As medical professionals, it is tempting to cultivate a razor-sharp focus on symptoms and diagnoses. Robby helped me realize our former approach was like a racehorse with blinders: fast, but risking missing something important.

Brian R. Smith recalls an encounter with a special patient that made him think about restructuring visits to better identify patients’ crucial personal life events.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Faith is relevant to the clinical interaction when it gives patients and clinicians a shared ground upon which to stand in the midst of chaos, and my experience … showed me that spirituality can effect healing when all else fails.

Troy B. Amen reflects on how sharing a faith with patients can sometimes provide comfort and support when they need it most.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

When we form enriched relationships, we allow ourselves to feel grief for the patients we lose, and likewise, joy for the patients who leave healthier than when they arrived.

Zarin I. Rahman reflects on forming connections with patients over commonalities such as faith, language, or favorite sandwiches, and appreciating knowing them for even a short time.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Guests Courtney Newman and Jaclyn Albin, MD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss culinary medicine and its role in teaching nutrition, nutrition counseling, and hands-on cooking skills to medical students. The conversation also covers how culinary medicine programs build connections and community and improve the well-being of students, faculty, and patients.

A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org. 

Read the article discussed in this episode: Newman C, Yan J, Messiah S, Albin J. Culinary medicine as innovative nutrition education for medical students: A scoping review. Acad Med. 2023;98:274-286.

Every now and then, a patient will bring me new insights and knowledge, such as lessons on rare diseases that I would not have learned if I had not seen them in person. These rare patients … instilled in me the ability to be hyper-observant and detail oriented.

Nadia Falah reflects on a patient with a rare genetic condition and how learning to become a physician entails far more than simply passing an exam.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Medical students … need to build out reality-based curricula that equip future physicians to provide trauma-informed, harm-reductionist care. Patients need to be addressed in their context. Perhaps to do so, we need to take off our white coats and get our boots a little muddy.

Rebecca Bromley-Dulfano reflects on street medicine and learning to care for patients who may be without basic resources outside the clinic setting.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

On this remarkable day, however, it was clear. This woman knew who I was, months later and from only the sound of my voice, proving to me for the first time how our small actions can have a large impact.

Umer Farooq, a resident physician in the Department of Internal Medicine at Loyola Medicine/MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, Illinois, reflects on the unexpected, yet gratifying relationships formed between physicians and patients’ family members during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

As faculty, we are called to instruct and mentor students. And yet ... B, my colleagues, and friends of color have taught me lessons of far greater importance.

Sara B. Police, assistant professor and director of nutritional sciences education in the Department of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington, Kentucky, reflects on her meaningful journey from awareness to education to involvement in diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

My experience that night in the ICU was the wake-up call I needed. It was a reminder to shift my priorities back to the patient. It was a reminder that my job was more than check boxes and administrative tasks.

Nicholas R. Lenze, a resident in otolaryngology/head and neck surgery at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, reflects on the delicate balance between being an efficient resident and a doctor.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

She is a strong woman. The strongest woman I’ve probably ever met. Her strength is in her joyful spirit and the kindness she exudes to everyone she meets…. She is my mother, and she has been quite the model of unconditional love, service, kindness, and sacrifice.

Nurse practitioner Danielle Blackwell reflects on the person who inspired her to become a nurse.

This essay placed third in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.