I hope that you can join us tonight for the show. There is no scheduled guest, but there may be an "unscheduled" guest. You'll just have to tune in to find out. There's a lot going on in the news and current events to talk about as well on the show this week. I was happy to participate to day in what is called "BlogBlast For Peace" in which a group of bloggers place what is called a "peace globe" on their blog. You can read my post here, and you'll notice I don't have much of a peace globe, but I wanted to write something for today.
I also wanted to point out that our good friend Crzegrl has chosen - has volunteered - host not one but two blog carnivals - Grand Rounds and Change of Shift - in the same week. Why? Who knows? I thought that I was crazy for hosting both in the same month. But, in the same week? Well, that's Crze - Good luck with that. In addition to all of this, I'll also be talking about some other news and current events this week, including the video above.
If you are new to the show, I encourage you to catch us live. There is a great chat room that also goes on. You can even see my shining face on the webcam. In addition, you can call into the show to say hello. Can't catch us live? That's ok. You can listen anytime after the show as it is saved as a podcast so you can listen anytime!
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 "Play/Chat" button. Then, of course, press the "Play/Chat" button.
I know this post is early, but it's already November 5th in some parts of the world. I wanted to thank Mimi for all of your hard work in putting this together. The Peace Globe Movement has been very inspiring to watch over the past couple of years. The video above pretty much sums it up. I invite you to read my posts from 2007 and 2008 for Blogblast For Peace.
But, if you would like to learn more from the founder herself - Mimi Lenox. I invite you to check out two interviews I had with her. The first interview was Doctor Anonymous Show number 11 on October 25, 2007. And, the second interview was during Doctor Anonymous Show number 56 on November 6, 2008. I'm sorry that I was unable to bring Mimi back on the show in time for BlogBlast 2009, but I hope to have Mimi back on the show soon. Enjoy the globes today!
I'd like to invite you to Doctor Anonymous Show 126 this week which will be Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 9pm Eastern Time. There is no scheduled guest but there may be an "unscheduled" guest - we'll see. But, there are lots that are going on this week to talk about.
On November 5th will be the latest observance of what is called the "BlogBlast For Peace." I first heard about this when I first started blogging about 3 years ago. The founder of this movement calls herself Mimi Lenox, and she's been on the show before. It's basically the idea to get as many bloggers to talk about the same thing on the same day. You'll see my post when I put it up - probably late tomorrow or on Thursday.
Election Day in the United States also took place this week. I might mention that on the show. Plus, who knows what else will come up in the course of the discussion on the show.
For the uninitiated, there is a live chat room that takes place during the show, as well as a webcam so that you can see me do the show right before your very eyes. There is also and ability for you, the Doctor Anonymous listener/reader/viewer, to call into the show to say hello and/or make fun of me - How can you pass that up? HA! Hope to see you for the show this week!
I think the image above this pretty much sums it up. I know that this is not a presidential election year. But, there are a lot of important issues out there especially on a local and state level. So, do yourself and your fellow citizens a favor and make the time to head on out to the voting place today and make your voice be heard - no matter how you feel about a particular candidate or issue. Happy Election Day!
Thanks again to Gina from CodeBlog for being on Doctor Anonymous Show 125 last week. (I know that this is late getting posted - sorry about that.) I don't know about her, but I had a great time during the interview. And, I know that the people in the chat room had a great time as well. The medbloggers are very fond of CodeBlog, and I can see why.
We talked about her origins in nursing and the origins of her in the blog world. Did you know that Code Blog was one of the first medblogs out there? Not only one of the first nursing blogs, but, arguably, one of the first medblogs that was created. We had a great conversation about that and about Grand Rounds and her experience at BlogWorld Expo 2009.
As always, you can listen to the show on the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show by clicking here and listening to the show anytime. Thanks again Gina and hope to have you back on the show soon!
I am so happy to welcome Gina from Code Blog to this week's edition of The Doctor Anonymous Show. Code Blog was the host of Grand Rounds this week and it had a Halloween theme. For the first time, I think this year, I made a contribution to Grand Rounds. I know that's pretty pathetic - especially since I have been a past host to the premiere medblog carnival around.
Anyway, we'll be talking Grand Rounds this week along with talking about Code Blog which has been around since 2002. Code Blog is one of the leading nursing blogs out there. In addition to all of this, we'll be talking (again) about BlogWorld. I first met Gina in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago, and we'll get her perspective of the MedBlog Track. So, I hope that you can join us!
If you are new to the show, I encourage you to catch us live. There is a great chat room that also goes on. You can even see my shining face on the webcam. In addition, you can call into the show to say hello. Can't catch us live? That's ok. You can listen anytime after the show as it is saved as a podcast so you can listen anytime!
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 "Play/Chat" button. Then, of course, press the "Play/Chat" button.
The Doctor Anonymous Show proudly welcomes six-time Grand Rounds host Gina from Code Blog to the show. For her post this week, she had a Halloween theme which was very well done. I encourage you to check it out if you haven't had a chance yet.
Something I really enjoyed this week was that on her twitter account, he took us behind the scenes about what it was like being a GR host. We'll talk about that as well. Even the Grand Rounds founder, got a little nostalgic about that.....
We'll also talk about her blog, which according to her archives, goes all the way back to 2002. I could be wrong, but this has to be one of the first medical blogs out there. She and I only met in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago at the Medblog Track at BlogWorld Expo. And, I admit that I wanted to get to talk with her a little more - here is my chance....
So, come and say hello on Thursday, October 29, 2009 at 9pm ET/6pm PT. As always we're gonna be live on BlogTalkRadio.com with a chat room, you're ability to call into the show to say hello, and even you're ability to see me do the show live on my webcam. Isn't that exciting? See you for the show!
A lot of people have been asking me what I think of the H1N1 virus and the vaccine that will eventually be made available to the public. Here are some facts to start out with - these come right from the CDC website. More than 9000 hospitalizations and nearly 600 deaths have been reported to CDC associated with H1N1 - of these deaths, approximately 95 have been in children (as of this post 10/26/09).
Now granted, annually, approximately 36,000 deaths occur with regular seasonal flu. This fact alone should at least make you think about getting your seasonal flu shot, if you haven't already done so.
I also agree that the press has been hyping the situation up for the past six months with the H1N1 story - prior to that months and months of stories about the bird flu (remember bird flu?). Plus, with the president declaring an "national emergency" with regard to H1N1 this past weekend, this will add further fuel to the fear fire.
What about the virus? Is it around? I can only speak from where I live and work. And, it wasn't until 7 days ago when I really started seeing cases with my very own eyes. I've heard rumors in the community from docs and patients that "it's out there." This past week in the office was one of the busiest times, at least for me personally, I've had in a while. So, the virus is around here and it's real.
What about the vaccine? Good and bad information about this has been circulating for months. What I can tell you is that the process of making the vaccine is exactly the same as it is for the seasonal flu vaccine. It takes about six months to get a vaccine to market for consumption. The H1N1 was isolated in Mexico in April - and six months from then - is exactly right now. The same manufacturers and the same production plants are used.
How the seasonal flu vaccine is made is that a combination of (killed) viruses are put together to make a vaccine. These are the viruses that are thought to be the most common in the upcoming flu season. The H1N1 vaccine is only made for one virus, because it was too late in the production process to put the virus in the pipeline with the regular seasonal flu vaccine.
It's true that for a majority of the population, an H1N1 infection will be relatively mild. People will feel sick - maybe miss some work or school - but for the most part, no serious complications. However, I'm concerned with those populations who have an increased chance of bad complcations, like pregnant women, young children, and those with chronic medical conditions like asthma. Infection in these high risk populations would set you up for bad stuff like pneumonia, possible hospitalization, and even possible, death.
Adults who would not have a serious feeling infection would have the potential to pass H1N1 to one of these high risk groups who may have serious complications. That is why some in the medical community is pushing so hard for immunization - to protect the high risk groups, and to immunize people who may be in contact with the high risk groups.
When it comes to immunization, it's definitely a personal decision. The only thing I ask is to just ask yourself this question - What is the risk to yourself (and your kids) if you DO get the H1N1 vaccine (mild side effects, in my opinion) verses the risk if you DO NOT get the H1N1 immunization?
Sorry for the extra long answer. But, there is no simple way to explain the situation. I hope this clarifies some issues for you and doesn't muddy the water more. Don't forget to watch the video above and the video below that were recorded on TV news with regard to H1N1. Feel free to leave comments below. If you want to see me talk about other medical topics on a local newscast, I invite you to check out mikesevilla.tv
Now, you're not gonna here or read this from any other medblog "post BlogWorld" post. So, this is definitely an exclusive. I talked with our good friend and Grand Rounds founder Nick Genes. And, he told me of an adventure he had with the iPod of noted medical blogger Dr. Rob.
Apparently, Dr. Rob is prone to leave technology around, like his iPod. In fact, during the BlogWorld conference, Dr. Rob forgot his laptop cord in the lecture room and it had to be brought to him later (at the bar). Anyway, in the video above, Nick gives us an exclusive look inside the mind of Dr. Rob and the electonic contents of his iPod.
If you enjoyed this silliness, then I Invite you to check out an extended interview I had with Nick Genes back with Doctor Anonymous Show number 13 (beware of the technical glitch about 5 minutes into the show). We talked about his blog, Grand Rounds, and other stuff. As always, you can listen to the show in the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show and listen to it anytime by clicking here. Enjoy!
Yes, that's right. My mother, of sorts, also attended the first ever MedBlog Track at last week's BlogWorld and New Media Expo in Las Vegas. Mother Jones, RN (MJRN) who runs the Nurse Ratched's Place blog, has always been a strong supporter of me, my blog, and my internet radio show. And for all of that, I am very much grateful.
We had a some great conversations about the past, present, and future of medical/healthcare blogging. However, in the video above, we got a little silly, as we usually do. And, it was actually a fun interview to do. If you like that, then, you'll enjoy a more in-depth conversation all the way back on Doctor Anonymous Show number 6. MJRN even called into show number one when I really didn't know what I was doing.
As always, you can listen to show number six in the player above. Or, you can even download the show by clicking here and listening to the show anytime. And, in case you were really curious (or bored), you can download show number one by clicking here. Enjoy!
