by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
My background in nursing has given me a perspective that many physicians don’t have. From the beginning of my career, I have valued the information that patients have provided me about the context of their lives, family, work, and beliefs. I have never cared for a...
by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
Many men experience significant erectile problems after having a radical prostatectomy, and many of the men treated by the urologists I work with eventually land in my office. We talk frankly about the quality of their erections before the surgery, what they are like...
by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
Not infrequently, I have to call a patient whom I don’t know. I receive referrals from all members of the oncology team at our institution and beyond and I usually make the call to the patient to book the initial appointment. I have just basic information about the...
by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
Ten years ago, I first met this patient, newly diagnosed with intermediate-risk prostate cancer. As I walked into the examination room I was struck by the juxtaposition of his wife, crumpled in a chair and weeping silently, with the patient himself, pacing the...
by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
The phone rang in my office one morning last week. Woman: “I received a notice of an appointment with you and it says to bring my partner or spouse with me. This problem has nothing to do with him.” (The opening statement could just as easily be from a man, and often...
by drannekatz | May 7, 2018 | Uncategorized
I was sitting in a meeting, listening and participating, but at the same time keeping an eye on my email. I always do this, sometimes to my peril, as email is distracting and more than once I have been called on to say something and I have no clue where the discussion...
