Friday, April 30, 2010

Friday at #aafpncsc


Wrapping up day 2 here in Kansas City at the National Conference of Special Constituencies by the American Academy of Family Physicians. As I type this, this is the end of the day where I am listening to a bunch of inspiring stories and speeches and people are putting themselves forward for election to the AAFP national meeting.

I took place in an initial stage of the election process this morning. Unfortunately, I did not succeed to this final round of ballotting, but it was such a great time just going through the process and pushing myself personally and professionally to try again to serve my specialty.

In addition to elections and talking about policies, I attended a few educational sessions. My favorite one was about Media Training For Physicians. I definitely learned a lot during that session - some of which I'll start applying to some of the media work in the future.

Tomorrow is the last day of the meeting. It's been a great experience talking with colleagues from around the country on a variety of issues for our patients. I apologize for not doing so much video from here, but my schedule was so busy. I'll have to make more to say about the meeting when I've had a chance to process everything that happened here. Have a great weekend everybody!

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Thursday at #aafpncsc


So, officially, this is the first day of the meeting. But, unofficially, things got kicked off last night in talking with long time friends and sharing stories. I have been to many, many AAFP meetings through the years and the friendships that I have gained have been so valuable - both professionally and personally.

It's really hard to believe that it was about 10 years ago when I really started becoming very active with AAFP leadership activities - like being on AAFP committees, like running for AAFP leadership positions. How time really flies.

This specific meeting has always been exciting and inspiring for me because of the content and because of the networking opportunities. The usual first activity is the first-time orientation, which is always entertaining - especially this early in the morning. To be perky and excited first off is really a challenge - I should know - because I helped with the session on more than one occasion.

As the morning gets started here, I'll definitely be updating on my twitter account - so check that out if you like (i'll be using the #aafpncsc tag during the meeting). And, I might even update this post during the day as well. I'm still working on that video feed. Hopefully, I'll be able to broadcast something today. Otherwise, have a great day everybody!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Live from #aafpncsc




So, I'm going to try something that has never been tried before (that I'm aware of) at the National Conference of Special Constituencies meeting in Kansas City by the American Academy of Family Physicians. At times during the meeting, I'm going to go live with a video feed to update all of you what is going on.

The main limiting thing will be the bandwidth issue. And, I have to caution you right now that the laptop camera & mic (maybe even trying out from the iPhone) I'll be using won't be that high quality. But, it's better than nothing. (BTW, if you're talking about the meeting, don't forget to use the #aafpncsc tag in your twitter updates)

When will I go live? Well, the best way to know is to subscribe to my twitter feed as I will "tweet out" when I will go live with the video stream. To assist you to in making snarky comments, I've also placed a chat box. But, you need to register with the Ustream.TV site before you can chat. Sorry about that. Hope this sucker works!

Update: I tried to go live when I was at the airport and that was a big fail. I then tried at the hotel lobby and there seemed to be a problem there. I'm gonna keep trying, but it doesn't look good. Oh well....

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Dr. A Show 156 Wrap-up: Dr. Gerry Tolbert


Thanks so much to Dr. Gerry Tolbert who is a Family Medicine Resident Physician - for being on Doctor Anonymous Show 156. We had a great conversation about his experiences as a medical student and now as a resident. The video clip above is particularly interesting in that we have a real conversation about our frustrations with organized medicine these days.

If you enjoyed the video clip above, I invite you to download the entire audio podcast by clicking here. Don't forget to check out the Facebook page for the show and hit the big "Like" button. You can also subscribe to the show and download any Dr. A Show by going to the show's iTunes page. Thanks for your continued support of the show!

National Conference of Special Constituencies


So, I'm going to this meeting tomorrow put on by my professional organization called the American Academy of Family Physicians. Since I was Chief of Staff for my community hospital for the past two years, I haven't been able to attend. This is going to be a great opportunity to connect back with long time friends - some of whom I haven't seen in three years.

This is basically an advocacy meeting and policy meeting. It's no secret that many Family Docs out there (like me) who are not very happy with organized medicine these days - especially with their stance on Health Care Reform. But, instead of writing off all of organized medicine (at this point). I'm willing to listen to the leadership to see what they have to say on important health care topics like HCR.

The really fun part of the meeting is meeting new people - especially family docs who have similar points of view. It's a chance to come together from different parts of the country to share what were doing in our communities and see how we can learn from one another. Too often, we're so isolated in our little "silos" and so focused on work, that there is little opportunity to network with colleagues.

For those of you who follow this blog, or who follow me on social media, you're in for a treat. I'm going to try to bring you inside the NCSC meeting through the magic of social media. I do have some plans that I don't know if I can make happen, but stay tuned here and see if I succeed - or if I fail....

Dr. A You Tube Site


It's no secret that I've been interested in purchasing the Apple iPad since its announcement. One of the first things I did when I got my hands on one to check it out, I went to this very site to see what I would find. I knew that flash wasn't supported by the iPad and something I have never heard about called "HTML 5" was going to be the new standard.

However, I was very surprised that when I looked at this site on the iPad, I could hardly see anything. This means I was very surprised by how much flash I was using on the site - mainly with video clips. So, over the past 2 weeks or so, I've been converting a lot of my video library over to my Doctor Anonymous You Tube site and things over there are looking great.

My You Tube site is even where I forward MikeSevilla.TV. In addition to my local TV news interviews, I also have some videos from the blog and from the podcast, videos from HIMSS 2010, and some other videos - like the one above from 2nd year of medical school - It was from the talent show that year (we actually won third place that year - why did I put the video up? sheesh). So, I encourage you to head over there and check it out. Enjoy!

Monday, April 26, 2010

Pollen & Allergies


If you haven't read about the "record" high levels of pollen in the air, you (like me) have experienced a lot of the allergies we know as allergic rhinitis. Yesterday, I was on the local TV news station talking about pollen, allergies, and what to do about it. Check out Video 1 and Video 2 below. If you found them useful, I encourage you to check out more of my interviews by clicking here. Enjoy!





Sunday, April 25, 2010

Dr. A at HIMSS 2010


It's been almost 2 months since the HIMSS (Health Information and Management Systems Society) meeting in Atlanta. And, I've been meaning to write a post about my experience, but I just haven't had a chance to until now. Of course, there has been much written about the event, which is the largest health information technology conference of the year.

It was my first HIMSS meeting and I have to tell you that I felt overwhelmed even before getting there. But, upon entering the convention center, it was just a great experience. I thought that I was going to meet a lot of executives and IT people. Don't get me wrong, I did. But I also met a lot of clinical people - kind of like front line people who also take care of patients every day.

One of the main topics that I wanted to learn about is Meaningful Use. I'm still learning a lot about it, and a lot of it still confuses me. But, it was good for me to learn that a lot of other people are still confused about it as well. I was able to bring home a lot of important information for my practice and for my hospital.

The other great project that I got to take part in is to help out Dr. Val and the Better Health company in coverage of the HIMSS conference. Thanks so much to Dr. Val for the opportunity to participate in such an innovative task. The goal was simple - to interview a bunch of vendors at the HIMSS meeting. The hard part was figuring out how to do that in real time, on the internet, and to give all of you the opportunity to ask questions from wherever you were around the world.

The technical research I had to do on this project was - at times - overwhelming. In my tech planning, I had to make some assumptions of how the room set up was going to be. I already had some of the sound & computer equipment in my possession. It was just hauling all the stuff to Atlanta, hooking it up, and hoped that it would work.

I have to admit that I was holding my breath a good 30 minutes before we went live that first day hoping that an entire disaster didn't happen. If you haven't checked out the results yet, I encourage you to check out the You Tube Better Health page to see what we were able to accomplish. You'll also see an interview I did above.


As a wrap-up, Dr. Val was a guest on Doctor Anonymous Show 150. We talked about the experience and how the Better Health company is positioning itself to cover conference like this in the future. As always, you can listen to the show in the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show and listen anytime by clicking here. Thanks to everyone who gave so much positive feedback to our coverage at HIMSS 2010!

Dr. A Show 155 Wrap-up: Dr. Lucy Hornstein


Yes, I know. It's been over a month since the interview and I'm just posting the wrap-up now? Oh well, what can I say? I did want to thank Dr. Lucy for being a guest on Dr. A Show 155. It was such a great time talking with her on a variety of topics. Her story of starting out a solo Family Practice is just fascinating to me. You get a little piece of that in the video above. If you enjoyed that, then I invite you check out Video Clip 2, Video Clip 3, and Video Clip 4.


There is also an audio podcast of the entire interview as well. You can listen in the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show and listen anytime by clicking here. Dr. Lucy recently moved her blog to wordpress. So, I encourage you to check out her new digs at the new Musings of A Dinosaur site. Thanks also for her very nice post about her experience on the show. I really appreciate it!

Dr. A Shows 160 & 161 Wrap-up




I've been really falling behind on these summaries, and I apologize about that. For show 160, thanks so much to DG and Tiffany Hollums who shared their story of how it is to go through the adoption process. Their story is fascinating and begins with Dr. A Show 108 when they were on last summer. I encourage you to listen to that show as well. You can listen to Show 160 in the player above. Or, you can download the show by clicking here and listen anytime. Don't forget to check out the video clip above which covers the opening moments of the show.



On Show 161, our good friend Kat returned to the show to co-host with me. You can check out the opening moments with the video above. We talked about some news stories along with catching up on what happened during the week. You can listen to Show 161 in the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show and listen anytime by clicking here. Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Dr. A Show 160 Tonight


BlogTalkRadio Listen Live

Thursday, April 22, 2010 at 9pm ET (0100 UTC)

I invite you to join me tonight for Doctor Anonymous Show 160 when my guests will be DG and Tiffany Hollums. They were also on show number 108 way back last summer. You can listen to the show on the player below. Or, if you like, you can also download the show by clicking here.


I asked them to return to the show to update their journey through the adoption process. I got a lot of great response from the last time they were on the show. And, I still get e-mails from people who have listened to that show to ask about how they are doing. I'm very happy to welcome them back to tonight's 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.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Show 159 Wrap-up



Thanks so much to Brandice for being on Doctor Anonymous Show 159. She is a social worker at a hospital and for the first part of the show, we talked about the care of geriatric patients - especially those with a diagnosis with dementia. There are a bunch of medical and psychosocial issues that these patients and these families have to deal with. In the video clip above, Brandice gives advice to families in considering some differences between extended care facilities.


Following the show, I had a little post show chat session with my friends on my video stream site. As always, you can listen to the show on the player above. Or, if you like, you can download the show and listen anytime, by clicking here. Don't forget to become a Facebook Fan of the show! And, if you like the show, you can download more from my iTunes page. Hope you're having a great weekend!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Dr. A Show 159 Tonight!



BlogTalkRadio Listen Live

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 9pm ET (0100 UTC)

Hope you can join me tonight for Doctor Anonymous Show 159 when our guest will be Brandice. Check out yesterday's post for a full preview. Our topics for the show tonight include the following: how her job in social work assists the hospital in the care of patients with psychiatric and mental health issues, Brandice's book Columbus Groove, her recent purchase of the Apple iPad, and whatever else comes up in the midst of our discussion.

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.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Show 159 Preview: Brandice



Hope you can join me for Doctor Anonymous Show 159 when our good friend Brandice (pictured to the left above) will be returning back to the show. Among her many hats that she wears, she is an author, and she was a guest on Dr. A Show 114 to talk about her book called "Columbus Groove." Check out the show in the player below. Or, if you like, you can download the show here and listen at any time.


On Brandice's blog, she has a posted entitled "Social Work: I'm Not A Baby Snatcher." In this post, she shared that she has a Masters Degree in Social Work - Cool! She is currently working in a hospital with patients who have psychiatric and mental health diagnoses. She and I have talked on a number of occasions of our interest in mental health care and the importance of a team approach - which include social workers and physicians.

So, in addition to this, we'll be catching up to see how her book is doing - AND - her recent purchase of the Apple iPad. I hope you can join us for the discussion on Thursday, April 15th, 2010 at 9pm Eastern Time (0100 UTC) for The Doctor Anonymous Show. Don't forget to become a Facebook Fan of the show! (And, check out the video promo below) Hope you're having a great week!

Friday, April 09, 2010

Show 157 Wrap-up: Autism


Thanks to everyone who check out Doctor Anonymous Show 157 talking about April being National Autism Awareness Month. It was a short show, but one that I think was important to help get the word out on awareness. You'll see the video above in which I open the show. To see more video clips of the show, head on over to the Facebook Fan page of the show.


You can listen to the show above on the player. Or, if you like, you can download the show by clicking here, and listen anytime. In addition to becoming a Facebook Fan of the show, I encourage you to subscribe to the show via iTunes by hitting this link. Have a great weekend everybody!

Thursday, April 08, 2010

Dr. A Show 157 Tonight: Autism Awareness


BlogTalkRadio Listen Live

Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 9pm ET (0100 UTC)

After taking a little break from the show, I hope that you're able to join me for Doctor Anonymous Show 157 where I will be talking about April being National Autism Awareness Month. There is definitely still a lot of controversy surrounding this topic, and I hope to steer clear of most of that. I did an interview on the topic - on local TV news - earlier this week. I invite you to check it out in the video below.


I also wanted to share with you a podcast that was done a year ago by our friends Annie and Burl talking about two parents journey. You can check out the show by listening to the player above. Or, if you like, you can click here, download the show, and listen to it anytime. What I hope to do with my show tonight is to bring you some information about the Autism Spectrum and what that means.

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.



Wednesday, April 07, 2010

The Doctor Anonymous Interview


Thanks so much to Gregg Masters for inviting me on his live podcast last night to talk about Physicians & Social Media. I told a little bit about how I got started in social media and some of the things that I'm doing now - like last month's coverage of the HIMSS conference helping out Dr. Val and Better Health.


There are a couple of ways that you can listen to the show. First, you can listen on the player above right here on the website. Or, if you click here, you can download the show and listen anytime. Don't forget to become a Facebook Fan of The Doctor Anonymous Show by clicking here. Thanks again to Gregg! I had a great time!

Tuesday, April 06, 2010

Dr. A Interviewed Tonight!


Curious to see what it's like for me to be in the interview chair? Well, that will happen tonight at 8pm Eastern Time (Midnight UTC) when I will be a guest of Gregg Masters (pictured above) on his BlogTalkRadio show called "Perspectives in Health System Transformation."



In addition to asking about some background information about me (which is also on my LinkedIn page), our discussion will be about physicians in social media. So, this should be a lot of fun tonight. He also told me that he'll ask me about the social media coverage at HIMSS by Better Health (check out the snapshot video above from HIMSS - including cameo appearance by EpatientDave). Hope to see you tonight for the show!