Drowning in a Flood of Cancer Debt

I had the honor of taking up a digital pen in the L.A. Times alongside my inspiring colleague Dr. Fumiko Chino (now a Radiation Oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center) to tell her story of how the “financial toxicity” of cancer treatments brought her own life to the brink of ruin. You can read […]

Dying Words Aren’t What I Imagined

The things people say (and don’t say) at the end never cease to surprise me… Here’s the link to my comic, made for Spiralbound on Medium, about the tremendous privilege of sitting together alongside both the marvel and the messes of dying words.

Finding Humanity in Medicine’s High-Tech Death Ritual…

Durham, NC – My latest graphic medicine piece was published last week, and I’m grateful to Topic magazine for giving this story a platform. I tried hard to capture the pain and grit of one of the hard decisions that patients and doctors are forced to make in the midst of life-threatening illness. While I believe strongly […]

Burnout

A cartoon salute to the medical folks working this #LaborDay . . . Hope you’re able to feel appreciated for the hard work you do, even when you may feel toasted!! #LaborOnLaborDay #GraphicMedicine

Cruel Carousel: The Grim Grind of “Compassionate” Dialysis

I’m grateful to the AMA Journal of Ethics for giving me a platform to tell the story of ‘Silvio,’ an undocumented immigrant living with kidney failure. You can read the journal article here or follow the gallery below to see the story page by page. While I can’t change what happened to ‘Silvio,’ I hope that with […]

#TipsForNewDocs

In honor of the July arrival of new doctors at teaching hospitals around the country, the Twittersphere is actively producing a variety of #TipsforNewDocs. Here is my own compiled and drawn list of 7 graphic tips to add to the mix. Number 1- Listen to #Nurses !! Number 2 – It’s hard to remember when […]

Empathy: The Throw Pillow Rule of Thumb…

N. Gray, MD I’ve definitely said my share of words that weren’t helpful in fragile moments with people who were suffering. Learning to be present without pity, preaching, or patronizing is an art that requires the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and hear your words with their ears. I find I’ve rarely […]

How do YOU discuss Code Status? Cartoons of Common Traps

N. Gray, MD I have witnessed many code status discussions — good, bad, and ugly. Here is a smattering of the “not-so-pretty” code conversation patterns. Keep reading to the end for a suggestion on a better approach… The Menu: This approach leaves patients to pick from an overwhelming array of interventions (pressors, shocks, tubes), some of […]

Up and running

After seconds of thought and hours of mindless computer clicking, I’m glad to have The Ink Vessel up and running. I’ve placed a few of my favorite older cartoons on the “Work” page, but new cartoons will show up here in the blog-page. Thanks for looking! PSA: Clostridium Difficile is anything but funny! Use antibiotics wisely…