Hi Friends,
This week, we’re diving into something every clinician knows but rarely talks about: what it feels like to make life-or-death decisions when there’s no clear path forward.
In “Uncertainty in Medicine: Leaps of Faith,” we bring you three powerful, real-life stories from both sides of the stethoscope:
A neurosurgeon deciding whether to operate on two children with nearly identical brain tumors, and vastly different outcomes
A palliative care doctor supporting a young man who calmly refuses life-saving treatment
And a patient whose long-awaited kidney transplant disappears with a single phone call, forcing him to confront a future he never planned for
These are raw, human moments where medicine becomes less about answers and more about intuition, trust, and the courage to move through the fog.
Listen now - we think this one will stay with you.
Warmly,
Emily and The Nocturnists Team
Join Emily and Alexa in exploring Uncertainty
Each month, the ABIM Foundation’s Trust Conversations explore both the challenges and opportunities inherent in establishing trust within health care settings. Join us for their next live event "Managing Uncertainty: A Path to Better Patient Care” on Monday, May 5, 2025 from 1:30-2:30PM ET.
From Friends of The Nocturnists: A New Podcast About Clinician-Led Innovation on the Front Lines
Unleashed: Redesigning Health Care is a new podcast that fans of the Nocturnists are sure to love. Featured guests are clinician-innovators who have changed care on the front lines. Their stories, their voices, their ingenuity. Learn more at unleashedpodcast.org.
Join The Satellites Program
The Nocturnists Satellites is an opportunity for clinicians to access support from The Nocturnists in producing their own live storytelling shows. By partnering with people across the country to foster community-based storytelling, we amplify the movement we’ve been building over the last eight years: to support wellbeing through connection and creative expression.
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