Dashing Md

So. A year. Amazing. Both in how long it seems, and how it seems like just last weekend I sat down and wondered "what's this podcast thing all about."I'd thought about a greatest hits episode, but in the end, with questions from the listeners waiting (very patiently) for answers, I went for new content. Hopefully that will be the theme of Year 2.The poem I read, Miniver Cheevey, can be found all over the Internet, but here's one place.My Facebook account, discussed on the show, is "Dashing Docteur." Hope to see you there.Here is the episode.And the kittens, well, here are the kittens:

OK, I'm back. Took a while, I know. But hopefully the wait's been worth it.Here we go again.

The way this blog is posted and served is absolutely free. Unless you value the time it takes to do it...this post was finished almost a week ago, but took a long time to successfully upload.So that's the excuses section.Anyway, Episode 27 is up at last. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!D, M.D.

Well folks, I'm back again. And reading from the mailbag, where Amanda writes in with some great questions about naturopathy.Also, in the podcast, I mistakenly refer to graduates of Osteopathy schools as ODs. This is what's known, in this political season, as a gaffe. They are actually DOs. Apologies.Here are some associated links, if you want more:Here's a Wikipedia article on Naturopaths...it's interesting for some basic information on naturopathy, and it's also a fascinating exploration of how Wiki articles are made and debated about, if you look at its associated discussion page.And an article on placebos.The good folks at South Park have addressed this issue, too.This week's case (an exercise that I'll make a regular feature if you guys like it):An 88 year-old woman with a history of advanced breast cancer 30 years ago, and a bad history of high blood pressure and osteoarthritis complains about her right hand, which is turning white. Her primary care doctor can't find a pulse, but he sends her to a va

You responded to Episode 24 with aplomb, I have to say. Tons from the mailbag -- enough to form an entire episode. We hear from Moof on why I should be a doctor, ZeroRocker on why he wants to be one too, and another emailer with some compelling questions on transplants. In 26, look for a diagnostic puzzle...coming soon(ish)!Until then, enjoy, and keep the conversation going!D, M.D.P.S. In this episode, I talk about how altruistic liver donation doesn't happen in the US. Turns out there are a few programs starting up, slowly, and with a lot of trepidation.

I know, I know...You could argue, rightly, that I already went. But hey, I'm back, and glad to be here. No drama, no amnesia, no fugue state in which I woke up months later washing dishes in a diner in New Mexico, no kidnappings or secret missions. Just a lot of living, and then, towards the end, some technical difficulties.But I'm back, and here is Episode 24. And here is the link to the article from the NYT that I talk about therein. Keep in touch. I'll do the same.

Hi All,First, a very happy New Year to you all! I'm really excited about where this podcast is headed, and about this first episode for 2008.This episode is in three parts:Part 1: The story of a recent tragedy, and what it makes me remember and consider.Part 2: A look at a couple of recent issues that have appeared in the mainstream media that have direct implications on surgery. The first is a story from This American Life about a heart transplant recipient who comes to know her donor's family...I have a few thoughts on what a bad idea that is.The second is an article by Atul Gawande that appeared recently in the New York Times, telling a story about the latest example of research methods and research ethics failing to agree on what's best for patients. A really interesting read.Part 3: I've been struggling to figure out where the podcast is headed. Now, I'm also struggling to figure out where I am headed. Which, at the very least, gives me a sense of some things to talk about in the weeks to come.Enjoy

Hi All,First, some pressing news: I'm going to be on the Doctor Anonymous radio show tomorrow, Sunday the 21st, at 9 PM Eastern. Hope you can join us there...I'm excited about having a chance to interact with the Listenership in real time. The show link is here, and the Doctor Anonymous blog, which is much more prolific than my own, is linked on the right. Episode 21 tells the story of some recent rites of passage: my completion of the trilogy of board exams (the USMLE Step exams), my trip to the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress in New Orleans, and a walk down memory lane in my first home town. Enjoy!

So...summer was great. So great that I didn't really get to the podcast much. That, and some technical difficulties. But I'm back now, with some great listener mail. Episode 20 hits some big topics: - Medical school for non-traditional students- Universal healthcare, and my feelings about it- Coping with bad daysHope you enjoy! I'm glad to be back.Keep your thoughts and questions coming!

I'm back, at long last. Now coming to you from the East Coast of America, and living a very different life. There are plenty of stories still to come, but there's still plenty to say about the life I've left behind, too. So I give you the transplant service.

The rewards of medicine are sort of obvious: taking care of other people is one of the great privileges of life, and the fact that we get paid at all to do it sometimes seems like an unexpected, unnecessary pleasure. But the fact is that medicine asks more from us than simple patient care, and making that worthwhile is another question all together. As it is, there's no incentive to do anything more than just get by in medical residency, for instance...no matter how hard you work, you spend the same amount of time training, and get the same pay. The impact of this - a complete deviation, after all, from the American Dream - is underappreciated. I try to appreciate it a little bit this week.The article I mention in the podcast, about how one hospital is trying incentive programs for surgeons, is here.Haven't subscribed yet? No time like the present:

Here's the story of how a young doctor-in-training learns to keep standing...and at what cost.As always, I love hearing your thoughts.New to the podcast? Want to subscribe? You do? Great! Click the button below:

Here's Episode 16. We start with some letters from the Listenership, then take a quick trip to the newswires, where we check on the medical accuracy and completeness of recent stories about Tony Snow's cancer diagnosis and Jon Corzine's car accident. Then, at long last, we arrive at the stated topic: questions you should ask your surgeon before having an operation, and things you can do in the hospital to be sure that you're getting all the treatment that you should.Of course, I'm not your doctor, and you should take my medical advice the way you take any advice from a complete stranger who won't tell you his name...For convenient reference, I'll put the main points here: 1. Be sure your attending is going to be in town while you're recovering, not heading to the airport from your operating room. 2. Is your attending surgeon going to see you every day while you're in the hospital? I used to take that for granted. No longer. 3. What's the patient to staff ratio going to be? If you're going to be in IC