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Worst. Show. Ever.

I'm so mad right now that - that - I don't know what I could do. I'm just venting. You know this is what happens when I really try to promote a show. The problem started from the first minute. There was this annoying echo that I could hear. At first, I thought that one of my guests was causing the feedback, but it wasn't.

The echo really threw me off for the entire show. It felt like I was in a tunnel for the entire thing. Thanks so much to Dr. Val, Jenni, and Crzegrl for sticking with things and wanting to go forward with the show. Thanks also to Mother Jones who called into the show to add some banter.

What we found out later was that the audio from my show was cutting into the audio of another show. The host of the other show called in and explained the problem. Seemed like a pleasant chap, but what I found out later was that they were encouraging people to get into my chat room and call in to disrupt the show - that's not cool.

I haven't heard the audio yet from the other show, but that is what I've been told. I guess that other show had nothing else to talk about because they ended their show 30 minutes early. I guess after my audio stopped messing up their show, they had nothing else to talk about. But, I'll have to listen to their show to see exactly what they were talking about.

So, for those of you who listened to the show live - I really appreciate you listening. I apologize for the bad audio, and I'm sorry that the other show was disrupting things. I'm going to try to contact BlogTalkRadio to see what the problem was. If I don't get a satisfactory answer, I may have to move the show over to Talkshoe. I think they would appreciate a medblogger talk show host. Don't you think? Have a great weekend, everybody!

Estrofest Live TONIGHT

Thursday, February 14th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time

Finally, officially, Happy Valentine's Day, everybody. Don't forget to join us tonight for The Doctor Anonymous Show for the Valentine's Day Estrofest.

What is it and how did it come about? Well, Dr. Val, one of our panelists tonight explains it in this post. Also, scheduled to be on the show will be Jenni from ChronicBabe.com, Crzegrl, and EE. Who knows what we are going to talk about? You'll just have to tune in to find out!

Also, take part in the chat room, which is the "show within the show." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. You can even call into the show to talk and/or ask a question. See you tonight!

For first time Blog Talk Radio listeners:
*Although it is not required to listen to the show, I encourage you to register on the BlogTalkRadio site prior to the show. I think it will make the process easier.

*To get to my show site, click here. As show time gets closer, keep hitting "refresh" on your browser until you see the "Click to Listen" button. Then, of course, press the "Click to Listen" button.

*You can also participate in the live chat room before, during, and after the show. Look for the "Chat Available" button in the upper right hand corner of the page. If you are registered with the BTR site, your registered name and picture will appear in the chat room.

*You can also call into the show. The number is on my show site. I'll be taking calls beginning at around the bottom of the hour. Hope these tips are helpful!

Fewer Primary Care Docs

In a shocking report (not really) released by the General Accountability Office (ie - the US federal government), they stated that there are fewer primary care docs now than there was about 10 years ago. The first thing I have to comment about is the name - "General Accountability?" - What's up with that? To whom are they accountable? Let me answer that - nobody!

Anyway, in this Associated Press article, the report goes on to say that in 2006, there were about 22, 146 American docs in residency programs across the United States. In 1995 (when I was in medical school), the number was about 23, 801. For the next few years after that, the number plateaued. Then, right when I graduated is when the fall started to happen.

"It is troubling to me that the number of Americans pursuing a career in primary care has declined," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Overall growth in the number of primary-care physicians "has been totally due to the number of international medical students training in America," Sanders said. "We are increasingly dependent on international medical school graduates to meet our needs. Currently, one in four new physicians in the U.S. is an international medical graduate."

These quotes just kill me. What do you mean legislators and the federal government don't know and cannot explain why this happened? It confuses and frustrates me because they are the ones, in my opinion, that CAUSED this situation. They did choose and continue to choose to reward specialists, especially those doing procedures, the higher payments. What happened when they did that? Read on...

For specialists, the number of Americans in training went from 45,300 in 1995 to 47,575 in 2006 and over the same period international specialists grew from 11,957 to 12,611, GAO said.

Does anyone know who that is a picture of at the top of this post? That guy is Willie Sutton. That name should ring a bell to some of you - especially history buffs out there. He was one of the most prolific bank robbers of the early 20th century. When asked why he robbed banks, he is attributed with the famous quote, because "that's where the money is."

It's not rocket science. Why did the number of specialists grow during this time? Because that's where the money was (and is). Why did the number of primary care docs shrink? Because that is where the money is not. And, who is filling that primary care gap? It is international medical graduates.

I don't want to start an entire international medical graduates debate. I'm just saying that if graduates from US medical schools are not going into primary care (and that is happening), who are going to fill those residency/training spots?

So, one of these days, the legislators and the government will figure it out. Unfortunately, it will not be until medicare, medicaid, and social security go bankrupt. Or, when the voters (meaning patients) rise up and tell the government something like "Fix the Health Care System Now." Oh yeah, isn't this an election year? Maybe this year? But, probably not....

Grand Rounds

Grand Rounds 4.21 is now up and running over at HealthBlawg: David Harlow's Health Care Law Blog. If you can believe it, this is a health care lawyer and consultant handling GR this week. But, not to worry, this Valentine's Day edition is well done.

In fact, it is so well done, that I have a post in this week's Grand Rounds, and I didn't even know it. On Sunday afternoon, I wrote the post called "Love Hormone," and I thought that it would be a great edition to GR. But, when I looked at the deadline, I read that I missed it. So, being a past GR host, I remember how annoyed I was when people tried to e-mail me something past the deadline.

But, this morning, I was checking my stats and found that I was getting referrals from this week's GR site. When I clicked over there, I was pleasantly surprised to find the following link to my blog (and even more pleasantly surprised to find it in the top 1/3 of the post - great location!)

Dr. Anonymous is blogging about "the love hormone" and will have a Valentine's Day edition of his BlogTalkRadio show -- which Dr. Val tells us will be an "estrofest" featuring several women medbloggers.

So, thank you David Harlow and Healthblawg for placing my post on GR this week and thanks for promoting The Doctor Anonymous Show this week. Just for that, you are awarded a spot on my prestigious blogroll. Who says that I don't give lawyers a fair shake? Enjoy Grand Rounds this week. Next week, GR will be hosted over at the Daily Interview blog.

Happy Valentine's Day

Welcome back to love week here on the blog. Yes, I know, Valentine's Day is not for a couple of days. But, why not try to start a little discussion on this topic. In my video post above, I talk a little bit about the "controversy" surrounding Valentine's Day. I think that asking people about Valentine's Day is more controversial than asking people about politics or religion.

Do you think I'm kidding? Well, ask someone about Valentine's Day and leave me a comment about your experience. I've encountered either really happy people or really bitter people. Let me know what you find out when you ask people.

Finally, direct from the category of over-promotion, I'm going again to tell everybody about the Valentine's Day Estrofest on The Doctor Anonymous Show - Thursday, February 14th at 9pm eastern time. It's going to be a great time. Get ready to be in the chat room and even call into the show. You don't need a date. Come as you are. See you then!

Love Tragedy

Welcome back to "love week" here on The Doctor Anonymous blog. Unfortunately, this is going go be a bad news post. In fact, quite a tragedy. I didn't believe it the first time I read this story. A bride has a dream being like the movie, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." I've seen the film - good stuff.

According to this Associated Press story, here is what happened...

Kim Sjostrom carried blue and white flowers during the ceremony — the colors of the Greek flag — as she exchanged vows with Teddy Efkarpides, a 43-year-old carpenter and Navy veteran. They had met three years to the day before the Jan. 19 wedding.
During the couple's first dance, Sjostrom complained of being lightheaded. Efkarpides thought his wife, a diabetic, needed sugar, but she collapsed. Wedding guests, paramedics and doctors at a nearby hospital were unable to revive her.

My heart just goes out to this groom and the families involved. What a sad story.....

The Love Hormone

Ok, first of all, this is not a spam post. And, I have not become a spokesman for the latest craze in the treatment of sexual problems. But, you are reading this post, aren't ya? So, here's what this is about.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine are theorizing that the hormone oxytocin can be used in the treatment of disorders like schizophrenia, autism, and anxiety. In quoting this UPI article, oxytocin "is a brain chemical associated with pair bonding, including mother-infant and male-female bonds and increased paternal involvement with children."

"That's why oxytocin is sometimes called 'the love hormone,'" [researcher Dr. Kai] MacDonald in a statement. "It's said that the eyes are the window to the soul ... they certainly are the window to the emotional brain. We know that the eye-to-eye communication -- which is affected by oxytocin -- is critical to intimate emotional communication for all kind of emotions -- love, fear, trust, anxiety."
People with schizophrenia or autism often avoid eye-to-eye gaze, focus on less relevant areas of the face, and avoid meaningful social contact. The researchers theorize that oxytocin might act on the brains of patients with schizophrenia and anxiety and may ultimately increase the level of trust or emotional contact between patient and physician, or with patients and significant others.

I have no idea why this is a news story. I just found it interesting that there is an association made between oxytocin and the term 'the love hormone,' because I have never heard that before. Has anyone else? But, this being Valentine's Week, I'm hoping to get a lot of Google searches (*waving to all of you who are here from a google search*)

Also, this is a great segue into reminding you about The Doctor Anonymous Show on Valentine's Day night - Thursday, February 14th at 9pm eastern time. It's going to be a great time with medical bloggers Dr. Val, Jenni from Chronic Babe, Crzegrl, and EE.

I have the number three listened to show in the health category on BlogTalkRadio, and I'm hoping to surge to number one with your help. So, tell your friends and neighbors to join us for The Doctor Anonymous Show: Valentine's Day Estrofest. You won't want to miss it!

Welcome back Cathy!

A few weeks ago, I was saddened to find that Cathy's Place to Blog was closed. I'm happy to report that Cathy has reopened her blog and wrote a new post yesterday. Welcome back, Cathy! Please click here, drop by, and welcome her back to blogging.

Thanks again for everyone who have listened to the show Thursday night with Dr. Schwab. I also appreciate the posts written about the show including from SeaSpray, EricThePragmatic, and Sid Schwab himself. Oops, I forgot Suture for a Living.

Look out for next week. I already appreciate the promos that have already been written by Dr. Val, Crzegrl, and the Chronic Babe newsletter. Spread the word. This is going to be a fun show!

Sid Schwab Show: Epilogue

Thanks so much to Sid Schwab for being on the show. It was a really fun interview. (video post above) We probably could have talked for another hour. I'll definitely have to bring him back on the show. There was talk in the chat room about bringing Mrs. Sid onto the next show. So, that should be interesting.

We talked about how be chose general surgery as a career. He also shared some stories from medical school, residency, and his 25 years of practice. At the end of the show, we briefly talked about his book: Cutting Remarks: Insights and Recollections of a Surgeon.

The chat room was as busy as it has ever been -at times as many as 22 people chatting. So, if you have never listened to the show live - you are missing "the show within the show." I did have a few small technical glitches, but I don't think that it affected the audio at all (you can let me know otherwise).

Thanks so much to the people who called in as well. Bongi called in all the way from South Africa where is was 4am. Sid has a dream of working with Bongi some day. Dr. Rob also called in and Sid called him "The Dave Barry of the Medical Blogosphere." It was great to hear from Dr. Rob again.

Enrico checked in to give a brief update on his situation. Suffice to say that he is going to have to find a new URL - maybe we can help him find a new name for his blog (leave me a comment if you would like to help - hehe). Enrico asked the question about how to balance work and life.

SeaSpray said that she never called into a show or was in a chat room before. Thanks so much for calling in. She is a regular reader and commenter on Sid's blog. She also shared a story of how Sid helped her last year. Finally, EricThePragmatic called in and told the story of how Sid was his mother's surgeon - a touching story.

So, if you didn't listen live - why didn't you? Sheesh! Well, listen in my sidebar or click here. Also, if I can ask a favor, after you listen to the show, please rate the show and leave a comment. It will really help my BlogTalkRadio ratings.

Next week - Look out, because The Ladies invade The Doctor Anonymous Show. It is the Valentine's Day Estrofest. My guests include Dr. Val, Jenni from Chronic Babe, Crzegrl, and EE. Call your friends and wake the neighbors - This will be a fun show. Who knows what we'll talk about and what will happen? Have a great weekend, everybody!

Dr. A live TONIGHT

Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time

Join us tonight for Sid Schwab. At the bottom on this post, you'll see an embed from ustream.tv. This week, BlogTalkRadio has been very interesting in that the sound has not been ideal. Some shows sound like they were under water they sounded so bad. Hopefully, that won't happen to me or my guest. We'll see what happens this week.

Take part in the chat room, which is the "show within the show." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. You can even call into the show to talk and/or ask a question. See you tonight!

*To get to my show site, click here. As show time gets closer, keep hitting "refresh" on your browser until you see the "Click to Listen" button. Then, of course, press the "Click to Listen" button.

*You can also call into the show. The number is on my show site. I'll be taking calls beginning at around the bottom of the hour. Hope these tips are helpful!