Feb 5Member-onlyKids Are Like BoomerangsOr double-edged swords, perhaps… “Parenting without a sense of humor is like being an accountant who sucks at math.” — Amber Dusick I spent the back half of 2001 at Mater Children’s Hospital in Brisbane, Australia, pursuing advanced training in pediatric critical care. For the first (and only) time in…Parenting Advice7 min readParenting Advice7 min read
Dec 28, 2022Member-only’Tis the Season for Covid SillinessThe pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails. William Arthur Ward An emerg doc, a dermatologist, and an evolutionary biologist walk into a bar. That’s not the opening to a bad joke. The protagonists are real. Except they didn’t walk into…Covid-196 min readCovid-196 min read
Dec 12, 2022Member-onlyDial Out Of Your Screens — And Dial In To Your TeensMost adolescents need conversation, not medication. When I see your face There’s not a thing that I would change ’Cause you’re amazing Just the way you are. — Bruno Mars Our teenagers have been never more “connected”. Thanks to Instagram, Snapchat, Tiktok, Discord and BeReal, they’re never alone. Yet never…Anxiety5 min readAnxiety5 min read
Dec 8, 2022Member-onlyNo, Premier Smith: Fever Isn’t DangerousFever is our friend, not our foe. I have some sympathy for Premier Danielle Smith. I can only imagine how difficult it is to be the leader of a whole province. She has to preside over a host of hugely important files: energy, transportation, finance, health, social services, justice, and…Medicine6 min readMedicine6 min read
Dec 3, 2022Member-onlyOn Assholes and AffabilityDon’t be a jerk; but also don’t be a doormat. My father, a hard-working and deeply intellectual immigrant farmer of unwavering religious faith, was a man of few words. All the more astonishing, then, that one of the words that increasingly peppered his ordinarily careful conversation as he advanced into…4 min read4 min read
Nov 22, 2022Member-onlyImmunity Debt? Maybe. Common Sense Debt? Absolutely.The sea of Covidian nonsense is bottomless. — Common sense is like deodorant: those who need it the most never use it. Anonymous “Everyone knows” that Elon Musk is killing Twitter. The fingers of journalists the world over are itching to bang out this headline: TWITTER IS DEAD! I half-expected to wake this morning to those words emblazoned…Covid-197 min readCovid-197 min read
Nov 10, 2022Member-onlyWaiting Rooms Are Packed With Virus: Why Don’t We Learn?A short trip down memory’s troubled lane. Early in 2020, with alarming news coming out of China regarding a new and super-infectious respiratory virus, I wrote an essay invoking an innovative approach to managing emergency departments during outbreaks of infectious disease. It’s extraordinary, really, to read that piece now. …Covid8 min readCovid8 min read
Oct 31, 2022Member-onlyWelcome To Canada, Where Broken Appliances Get Better Service Than Broken PeopleInsanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Albert Einstein It was inevitable, I suppose. After five years of labouring under the relentless onslaught of dirty dishes generated by a family of six (plus two dogs), our dishwasher finally snapped, “E25” flashing in angry red…Canada6 min readCanada6 min read
Sep 26, 2022Member-onlyBattered Doctor SyndromeWhy is there such a shortage of family doctors? It’s an interesting time to be a doctor in Alberta. (In Canada in general, actually; but I’ll open this little screed by spotlighting my province.) Interesting, that is, in the sense of the ancient Chinese expression: “May you live in interesting…Family Medicine9 min readFamily Medicine9 min read
Aug 27, 2022Member-onlyThe University of Western Ontario Delivers A Master Class In StupidityStupid is as stupid does. Forrest Gump Herd immunity to Covid, as it turns out, was a pipe dream. Given the astonishing ability of the virus to mutate rapidly away from the various weapons we’ve conjured up against it, herd immunity to Covid-19 was never going to happen. All the…Covid-197 min readCovid-197 min read
