A Medical Humanist's Notes

Empathy Unplugged

Empathy. It’s something all of us would agree is a valuable—and often missing—component of care. So when

Doctors caring for patients facing incurable illness often feel pressure to come up with a “miracle” treatment. But what if

Poet Emily Dickinson called death “the only One You cannot find out all about.” While modern medical education

“There’s almost always, in every medical circumstance, one more thing we can try,” says Dr. Julie Bynum. But

In my last post, I asked whether a message of constant “positivity” might be silencing for patients who might need

Nicole Haran’s “Do Great” video features cancer survivors declaring their desire to hear “you will do great.”

I recently spoke with two physicians about what patients understand the words “treatable” and “incurable” to mean.

If waiting for test results can be stressful, having direct or immediate access to them poses its own challenges.

The receptionist cradled the telephone between her ear and shoulder as she jotted down the patient’s message.

Doctors interested in empowering their patients to speak freely could begin by handing them this workbook.