Sunday Essay: The vaccinationAuthor and intensive care specialist Alex Kazemi stares out at the world amid and beyond the plague. The Sunday Essay is possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand Original illustrations by Sarah Wilkins. I didn’t see the needle go in. I… May 08 21May 08, 2021Article at The Spinoff
Meanwhile...Meanwhile... Whilst it’s been another tricky year to navigate and an increasingly tricky world to parse, I do know this one thing. Your joy often arrives from the small places that are closest, in ways that are usually unpredictable, and never neatly… Jul 28 23July 28, 2023Article at Substack
What to write when you're not writingOr why climate change should make you “Joe Biden has announced new steps to ban oil and gas drilling in the Arctic Ocean and limit onshore drilling in Alaska, as his administration reportedly prepares to approve a huge new oilfield in the state.”The… Mar 15 23March 15, 2023Article at Substack
These aren't the poems you're looking forOr not the one I meant to post I know. What I said was that I would post the second of two found poems as part of ushering in the new year and before that I said I would explain the title of the publication next and doubtless there were other small… Jan 09 23January 09, 2023Article at Substack
Gifts, resolutions and non-achievementsIn praise of the ordinary It’s a weird time. Even with the seasons reversed, I’ve discovered that ghosts still appear when the sun is up. Particularly in the evening when the city is still because many people are out of town and many others are… Dec 22 22December 22, 2022Article at Substack
The wings were always there, you just couldn’t see them.Discover more from Standing in the yard, under the stars Poisonous butterflies and instructions on metamorphosis I will tell you something beautiful. Several things in fact. Occasionally we might hide ourselves away, dissolve and re-form. More often… Dec 22 22December 22, 2022Article at Substack
A beginningOn opening a door. So I finally jumped in. That makes it sound more sudden than it actually was. Really it took much deliberation, some gentle prodding and the realisation of having been stuck for too long in the big meanwhile. Nevertheless here I… Dec 14 22December 14, 2022Article at Substack
Avoiding the icebergs: Healthcare after CovidWe’re navigating out of the pandemic with a new perspective on long-term wellbeing, both of healthcare workers and the communities they serve. – both that of health workers and the communities they serve, writes Alex Kazemi. The politics of health… Mar 08 22March 08, 2022Article at The Spinoff
In the face of a pandemic, in a storm of uncertainty, we must put caution firstThe precautionary principle tells us that when catastrophe is a possibility, it is wise to act to prevent it, rather than waiting to gather more information on likelihood, writes Alex Kazemi. In the photo, Robert Pershing Wadlow is smiling. He stands… Sep 29 21September 29, 2021Article at The Spinoff
If you listen closely enough you can hear the whole system shudderAmid a delta outbreak, a pandemic still roaring around the world, and a push towards reopening borders, we should consider the realities at the sharp end of the NZ health system, writes former Intensive Care doctor Alex Kazemi. Buried somewhere in… Aug 22 21August 22, 2021Article at The Spinoff
A tale of two plagues‘On one scale the coronavirus that plagues us is microscopic. On another we ourselves are made small.’ An essay by Alex Kazemi. Make a Moebius strip. Take a long rectangular piece of paper, loop it, then join the two ends after putting one end… Oct 25 20October 25, 2020Article at The Spinoff
Heroes and monsters of healthThe Covid-19 pandemic has seen doctors and nurses cast as heroes battling a villainous virus. It may be well-intentioned, but it’s a narrative that serves no value, writes ICU doctor Alex Kazemi. In a foyer in Southampton General Hospital in the UK… Jul 25 20July 25, 2020Article at The Spinoff
An ICU doctor on how we can emerge from the storm into a place to mendDr Alex Kazemi, an ICU specialist, writes here in his personal capacity on the opportunity Covid-19 provides to rebuild our healthcare system. The tooth fairy never showed. My daughter had written a note – “You are invited to a tea party on Saturday… May 11 20May 11, 2020Article at The Spinoff
Hello and welcome!I’m glad you could stop by to have a look at what I’m writing. And what am I writing? Well, I wish I could offer some niche explanation like “Great Train Journeys of the World” or some such. That would be much easier to explain. But the world is… Article at Substack
