Ruth Ann Crystal

#BlackHistoryMonth FOTD

Mary E. Mahoney was the 1st Black woman to graduate from a nursing program. She was 1 of 3 to graduate from the New England Hospital for Women & Children Training School for Nurses.
She co-founded the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses.

tinyurl.com/29p9jeab

Happy #FluorescenceFriday! Our #CellLineOfTheWeek is lamin B1 illuminating the nuclear envelope. 🧫

Our stem cell lines & plasmids are available for just the cost of shipping to reduce the barriers to scientific discovery.

📦 Dist. by @coriellinstitute.bsky.social and @addgene.bsky.social

Former surgeon general: The Senate must not approve someone who can't practice medicine as the nation’s top doctor “The surgeon general is not a wellness influencer,” writes former Surgeon General Jerome Adams of Casey Means.

Former surgeon general Jerome Adams, MD: The Senate must not approve someone who can’t practice medicine as the nation’s top doctor
via @statnews.com
www.statnews.com/2026/02/27/c...

Denmark becomes first country in the European Union to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified Denmark for the elimination of mother-to-child transmission (EMTCT) of HIV and syphilis, recognizing the country's sustained commitment to ensuring ev...

Denmark becomes first country in the European Union to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis. This is testament to universal health access and a functioning public health system.
The US recorded 4000 cases of congenital syphilis in 2024.
www.who.int/news/item/27...

Exactly

Oh no!!!

An elephant seal howling on the beach. He has an impressive nose.

Deadly bird flu found in California elephant seals for the first time archive.is/KuO1D

The H5N1 bird flu virus that devastated South American elephant seal populations has been confirmed in seals at California’s Año Nuevo State Park, researchers from UC Davis and UC Santa Cruz announced Wednesday.

I got an email back from both Senators. If you didn't, I would send it again.

"The destruction that Kennedy has wrought in 1 year might take generations to repair, and there is little hope for US health and science while he remains at the helm."

www.thelancet.com/journals/lan... #medsky

light blue background. cubes with stethoscope icon, hand with heart logo, pill logo. Someone is pointing their finger to the cube with the heart above the hand (caring).

Medicine is bigger than one degree.

If you are reassessing your path, think in terms of:

☑️ Income
☑️ Lifestyle
☑️ Stress tolerance
☑️ Training time
☑️ Debt load

The right path is the one that fits your life.

11/11

Personality matters.

Outgoing and persuasive → Sales
Calm under pressure → Perfusion
Detail oriented → Lab
Procedure focused → OR
Systems thinker → Health IT

There is no single “right” path.

10/

Longer training:

- Nurse Practitioner
- Physicians Assistant
- CRNA
- Perfusionist

Among the highest earning non physician clinical roles in healthcare.

9/

1 to 2 years more of training:

- Accelerated BSN → RN
- Certified Anesthesiologist Assistant
- Perfusionist

These roles can be financially and professionally strong.
8/

Shorter paths (under 18 months):

- Surgical tech
- Anesthesia tech
- Echo, MRI, nuclear medicine tech
- Ultrasound tech
- Cath lab tech
- Paramedic
- Firefighter

Faster entry. Solid compensation.
7/

If you want patient care, the next question is:

🗓️How much more school are you willing to do?

This determines both timeline and earning ceiling.
6/

There is also the business and systems side of medicine:

- Medical Device sales
- Pharma leadership
- Clinical research
- Epic EMR specialist

Some of these roles out earn many primary care physicians.
5/

If you prefer less patient-facing work:

🔬 Lab and science roles are in high demand.

- Medical Laboratory Scientist
- Pathology Assistant
- Embryologist for IVF
- Dosimetry

Structured work. Technical focus. Strong stability.

4/

If you do want to stay in healthcare, ask yourself:

Do I want direct patient care?

That single question clarifies more than most people realize.

3/

First question:

Do you actually want to stay in healthcare?

If not, that is okay.

Skilled trades, health IT, medical writing, and sales can offer strong income with far less training time.

2/

grey minimalist mountains in background. cream colored front. With text as in post.

Not finishing medical school does not mean you failed.

It means you are at a decision point.

There are many high earning, meaningful careers in healthcare that do not require becoming a physician. 🧵

#medsky
1/

Interested in low-dose Rapamycin for Long Covid? The Cohen Center for Recovery from Complex Chronic Illness is actively recruiting for a RCT of the mTOR inhibitor Sirolimus (Rapamycin). The trial aims to evaluate if changes to the immune response as a result of the drug improve Long Covid symptoms.

Agreed

If healthcare in this country is “so great,” why am I as a physician trained in infectious diseases on my third round of appeals with an insurance company for a medication my patient with a rare disease desperately needs?

This is infuriating.
It’s a waste of time.
And it hurts patients.

I just sent letters to my Senators. It was easy with the link below.

actionnetwork.org/letters/oppo...

#medsky #pedsky #episky #publichealth

They are amazing. I guess photosynthesis is enough, although I planted some and they are still going strong.

The SGB public comment period is open through end of day Sunday 03/08/2026.

Share feedback on the draft protocol for a clinical trial testing whether stellate ganglion block can improve quality of life and other Long COVID symptoms in adults 18+.

recover-tlc.org/secure/publi...

cc: @boghuma.bsky.social

Cute baby looks at her mother's bracelets on her arm. Baby is wearing white shirt and white and pink striped shorts.

Guinea-Bissau officials stop ethically flawed newborn Hepatitis B vaccine trial funded by the US CDC buff.ly/xGgLoi4

Infographic. Male in blue. Androgens tell monocytes to increase IL-10 which resolves pain in blue and yellow nerve. In females (red), lower IL-10 levels in the sensory nerve lead to prolonged pain symbolized by a red nerve with yellow pain lightning signs around it.

Why does women’s pain often last longer than men’s?

New report shows that in males, androgens signal monocytes to make IL-10, which shuts down pain faster.

Sex differences in immune signaling shape chronic pain risk. buff.ly/g17EVdp

chart in blue and green re: RECOVER-TLC trial of 4 treatments for Long COVID: ✅GLP-1 RAs ✅LDN ✅Baricitinib ✅Stellate Ganglion Block (SGB) Icons on top gears = protocol devp, ? for public comment, check mark for FDA IRB approval, person icon for recruitment.

👉Public feedback needed for Stellate Ganglion Nerve Block protocol for Long COVID now at buff.ly/cCtnvOS

RECOVER-TLC will trial 4 treatments for Long COVID:
✅GLP-1 RAs
✅LDN
✅Baricitinib
✅Stellate Ganglion Block (SGB)

h/t Dr. A. M. Bombardieri of @stanfordanes.bsky.social