows up on a profit and loss statement. You'll hear why practices hesitate, from reluctance to let go of tasks to worries about HIPAA compliance and connecting to the EHR. He walks through the easiest places to start, including phone calls, payer calls, billing and test result questions, and non-clinical questions about medical equipment. He also shares how to judge whether an AI vendor will still be around. Stay for a simple exercise: look at everything you do in a day and decide what you can give away.

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Your living will could get you too much care, or too little Oct 21, 2026

Show notes

When you can't speak for yourself, a living will is supposed to speak for you. Too often, it doesn't. Seventy percent of U.S. adults don't have one, and those who do often keep it in a drawer at home. Emergency physician and MIDEO Health Technologies CEO Ferdinando Mirarchi and attorney Thaddeus Mason Pope discuss their KevinMD article "Why problems with advance directives keep harming patients." You'll learn that 80 percent of physicians equate the mere presence of an advance directive with a do not resuscitate (DNR) order. Mirarchi calls it the lethal glance, a split-second read by a clinician who has never met the patient. The errors go both ways: resuscitating people who never wanted it and failing to resuscitate people who chose full code. They explain how a POLST differs from an advance directive, how professional bias creeps in, and how patient-recorded videos can make your wishes clear in seconds. You'll leave knowing what to set up for yourself and your family now, and why clinicians should stop and ask instead of assuming.

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