Why Ignoring Intuition Is Hurting Clinicians (and Patients)

There’s a moment every physician and clinician knows.If you’ve spent time in a cath lab, an ICU, an OR, or making high-stakes decisions under pressure, you’ve felt it. A tightening in the chest. A quiet pause at the table. A sense that something isn’t right, even when the vitals look stable and the protocol says proceed.And too often, we override it.CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction to Sam Propper01:13 Sam's Journey and Career Pivots03:57 Navigating Challenges and Doubts05:06 The Cath Lab Experience12:08 Becoming an Educator18:18 Creativity and Intuition in Medicine24:47 Magical Synergy in the Cath Lab26:00 The Importance of Intuition and Gut Checks26:52 Creating Educational Resources for Medical Training27:25 Overcoming Fear and Embracing Creativity28:22 Challenges and Rewards of Teaching29:01 The Impact of Visual Learning30:55 Balancing Compassion and Professionalism32:46 Navigating the Medical Field with Intuition38:29 Encouraging Change and Self-Trust41:03 Personal Stories and Emotional Connections44:23 Living with an Open Heart45:49 Conclusion and Final ThoughtsIn modern medicine, clinical intuition is rarely named, rarely taught, and often dismissed. Training rewards certainty, speed, and control. But intuition quietly informs some of the most consequential decisions we make as physicians and clinicians. Ignoring it doesn’t just cost alignment. It can cost safety, creativity, and connection to the patient in front of us.In this conversation, I sit down with Samantha Propper, a cath lab technologist turned award-winning educator and entrepreneur, and one of the earliest supporters of Open Heart. Sam’s path didn’t follow a straight line, and that’s the point. From years at the cath lab table to the classroom to founding Don’t Miss a Beat, her work has shaped how cardiac teams are trained, how they communicate, and how they advocate for patients.At its core, this is a reminder for those of us practicing medicine today. Healing is not purely mechanical. It is relational. It is embodied. If you are a physician, cardiologist, nurse, technologist, or clinician who has ever felt that quiet inner pull during patient care and wondered whether it belonged in medicine at all, this conversation is for you.Connect with Samantha Propper and Don’t Miss a BeatYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@dontmissabeat.youtubeWebsite and Textbooks: https://dontmissabeat.storeInstagram: https://instagram.com/dontmissabeatFacebook: https://facebook.com/dontmissabeatLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/dontmissabeat/posts/?feedView=all✨ Subscribe to Open Heart with Priya Rao, MD on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@openheartthepodInstagram: Instagram.com/openheartthepodWebsite: https://openheartpodcast.com/© 2025 Priya Rao Media LLC. All rights reserved.Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.