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Physician Peer Support

Thanks to Dr. Vicki Rentel for being my guest on Family Medicine Rocks Podcast Episode 291 yesterday. We talked about how we miss the camaraderie of residency training and still need that physician peer support these days. We also talked about what keeps us going these days and what gets us up in the morning to continue to practice in this broken health care system. You'll see a brief video segment from the show in the video above.

You can listen to the entire audio podcast below, or you can click here and download the episode. I also encourage you to subscribe to the podcast via itunes. Check out my other social media platforms like twitter, facebook, youtube, and linked-in. Enjoy!

Identity Theft: Physician Social Media

Does social media fraud happen to physicians? Of course it does. Thanks to American Medical News for interviewing me for the article "3 Ways Doctors Can Protect Against Social Media Fraud," posted on January 21, 2013.

The most annoying thing that health care social media bloggers complain about is other people stealing their content for their own website. For example, I know of other website who have "cut and paste" word-for-word my blog posts and claiming it for their own. Some websites call it "guest posting," while I call it plagiarism. Here's my quote from the article:

"Social media identity fraud is definitely a concern to me," said Michael Sevilla, MD, a Youngstown, Ohio, family physician and social media enthusiast who founded the "Family Medicine Rocks" website and podcast. Dr. Sevilla said he has had blog content copied and reposted without his permission on other websites.

Now, I know the reality is that there is nothing that can be done. That's the downside of making your content so easily available. To completely prevent this, you put up a pay wall, or make it unsearchable on google - both not really advantageous to get the word out. Stealing of your social media content goes with the territory, so live with it, or get out.

The rest of this American Medical News article talks about physicians needing to create and claim their own social media footprint. Great quotes from our pal Dr. Bryan Vartabedian, creator of 33Charts.com, are included in this piece.

Finally, welcome to those of you who are visiting this site for the first time because of the AmMedNews article. I encourage you to check out this website along with my other social media platforms like twitter, podcast, linked-in, you tube, and others. Enjoy!

Inauguration 2013

No matter who is elected president, I always remember watching my first inauguration speech when I was in the 3rd grade. I knew I was a freak - hehe. While the other kids were having their lunch, I was watching the small television at the front of the room and trying to understand what was being said.

Today, we were so busy in the office, I did not have a chance to check out the festivities live. Four years ago, I was totally plugged in and watching every second live video streaming on the internet.

I know that this was a ceremonial and symbolic day, with not a lot of expectations on substance. The President is a great speaker, but, to me, I didn't hear a lot of inspiration there in today's speech. Sounded like he was reading a lot. I've watched all the partisans today analyze the speech along party lines.

This country has a lot of problems, and even though today was supposed to give us hope, I'm still skeptical that the political parties can find any kind of common ground. The American people have to rise up and tell Washington DC to stop playing politics and come together to actually do something - and not be in gridlock...

Tech Predictions For 2013

A few weeks ago, the Physicians Practice website asked me to make to contribute to a story called, "Top Tech Predictions for Medical Practices in 2013." I sent them a list of my predictions hoping that one would make their article.

Health mobile apps will get better: Salem, Ohio, Family Medicine Physician Mike Sevilla said he expects to see more FDA-approved smartphone apps. "AliveCor is the trailblazer in this area," he said. "With their success, I see other companies trying to get into this market. Everyone knows about the medical device market, but this digital/electronic device market is newer, and just as exciting."

My other predictions that did not make the article are the following: Crowd source funding of medical technology and HCSM projects will be seen more in 2013, especially with sites like Medstatr. In the consumer technology market, you've already seen items, from the Consumer Electronics Show, from companies like FitBit, Bodymedia, and Withings. Finally, the craziest prediction I have for 2013 is the Comeback of the Personal Health Record. Google Health is gone, and Microsoft Health Vault really hasn't caught on. But, I think that this year, there will be a new product to emerge and will finally get it right. Call me crazy, but there you go!

Weight Loss Journey

Thanks to Steve from Work2LoseIt.com for being my guest on Family Medicine Rocks Podcast Episode 290. We had a great conversation about how he started on this journey, why he chooses to share his story on the internet, and his thoughts on weight loss surgery.

Steve and I also talked about our favorite fitness gadgets and technology like My Fitness Pal, FitBit, and Lose It. He also wanted me to share with you the links of Digifit and Fatboy Fitman.

You can listen to the show below, or download the show here and listen anytime. I also encourage you to follow me on twitter, like the facebook page, subscribe to the podcast, check out my linked-in page, and my youtube page. Enjoy!

Discussing AAFP Gun Violence Essay

Family Medicine Rocks podcast episode 289 will be live at 2pm Eastern Time on Thursday, January 10th, 2013. The title of the episode is "Gun Violence, Flu Update, and Monetization." This jam-packed show has the following content:

Wrap-up FamMedRocks Episode 288

The first show of 2013 was Family Medicine Rocks Episode 288. Thanks to all of you who listened live and who have already downloaded the show. Here are the summary of the topics discussed:

  • Do you Self-Diagnose yourself on the internet? Many people do. I invite you to check out this link from our friends at the Pew Internet and American Life Project. The link has some great data including 80% of internet users look online for health information. I also invite you to check out the video above in which I give my opinion about people who self-diagnose themselves and/or people who use the internet for health information.
  • What is a Self-Tracker? These are individuals who track their own health and wellness, especially using technology like smartphone apps and wearable technology like the FitBit. Also included in this section of the show is an interview with Susannah Fox about self-tracking.
  • In the final section of the show, I read and give my opinion regarding an essay by Phil Baumann entitled, "Physician Social Media: Has Advice About It Become A Crock? Yes - A Dear Doctor Letter." 

You can listen to the full audio podcast below. You can also download the entire show here and listen at your convenience. I also invite you to follow me on twitter, "like" the facebook page for this site, check out other videos on my youtube page, and check out my linked-in page. Enjoy!

Early Flu Season 2013

Over this weekend, in the national news, you're seeing stories of what they're calling an Early Flu Season for the 2012-13 year. A quick search gets stories from NBC News, Huffington Post, Fox News, and ABC News. I had the flu 5 years ago, and I wrote about it in the post "Influenza Case Study: Me."

It is not too late to get your flu shot, which experts are saying is a good match to the current flu virus strain that is out there. Check out this list of people who should get the flu vaccine from the CDC. In the video above, you'll see a TV interview I did last month. Back at that time, there was influenza cases in the southern part of the US, but it's now the case that the virus is spreading nationwide. So, if you haven't already, get your flu shot!

Physician Medicare Cuts Delayed Til 2014

Well, they did it again. The press is congratulating Congress on the "success" of coming up with a New Year's Night deal on that no one likes. For physicians, this deal contains a delay in the 27% cut in Medicare payments to physicians according to the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR). For full coverage of this story, I encourage you to read articles from Medpage Today, Kaiser Health News, and Modern Healthcare. (Photo credit: New York Times)

The 26.5% cut in Medicare reimbursement mandated by the sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula was averted in a literal 11th hour vote Tuesday in the House of Representatives. The House vote to pass the "fiscal cliff" bill ok'd earlier by the Senate delays the SGR cuts for a year. The bill cleared the House by a vote of 257-167; senators had passed the same bill in an 89-8 vote just after 2:00 a.m. vote.

While Congress has put another bandaid on the SGR problem, a long term solution is still needed, because when December 31, 2013 comes, we'll be going through this thing all over again, and the potential cuts will probably be in the 30% range. Medical organizations will again be out encouraging their members to lobby congress for a long term Medicare payment solution. How effective will they be? We'll see...