Show 35 Wrap-up

Thanks so much for Amy Tenderich for being on tonight's show 35. (See video post above) I have admired her for a long time and the work that she has done on Diabetes Mine. She said that their website has just been updated, so I encourage you to check that out. We talked about her story about when and how she was diagnosed. She also mentioned a post called "Dr. Suess Fun with Diabetes Book" which apparently garnered a lot of attention.

We also talked about a new diabetes social networking site called Diabetes Connect. I've checked it out and it looks intriguing. I want to wish her the best of luck in getting Diabetes Connect up and running, and congratulate her on the continued success of Diabetes Mine. Amy said that the diabetes community on the internet has just exploded in the past few years. I know I direct my patients to some of these patient blogs to get first hand knowledge of some of these chronic diseases.

After my conversation with Amy, I tried something different to end the show. I had about half and hour of me just talking about stuff. I talked about various news stories like this one, this one, this one, and this one. I'm not sure if I like doing that, so let me know if you like that format (of me commenting on news stories).

Thanks so much for Peggikaye for calling into the show (at almost the very end of the show). With her son just graduating high school and Pk going back to college, this means that they are going to be on the same college campus. How interesting is that?

Finally, I'm on call this weekend for the Memorial Day three day weekend. Hopefully, things will not be too crazy-busy for me working. Don't forget to rate Show number 35 on the BlogTalkRadio site. Have a great weekend everybody!

Dr. A Show 35: Amy Tenderich

Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time

Join us tonight for The Doctor Anonymous Show number 35. Our guest will be Amy Tenderich who is author of the blog Diabetes Mine: A Gold Mine of Straight Talk and Encouragement For People Living With Diabetes.

If you do listen live, you can even take part in the chat room. It is truly "The show within the show." You can even call in and say hello. A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. And, you will be able to see me on the live webcam during the show! 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. There is also a "Click To Talk" feature where you do not need a phone to call into the show - only a microphone headset. Hope these tips are helpful!

The Amy Tenderich Interview

The Doctor Anonymous Show is proud to welcome Amy Tenderich to Show 35 on Thursday, May 22, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time. She is author of the popular blog called Diabetes Mine: A Gold Mine of Straight Talk and Encouragement For People Living With Diabetes.

As I discuss in my video post below, this blog was one of the first that I started reading when I was considering starting my own blog about two years ago (how time flies when you're having fun).

Here's a little excerpt from her most recent post called "On Good Advice and Saving Mantras":

My personal best-advice-received was only a few years ago, post-diagnosis, and surprisingly, came from a woman I barely know and don't even like very much. I was at the gym, apologetically trying to fit myself in to the front a crowded aerobics class, when this rather unfriendly Super-Aerobics-Babe sort smirked at me openly and said, "Be bold."

At the time I was simply annoyed and a little confused by her words. But since, I've decided that's about the smartest thing anyone ever said to me. No more apologies for being who I am. Having this stupid disease, I'm lucky to be alive. Lucky to be healthy enough to jump around in an aerobics class at all. Lucky to have been able to reach out to so many people via this blog and discover a whole community of like-minded souls.

Following Amy's interview, I'm going to be starting a new segment of the show - which will be the last 30 minutes of this week's show. I really learned something from last week's debacle of a show (it wasn't that bad, just a little embarrassing to me). And, I'll talk about it at the end of Show 35. So, you'll just have to find out what it is....

Twitter Come Back

Saw this link out there on the Twitter a few minutes ago (Thanks Kevin Rose). I think it's pretty self explanatory (You can also check it out here and here). Don't know what Twitter is? Well, why not? Just click here and you'll learn more information.

New Blogger Alert

This morning, I was notified that someone called "ruraldoctoring" is now following me on twitter. So, as I usually do, I check out the blog. And, it looks like this blogger just started this week. Remember when you first started blogging and wondering whether anyone would read your stuff? Here's an introduction:

My name is Theresa Chan. I'm a family physician working in rural Northern California. This blog is about the small triumphs and everyday drama of making a living in medicine.

There are a lot of good medical blogs to read, and many of them are much better than I am at dissecting the policy missteps that have led to the current collapse in primary care, and at criticizing the government policymakers behind them. However, most medblogs have a decidedly urban/academic/policy-centered focus.

What is missing is the voice from small-town doctors such as myself, who are struggling with policy failures in rural settings in which clinical services and political advocacy are severely limited. What is also missing is the personal testimony of individual doctors making career choices that represent disappointing concessions to these same policy failures, all in order to survive financially in the current medical climate.

This is really great stuff. So, I encourage you to check out the Rural Doctoring blog and follow her on her twitter feed. I think this blogger has great potential, and I think you will too. And, don't forget to tell her that Doctor Anonymous sent ya!

Show 34 apology

What a frustrating night! Show 34 started off well. I told my little Las Vegas story and I thought things were going well. I took a musical "commercial" break, and then my connection was gone. Then, computer problems. I took the next 20 minutes to try to figure things out, but was unsuccessful.

I remember back to those first shows last summer when I literally had a technical glitch for every show. I didn't know what was going on. It seemed like every show something would go wrong. Then, I think I fixed the problem, and I had a good run for a while - that is, until tonight.

So, I apologize for the show tonight. Thanks to all those who stuck with me as I was trying to fix the problem. What's great about all of you is that when I was trying to fix things, the chat room seemed to come alive with activity - I really appreciate that. I'm going to work on things over the next few days, and I'm optimistic that next week's show will be a lot better.

Dr. A Show 34: Vegas Vacation

Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time

The Doctor Anonymous Show returns after being off last week for show number 34. There are no scheduled guests, but don't let that stop you from tuning into the show.

Last week, I was in Las Vegas for a couple of nights and that was a great time (check out last week's posts and video if you haven't already. Have you been to Vegas? Well then, call into the show and we'll talk about it.

You can even take part in the chat room, or what I affectionately call, "The MedBloggers Lounge." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. See you for the show!

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!

Show 34 Preview and other stuff

I don't know about you, but this has just been a crazy week for me. Why is it that you're getting ready to take a vacation (even 2 days), you're really busy before you leave AND you're busy when you get back? That has happened to me this week. That's why I've been quiet here and even on Twitter this week.

BTW, if you haven't already, check out Grand Rounds 4.34 over at the Health Business Blog by David Williams. His blog was one of the ones that took part in the April Fools Grand Rounds. He's got a great blog over there, including a number of podcast interviews with medical professionals. Thanks for including my GR post this week:

Are doctors overmedicating kids? Doctor Anonymous raises the issue but keeps his own verdict close to the vest.

Interestingly enough, I was mentioned again in this week's Grand Rounds. TBTAM (former guest on The Doctor Anonymous Show 25) made some comments about my recent interview with Paul Levy. Here David Williams' take on TBTAM's post:

Doctor Anonymous interviewed Beth Israel Deaconess president Paul Levy. The Blog That Ate Manhattan was eating it up at least for a while. Here’s an administrator who gets it, who’s empathetic toward docs and generally a good guy. 

But then she reacts (or possibly overreacts, as she admits) to a comment Levy made about dealing with a difficult doc in a negotiation. In the comments section Levy explains himself further: Doctors should be expected to communicate and negotiate well as part of their jobs, and not just in dealing with administrators. 

Meanwhile GruntDoc was listening to the podcast, too. He didn’t take umbrage at Levy’s comment. In fact he’s a bit embarrassed that doctors display such “horrible” negotiation skills.

WOW! It's great to see the show causing such a stir out there in medical blogland. This is exactly what I was hoping this show would do - cause more discussion. Fascinating...

Anyway, I would like to invite everyone out there to The Doctor Anonymous Show on Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time where we may further discuss these topics and a lot more. I have no scheduled guests, so it will be me rambling on about - whatever. And, of course, taking your phone calls. I'm excited to tell you about my trip to VEGAS. Has anyone out there been to Vegas? Call in and tell me about it. See you for the show!

Vegas Recap

I can't believe that I'm going back home later today. Had a great time out here. Check out the video above and you'll get the recap on my two quick days/nights here in Las Vegas. Have a great weekend, everybody!

Only in Vegas (airport)

I have a headache this morning for some reason (and I don't know why). Anyway, I knew no one was going to believe this when I told them, but this person (see video post above) was on the same plane with us arriving to Vegas. So, while in baggage claim, why not shoot a little video. Everyone else was. More video posts soon (when I can edit them).