From the notebook
Everything I’ve written: plain-language guides for parents, teaching notes for fellow ENTs, and the occasional reflection from the OR.
01Tiny relationships do a lot of work Distraction in clinic does not have to be elaborate. The useful kind is whatever helps a child enter a conversation.02There is always more to learn Notes from Zürich, where I am spending four days practicing skull base surgery in the anatomy lab.03Small talk before the ear exam Why I ask about school and singing before I reach for the otoscope, and what the answers tell me.04The child is still there Why I explain things twice in the exam room: first to the parent, then to the child in simpler words.05A hard visit is not a bad parent Your child cried, you tried everything, nothing worked. Here's what I want you to know.06What to say after a hard procedure "I'm sorry, it hurt, didn't it?" comes from love, but there's something better to say.07Your child's doctor visit starts before the doctor A smoother visit can begin at home, with a few small, honest words.08Parenthood changed my bedside manner I cared for children before I had children. My three boys taught me to see what I was missing.09"Are you scared?" is sometimes the best diagnostic question A simple question that can shift an entire pediatric encounter, and why emotional information is clinical information.10Crying is not one diagnosis A crying child in clinic can mean many things, and each one asks for a different response.