KCMS Insights
Physician Perspectives
Physicians see firsthand what is working, what is breaking down, and what needs to change. Through Physician Perspectives, KCMS brings forward the voices of clinicians across our community to share insight, experience, and informed views on patient care, medical practice, and the policies shaping healthcare.
Physician voices add clarity, credibility, and lived experience to the conversations shaping medicine and healthcare policy.
What We Risk When We Stop Trusting Medical Science
By Robert E. Geise, MD, FIDSA President, Infectious Disease Society of Washington Trustee, King County Medical Society As I began my medical career in the mid-1990s, the world was As [...]
Reflections From Olympia
By Michelle Terry, MD Secretary, King County Medical Society Dear Members and Partners, Children do not vote or lobby. They do not write op-eds. They naturally grow - into the [...]
Mentorship in the Exam Room
By Natalie Fuller, MD Mentorship in medicine is often envisioned as something that happens outside the exam room—through scheduled meetings, career advice, or letters of support. In practice, mentorship often [...]
A Season of Community, Connection, and Purpose
By Amish J. Dave, MD, MPH, FACP – Incoming KCMS President, January 2026 It’s an honor to step into the role of KCMS President in January 2026. As we enter [...]
In Times of Health Care Change, the Physician Voice Matters More Than Ever
By Mona P. Kathuria, D.O., FAAHPM “We’re going to have to make some changes in our health care staffing.” When I first heard this as a practicing physician and medical [...]
The Joy of Mentoring and Collaborative Learning
Written by Danny Low, MD | President of KCMS Amid the dizzying array of (often disconcerting) changes to medicine – be it the corporatization of healthcare, proposed cuts to Medicaid, [...]
Why We Need More Doctors in Public Office
As president of the KCMS from 2017-19, Dr. Teresa Girolami appealed to her colleagues: “Run for office. We need you at the table.” Years later, that call to action is [...]
Protecting Medical Integrity
by John Vassall, MD As physicians we speak with one voice against the unprecedented government overreach and political interference now depriving physicians and their patients of access to information, [...]
The True Economic Burden of Mental Health Disorders: A Call for Parity
by Drs. Donald Ross and Mark Levy The economic burden of mental disorders rivals that of cardiovascular diseases and exceeds the costs of cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes. Mental [...]
The Endless Nightmare of Prior Authorization
by Amish Dave, MD, MPH – Vice President, KCMS Rheumatologist, Virginia Mason Franciscan Health How Physician Advocacy is Shaping Reform Initially intended by insurance companies and pharmacy benefit managers as [...]
Something Has Got to Change
by Mark Levy, MD As a recent retiree and of a certain age, I have had an opportunity to view the practice of medicine from “the other side of the [...]