I was thrilled to be on a panel with other experts in social media at the Sacramento Media Social Club. Experts like Liz Salmi, a brain cancer blogger and young adult cancer survivor – @thelizarmy Christian Hollingsworth, Founder/CEO of Smart Boy Designs and Social Media consultant for the Sacramento Valley affiliate of the Susan G Komen for the Cure – @smartboydesigns Katie Kreps, Team in Training Triathalon and Cycle Manager for the Greater Sacramento Area Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society – @tntsacramento. There were other people from health care systems like UC Davis and Sutter. Questions and comments revealed that there is a need by patients which is not currently fulfilled. Patients want connections to their doctors and medical information that is easily accessible and available real-time. Already they are engaging with other patients with similar illnesses or problems and finding humanity in virtual encounters because it is […] Read More »
Monthly Archive for November 2012
Prescriptions Are Not Just For Sick People
Posted on November 8, 2012
Most people are not fans of medications. I don’t blame them. I’m not a big fan of medications either. Ask my wife. As a doctor, I know anti-inflammatories will help for my occasionally persistent neck pains, but I won’t take them. When I get ill, develop fever, muscle aches, and chills related to a viral illness, I don’t take medications such as Tylenol even though they can help my symptoms. Terrible, isn’t it? I’m just like you. Doctors really are the worst patients. Yet would you really refuse taking an antibiotic for pneumonia? Would you choose to walk away from options like chemotherapy for a life-threatening cancer? It is easier to convince someone to start medication when he feels sick. It can be more challenging to begin or maintain treatment when he feels perfectly well. He feels healthy. He has no symptoms—no crushing chest pain or suffocating shortness of breath. […] Read More »
The Best Blog Posts For Patients
Posted on November 6, 2012
As I make the transition to my new website, I wanted to highlight the most commonly viewed and best blog posts for patients from my previous website. For Patients Do I Need Cholesterol Medication? Is My Cholesterol High? The Simple Truth. Colon Cancer Screening Guidelines – Colonoscopy Better Than Sigmoidoscopy? The Truth and the Myth Elizabeth Edwards, Breast Cancer, and Mammograms – Her Death a Failure of Healthcare System. The Truth About Prostate Cancer Screening Other Surprising Facts Life Line Screening – Worth the Money? Routine Annual Physical – Not Worth the Time or Money The Truth and Facts About Concierge or Boutique Medicine Commentary on Media Stories Newsweek – Just Say No! – One Word Can Save Your Life. Too Simplistic. Doctors Need to Help. What Doctors Wish Their Patients Knew – Critique of the March 2011 Consumer Reports article NY Times – Finding a Quality Doctor […] Read More »
The Mistakes Healthy Patients Always Make
Posted on November 5, 2012
Healthy patients always make the same error. They think that they are not at risk for serious medical problems. Though maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, not smoking, and eating plenty of vegetables and fruits while limiting meat, fat, and fast foods does decrease the risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and cancer, it doesn’t completely eliminate it. The chance is there, just a little less. But patients wrongly assume that staying healthy means no chance of illness and, as a result, they routinely skip preventive screening tests because they have no symptoms of illness, have no family history of disease, and are “healthy.” That is the error that many healthy patients make. Staying healthy means that in addition to a healthy lifestyle, screening tests and interventions such as mammograms, Pap smears, immunizations, colonoscopies, and high blood pressure and cholesterol screenings and treatment are equally as important. […] Read More »
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