“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.”  So wrote John Donne in 1642. While we might want to update this statement by saying “No person is an island,” and while this was intended to point out people’s dependencey on others, there Read more

EDITORS’ NOTE: The following post first appeared in MedPage Today. The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade will undoubtedly restrict the reproductive healthcare that many physicians can provide. Critically, it will also threaten the clinical knowledge and skills of the next generation of physicians. As medical students, we firmly believe that any comprehensive reproductive health Read more

On the popular medical TV drama House, M.D., the more mysterious and puzzling the presentation of the patient, the more likely a diagnosis of lupus would be considered. So much so that there are still T-shirts for sale on Amazon bearing the face of Dr. House, accompanied by the catchphrase, “It is NOT lupus.” Unfortunately Read more

EDITORS’ NOTE: The following post first appeared in The Conversation. “Mr. and Mrs. Smith, we finally have an answer for you.” The couple, whose real names we are protecting for privacy, looked at me anxiously. I had been evaluating their young daughter, Sally, in my role as a medical geneticist at the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in Read more

EDITORS’ NOTE: This post first appeared in Bronx Voice. “Nothing about us, without us.” In Spanish we would say, “Nada sobre nosotros, sin nosotros.” No matter the language, the meaning of this powerful statement remains the same. Originating centuries ago, and later recognized as the mantra of the disability rights movement, it speaks to the core premise that Read more