Blog

Time has a special meaning in geriatrics, for both patients and the geriatricians like me that treat them. Older patients are focused on maintaining their function and independence so they can enjoy every day-week-month as happily and healthily as they can. Geriatricians know that to achieve those goals, we need time to connect with patients on both a personal and professional level. Doctors have traditionally been lucky to spend even 15 minutes with their patients — just enough time to cover the chief complaint and maybe some chronic disease basics. 

Medical school barely teaches physicians how to open practices, balance the books and staff appropriately, let alone how to mitigate the challenges of running a small business and stay afloat in a pandemic. This past year has turned the practice of medicine — and by extension, many physicians’ lives — upside down; and so, during National Physicians Week, we want to recognize the contributions that physicians make to the lives of their patients and the communities they serve.