Thanks so much to those who listened to Doctor Anonymous Show 180 where I celebrated my three year anniversary of my live podcast on BlogTalkRadio. Thanks also to Ben and to Kat for calling into the show. During the show, I shared a little bit about how the Doctor Anonymous blog and podcast started. You'll see me share a little bit about that story in the video above.
You can listen to the entire audio podcast in the sidebar player. Or, if you like, you can go to the iTunes page for the show and download Show Number 180. Don't forget to check out the Facebook page for the show and hit the big "Like" button at the top. Finally, I invite you to check out my you tube page where I also have some interviews with local TV news on a variety of health topics. Thanks for your continued support! I appreciate it!
Tonight is going to be a special show! Why? Because it's going to be a landmark show. Yes, that's right. Tonight, Doctor Anonymous Show 180, will mark three years of me doing a live podcast. Three years of me being on the BlogTalkRadio network. Three years of me not being cancelled. That should be celebration enough, right?
Now, if this was a quality show, I would have accumulated my favorite clips from the past three years and reminisced about them all over again. Well, I didn't have time to listen and edit old shows together. However, I'll still share some memories that I've had over the past few years since I started doing my social media stuff.
Who knows? Maybe I'll even take some random phone calls tonight. The video above is the promo for the first year anniversary show - when I was still using viddler as my video sharing source.
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.
Did you know that there has been a recall of about 500,000,000 eggs in the United States? About half a Billion eggs? Sheesh! I have been kind of peripherally following this story until the last week or so when the voluntary recalls hit the news. A very good summary for the consumer can be found over at the WebMD site.
The local TV station asked me to come in and interview with regard to what the egg recall means for the consumer and patient. I encourage you to check out the video above, and then the video below. If you found this helpful, then check out my other TV interviews on my You Tube page. Thanks so much!
Look out Chronicles of EMS (hehe) and all other health care fields looking to break into Hollywood, Dr. Doug Farrago is trying to take a bite out of Hollywood. In the video above, you'll see his pitch to try to get Family Medicine and Primary Care to the small screen. It's a kind of "day in the life" type of snap shot of how he balances his professional life and personal life.
Dr. Doug uses humor very well in his parodies and biting humor. He has a magazine and a blog of the same name called "Placebo Journal." He also has a very entertaining You Tube channel which is the extension of his magazine and blog. I know this first hand because he was gracious enough to come on Doctor Anonymous Show 26 all the way back in February 2008.
You can listen by clicking here for Dr. A Show 26 with Dr. Doug. Or, if you like, you can go to the show's iTunes page, download the show, and listen at your leisure. Don't forget also to check out the facebook page for the show and the you tube page for the show. Enjoy!
I don't know about you, but my allergies have been really acting up on me lately. Well, maybe not this week since it's been cooler. But, last week, my eyes were watering, my nose was running, and my lungs were wheezing (kind of). But, for the first two weeks of August, I had a lot of my patients complaining of their allergy symptoms getting worse. And, for some people, their asthma was getting worse as well.
The local TV station called me last week during the beginning of Ragweed Pollen Season and asked me to talk about it. They were kind enough to come to my office to talk to be for about 10 minutes. But, when you see the edited report above, you'll see that I only got about 45 seconds. The other thing that I learned about local TV news is that they like to recycle stories during a 24 hour news cycle. So, in addition to the initial report, you'll see in the video, the same story used again at the 5pm, 6pm, 11pm, 5am, and noon news. So, I thought that was interesting.
If you find this information helpful, I invite you to check out my other TV interviews about health issues. Head on over to my you tube page to check out my TV interviews, video segments from my internet radio show, and some miscellaneous videos. Enjoy!
Thanks again to DrJonathan for being my guest on Doctor Anonymous Show 179. He is a fourth year medical student who took the latest edition of his board exam the day prior to the show. So, needless to say, he was very happy to get that step behind him.
I would have to say that the show is broken down into two parts. In the first part, we discussed his discovery of Family Medicine (Whoo-Hoo) as his specialty of choice. And, we also discussed his path toward his decision, which includes a college career studying the art of Counseling. In the video segment above, DrJonathan and I have an unusually serious discussion of utilizing counseling techniques during the course of the patient interview.
In the 2nd half of the show, we discussed his passion and background in theater and music - including his interest in the musical stylings of Jim Brickman. DrJonathan is very savvy in the social media universe. He called into Show 175 and shared a story that he was a part of in saving a life while on twitter.
In the video segment below, we discuss The DrJonathan Live Show which is his live video variety show which will be coming back to the airwaves this Thursday, August 26th, 2010 at 7pm Eastern Time on UStream.tv (His show will be right before this week's Dr. A Show). You can learn more information about his show by following his twitter stream.
As always, you can listen to the entire audio podcast by clicking on Doctor Anonymous Show 179. Or, if you like, you can go to the show's iTunes page, download Show 179, and listen anytime you like. Also check out the show's Facebook page and hit the big "Like" button at the top. Finally, I invite you to check out my you tube page which includes some local TV interviews of me talking about health topics. Have a great week everybody!
So, my 20 year high school reunion is coming up in about a week. And, I have been going back and forth about whether I'm going to attend this event. I really have no excuses. I was born, grew up, went to college, and ultimately work in the same city (that's depressing to talk about, but that's for another post). So, it's not like I have to get on a plane or make any kind of lavish travel plans to get to the reunion.
Ten years ago, I went to the reunion. And, I admit that I really did not have a good time. It was kind of like stepping into a time machine and having all those insecurities come back on me. In fact, I think the 10 year reunion was actually at the school. How weird was that? (although it's probably pretty common)
Anyway, this is probably pretty "snob-ish" for me to say, but I've decided that I'm not going to my reunion next weekend. Facebook, despite all the negativity that is out there right now about it, has been an interesting way to try to catch up with people and what they're doing now. And, for me, I'm pretty content with that. Facebook has handled my curiosity factor for most of the people that I was interested in catching up with.
Best of luck to my class as they celebrate their 20 year reunion coming up next weekend. I won't be there. But, maybe through the magic of social media and Facebook, I will be, as I know that probably pictures will be posted. I'd rather go through the time machine through the comfort of my own home on the computer, rather than be there in person....
I was lucky enough to be asked by one of the local TV stations to talk about some back to school issues when it comes to health. I don't know about where you're at, but most of the local schools around here start tomorrow. Keeping up to date on immunizations are always important. Other important issues are getting kids back on their school sleep schedule, and looking out that the backpack is not overwhelmingly heavy.
I admit that looking at these videos again, I could have done a better job. And, I know that the pressure of live TV caused me to make some mistakes - which I know people will undoubtedly point out. But, check out the video above. Also check out Back To School Video 2 and Back To School Video 3 (yup, that's right, three segments in one day last week). If you find those helpful, I encourage you to check out my you tube page and click on My TV Interviews for more health segments from local TV news. Enjoy!
I hope you can join me tonight for Doctor Anonymous Show 179 with our guest who calls himself @DrJonathan on twitter. He is a senior medical student who has a big day yesterday in that he took his most current Board type exam. So, naturally, he will be ready to party and have a good time tonight.
You may remember @DrJonathan from Show 175 where he shared the story of how twitter saved the life of a person. The video segment above tells a little about the story. @DrJonathan also hosts a live video variety show over on the ustream.tv platform, where be brings in guests (like me) via video skype, and he also has been known to play music live on his show.
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.
Thanks again to Pre-Medical student Mohammad Arfeen who was my guest on Doctor Anonymous Show 177. He is known on twitter as @InsaneMo. We discussed that he contributor to the blog called Pre-Med Hell, the current president of his college's chapter of the American Medical Student Association, and some assorted social media topics.
In the video segment above, we discuss the topic of balancing online networking with in-person networking. We also discuss his prediction about physician-patient online communication in the future.
Or, if you like, you can go to the show's iTunes site, download Doctor Anonymous Show 177, and listen at your leisure. I also invite you to check out the show's Facebook page and hit the "like" button at the top. Finally, I also invite you to check out my you tube page to see more videos of me and of the show. Thanks so much for your support of the show!
This is the third post talking about the vote that occurred about 3 weeks ago to change the name of my medical school alma mater from The Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NEOUCOM) to Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMU). I also invite you to read my previous posts called "NEOUCOM to NEOMU: Why It Matters" and "NEOUCOM to NEOMU: The Response."
On Saturday, August 14, 2010 (which is incidentially 13 days prior to the inauguration of the new med school president), my podcast called The Doctor Anonymous Show had guest Vishvas Hegde, MD who is Clinical Assistant Professor of Pedaitrics and a proud NEOUCOM alum. He has written letters to the editor of local newspapers which are referenced on my previous post. In addition, we have received numerous comments from graduates and I mentioned a couple last week.
On the Dr. A Show 178 last weekend, our discussion covered the reasons why some alumni are frustrated not only with the name change, but also by which the process took place and lack of transparency during the name change process. Also of note, there was a current medical student in the chat room who is from another medical school who went through a name change. That person shared that their school is still struggling with the consequences from alumni from the name change of their school.
In the video above, the segment was close to the end of the show. And, our discussion shifted toward what are the next steps and how can the school and the alumni move on from this tension filled moment in time. Some potential solutions were offered. But what we wanted to emphasize in the end is that those who are upset by the decision are not out to embarrass the school. If we didn't love the school, we probably wouldn't have said anything at all. But, I think we speak for a lot of alumni who would like to continue to support the school, it's just that there are still many questions out there that continue to be unanswered by official channels.
I encourage you to listen to the entire audio podcast in the player below. Of if you like, I invite you to go to the iTunes page for the show, download Show 178, and listen at your leisure. I also encourage you to check out the Facebook page for the show and hit the "Like" button at the top of the facebook page. Finally, check out more of my blog and my you tube channel. Thanks for taking the time to listen to our point of view on this subject...
Hope you can join me live on Saturday night for Doctor Anonymous Show 178 where we will be talking about something that is controversial among some of the alumni of the school that will be formerly known as the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. My guest will be a alum who has been vocal in the local newspapers about this topic.
If you would like to know my stance on this topic, I encourage you to check out my prior posts called "NEOUCOM to NEOMU: Why It Matters" and "NEOUCOM to NEOMU: The Response." And, the way I'm thinking right now, this show may be the last that I have to say on this topic...
The blog posts and the upcoming show has elicited some comments from alumni. I cannot post all of them, since it will take up the entire page. But, I share two comments below and they asked that their name not be used:
1. My point is the credibility of the school.... [W]hen I first graduated and was interviewing around the country, most people either didn't know the school or asked if it was the one stuck in the middle of corn field in Ohio. Over recent years it has slowly gained notoriety and for those of us out there, trying to compete on a national level, it is gaining recognition. While the name is cumbersome, it is currently memorable. Changing the name, in my opinion will negatively affect the image of the school on a national level. It will never be Harvard or Hopkins, but the last thing the school wants is to perpetuate it as a "joke" school. Feel free to use any of that in your radio show...
2. As a proud graduate of Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine I would have considered attending the inauguration of the new president. However, since he has seen it his mission to abolish the existence of the school that I attended by taking the step to change the name. I will NOT support nor attend his inauguration. I will also not be making any contributions to the school, as my school apparently no longer exists. I will continue to fight this change via communication and discussion with our Ohio legislation.
I hope you can join me tonight for Doctor Anonymous Show 177 with guest Mohammad Arfeen who is a Pre-Medical student at Benedictine University in Illinois. He is a contributor to the Pre-Med Hell blog which gives advice to college students who aspire to go to medical school. He is also known as @InSaneMo on twitter and is chapter president at his school for the American Medical Student Association.
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.
Student month continues on The Doctor Anonymous Show. This week, I'm happy to welcome Mohammad Arfeen is a pre-medical student at Benedictine University in Illinois. His twitter ID is @InsaneMo and is a contributor to the PreMedHell Blog. He is also a chapter president for the American Medical Student Association. On the Pre Med Hell blog, here is an interesting excerpt from a post called "Motivation And Focus:"
I've received a decent number of requests about writing a post with study tips that I have found helpful. I’ve thought long and hard about what to write as the subject is so large, and there are various tips that help with different subjects. I’ve decided that instead of writing this post about studying tips, I’ll begin by writing a post about two things that you need to succeed in any subject. I’m sitting here in my regular coffee shop, trying to study for the MCAT, realizing that these are two things that most people forget about when complaining about how they aren’t doing well in a subject.
What are these two crucial elements you ask? They are motivation and focus, without both you are like a boat lost in the ocean without any power. You are fighting an uphill battle, if you are trying to master a subject without plenty of both. The best analogy I’ve ever heard about this is any subject is like an ocean, there are many ways you can cross it and many places you can end up at; focus gives you a target and a place to land, motivation is what keeps you going forward instead of going out a couple hundred feet and giving up.
Some thing that just happened this week is that InsaneMo announced some changes in his social media presence following his appearance in the show. The full post called "Changing Directions" is on his personal site. We'll talk about this and a lot more for Doctor Anonymous Show 177 which will be Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 9pm Eastern Time on BlogTalkRadio.com. Hope to see you for the show! (Don't forget to check out the video above talking about this week's show)
Last weekend, I was very excited to be at the 2010 Ohio Academy of Family Physicians Annual Meeting. For whatever reason, this was my first state meeting in a long time. It's always great to see and to catch up with long time friends.
In the morning session, I learned more about the concept of the Patient Centered Medical Home. I admit that I have heard the concepts for a long time - and they make sense to me. But this morning session was very practical in that it showed you initial steps on how to start the process. Check out a site called TransforMed: Transforming Medical Practices for more information.
The lunch session was probably the best session of the whole day. Here in Ohio, especially if you're a physician, the state supreme court race is probably the most important race on the entire ballot. Yes, here in Ohio we elect those who will serve on the state supreme court, and, yes, the people elect who will be the chief justice of the state supreme court. Interesting, isn't it?
Anyway, in the lunch time session, we had all four candidates running for the state supreme court seats - two for chief justice, and two for associate justice. The Ohio Academy of Family Physicians are unique in that they were the only organization (thus far) to get all four candidates in the same room during this election cycle.
The moderator asked each candidate the question and it was very interesting to see how each candidate answered the question. I won't mention anyone by name - basically because I don't want anyone from their campaign coming after me (hehe). Anyway, it was a sweet combination of civil discourse with political mudslinging. I admit that this is one of the few instances in my life where I turn into a political junkie. Good stuff.
The afternoon session was the business session in which the OAFP members talked about potential policies to be passed and possibly passed on to the national organization for consideration. As I remarked on my twitter, "Love parliamentary procedure, or lack of it." At times, I thought it was going to be like a foreign parliament in which chairs are thrown (not really, but that would be funny).
To learn more about the meeting, and to see some pictures, check out the Facebook page for the Ohio Academy of Family Physicians. I tried to twitter and to place out there facebook updates during the meeting. Social media is slowly coming around to the organization. But, if I have anything to say about it, the Ohio AFP will be well versed in social media - Soon.... :)
The post is in follow-up of the initial post called "NEOUCOM to NEOMU: Why It Matters." Less than 24 hours after the initial post went up, I was contacted by someone who works at the medical school to discuss the points that were brought up there. And, this conversation was helpful.
To clarify my point of view, I understand the rationale behind the name change. My problem was with the lack of transparency during the process. In the press release from July 30, 2010, only the new president gave quotes to be used. If there was support from the Board and the Alumni (and I don't doubt that there was), why not get a quote from the board chair and from an alumni who took part in the process.
In the rest of this video, I share some suggestions of how to try to move forward from this situation:
1) Some kind of acknowledgement that the communication with the alumni during this process could have been done better
2) Alumni are asking the question: "Do I get a new diploma with the new name of the university?" Just to let people know, verification of your educational history - like where you went to medical school - this is very important when you apply for hospital privileges and try to get onto insurance plans. If you have a diploma with the name of a school that no longer exists, this can cause unnecessary delays in the processing of your application - and ultimately push back, or prevent you working at a hospital or at an office.
3) Since the some alumni feel like they were not heard, what is administration and the school going to do to try to reach out and start a healing process with the alumni. Alumni should be the schools most valued asset. They contribute a lot of themselves - whether it be through teaching, or volunteering, or donations to the school. If alumni don't feel they were heard now, they will certainly make themselves feel heard by decreasing their donations to the school - which I know ultimately hurt current students. But, some alumni don't feel they will be heard any other way.
4) Finally, ever since the announcement of the new president, questions have been swirling - especially among alumni - about whether a dental school is on the road map for the university. And, since the question has not been answered or inadequately answered, the question remains. In my opinion, the new president would go a long way in mending fences if he took on this question straight on and answered it.
Finally, in an effort to help those frustrated alumni be heard, I will be using my internet radio show as a platform to help them express their opinion. On Saturday, August 14, 2010 at 8pm Eastern Time, I will interview an alumni who will express his point of view on this subject. Hopefully, other alumni and other people who are interested in this story will tune into the show to hear their point of view.
Thanks again to Erin Breedlove who was my guest on Doctor Anonymous Show 176. She shared her inspiring story of her dream to become a doctor. She is a pre-medical student right now, but she also has the diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy which, she states, is not stopping her from achieving her goal.
What you'll see below is a series of three video segments that were recorded during the show. The first video is her story of how the idea of going to medical school came up in the first place. I also encourage you to read her blog post on this as well. In the second video, we talk about some of her social media projects, and also some cool opportunities that have come out of her involvement in social media. Finally, in the last video posted, she gives advice to those who are inspired by her story.
You can listen to the entire audio podcast in the player at the bottom of this post. You can also download this show along with other Doctor Anonymous shows by clicking to go to the iTunes page for the show. Don't forget to "like" the show over on our facebook page. And, finally, check out the most current show schedule (and we have some good shows coming up this month) over at DoctorAnonymous.com. Have a great week everybody!
I hope you can join me tonight for Doctor Anonymous Show 176 with guest Erin Breedlove who is a Pre-Medical student in the Southeastern part of the United States. She is author of the blog Healthy, Unwealthy and Becoming Wise. She has the diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy and writes about her dream about going to medical school.
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.
In addition to the challenges of being a college student trying to get into medical school, Erin has the diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy which she clearly talks about in her blog including the post called "Cerebral Palsy: What It Isn't"
All too often, as a college and pre-medical student with cerebral palsy, I’m asked what cerebral palsy is, but no one ever seems too concerned with what it isn’t, and to me, that’s the most important part.
Too many assumptions and stereotypes plague the world of chronic health than do the positives, the abilities of patients, and the strength of their families. I’ll do you a favor. Let’s explore a few things that cerebral palsy isn’t, and I think that by doing that, you’ll find that you’ll know exactly what the diagnosis means!
They are changing the name of my med school alma mater, and I am upset about it. But, not for the reasons that you may think. I am a proud graduate of the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NEOUCOM). This has been the name of the school since it opened its doors in 1973.
Last week, the Board of Trustees unanimously voted to change the name of the school to the Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMU). In a press release from the school, the new president and dean, Dr. Jay Gershen, said this:
“The current name no longer reflects who we are as a University. In addition to a College of Medicine and a College of Pharmacy, we also added a College of Graduate Studies last year,” said Gershen. “We are a strong institution with a health sciences curriculum, and we want a strong name that reflects who we are and who we serve.”
I have talked with many alumni who are upset about this change. Vishvas Hegde, M.D. posted his opinion to this change on the comment page of the local newspaper where the medical school is located:
The name change alone will cost a large amount of time and money to be wasted. A few years ago, Medical College of Ohio in Toledo did a similar name change and it was estimated to cost over 300 thousand dollars for the entire process. Especially during tough economic times like this, I think almost everyone would agree that this is not a very wise use of funds... NEOUCOM is already cutting millions of dollars from their budget and reducing their employee count; this name change will lead to even more cuts in staff and services at the school.
While I empathize with Dr. Hegde's point of view, I do not have that much of a problem with the change in the name of the school. Post-graduate education is a competitive environment. NEOMU is a state school and anyone in Ohio knows that the budget from the state capitol is diminishing with each 2 year budget cycle. Getting research dollars, however you can, is one of the keys to survival at the post-graduate level.
Now, in my opinion, the reason why many alumni are upset with this change, is not the name change itself, but the manner that it was done. In the press stories I have read and watched, NEOMU administration is painting the picture that a lot of feedback was obtained from key stakeholders before the decision was made. Some alumni disagree with this and are really questioning the perceived lack of transparency that took place in the name change.
If this is the case, then the new president and the NEOMU administration have a huge public relations problem with NEOUCOM alumni. If alumni don't feel that they were heard, I really see this as potentially affecting alumni loyalty and willingness to assist the school - for example, with volunteering their time for teaching, or even with fund raising efforts. Because, if you do not have the alumni on your side, that's going to be a real problem. And, that's my opinion... (also check out my video post above where I still call the school "Northeastern Ohio" instead of "Northeast Ohio")
Lots of people know about twitter and what its many functions are. But, twitter as a life saver is probably something that you don't hear about a lot. Leigh Fazzina was in a triathalon race last week in Connecticut when her bike crashed. Her cell phone could not make any voice calls. However, she did figure out that she could send out text.
3 Twitter accounts, SMS and MMS messages, BlackBerry Instant Message (BBM) and voice. I knew Twitter would get me an immediate response as my messages would be sent to the 1,000 or so people in my network. I also knew that my Twitter network being comprised of mostly healthcare communications/public relations colleagues would take me seriously.... Remember, it was getting dark and I needed help immediately....
One of her many followers was @DrJonathan on twitter and he describes in the video interview above from Doctor Anonymous Show 175, what he and a lot of other of her followers did - they called the local authorities to let them know their friend was hurt and could not make a voice call. According to this article from NBC news, here is what happened next.
Within seconds, Fazzina’s Twitter friends and colleagues from all over heard her and reached out to authorities. The Farmington Police Department received a call from a woman in California, who led rescuers to Winding Trails. She tweeted directions and landmarks and stayed in tough with friends.At 7:27 p.m. [she tweeted] : "Thx! I hear sirens now. Hope they can find me. RT @DrJonathan: @LeighFazzina ok found the local police number.. calling- sit tight!"
Now this story is not without its detractors. In the comment section of the NBC story, there were more than a few comments who questioned the validity of this story. Still others, like the one below, who state that the facility where this took place is well run and an incident like this could have never happened.
Winding Trails triathalons are extremely well-run. They have a full staff on call for any emergencies equipped with radios and gas powered Gator carts to navigate the trails with. Each triathelte is accounted for and if they do not cross the finish line they begin an extensive search for them. As they were dispatched into the woods to try to locate the woman another triathlete approached the staff to inform them that the woman had fallen off of her bicycle.
She was not alone, people did hear her, and the staff (consisting of lifeguards and EMTs), the fire department, and UConn paramedics responded in a more than timely manner to come to her aid. If the trails were dangerous and the facility unsafe or not well-covered they would not be allowed to host these events that consist of hundreds of athletes every week (that successfully complete the races as well). There has never once been a complaint of loss of cell phone service on their trails...
For me, I tend to believe this story and thank those people who were on twitter that night who not only heard the call for help, but also took action to contact the local authorities to let them know about the situation. This really does speak to the power of twitter and social media. To check out the entire audio podcast, you can listen to the player below (the interview with Dr. Jonathan is about 30 minutes into the podcast). You can also download the podcast through the show's iTunes page at DoctorAnonymous.Org
