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Audio: ACP President: Not Enough Americans Have Been Vaccinated Against H1N1 Flu

stubbsOver 10,000 Americans (mostly young) have already died of H1N1 flu, and yet we’ve only vaccinated 10-20% of those who need protection. January 10-16 is National Influenza Awareness Week, and the American College of Physicians is doing its part to raise awareness of the ongoing need to protect Americans from the next wave of influenza.

I interviewed ACP President, Dr. Joseph Stubbs, about the current influenza season and Americans’ vulnerabilities to the virus. Please enjoy the audio of our conversation or read the transcript below.

[audio:https://getbetterhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/flustubbsjan.mp3]

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Tragic H1N1 Flu Death Of University of North Carolina Freshman

lillian-400x300.jpgIf you think that the H1N1 pandemic is slowing down and have grown complacent with vaccination now that vaccines are more widely available, please learn something from last night’s tragic loss of local college student from Rhode Island, Lillian Chason:

A University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student, who friends said was battling complications from the H1N1 virus, died Wednesday evening, according to UNC Hospitals and a Facebook post made by her father.

Freshman Lillian Chason had been in critical condition at UNC Hospitals for weeks. Friends told WRAL News on Tuesday that she started feeling bad before Thanksgiving and went into the hospital on Nov. 20. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Terra Sigillata*

H1N1 Blogger Briefing With Anne Schuchat & Friends

valtraceyThe Department of Health and Human Services held a blogger-targeted webcast about the H1N1 flu today in Washington, DC. Although Secretary Kathleen Sebelius had planned to co-lead the event, she was called to the White House for some healthcare reform deliberations – which might take a while? (She promises to try again to speak to us bloggers at a later date, though, so I’ll be sure to let you know when that happens). Dr. Anne Schuchat, Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, carried the event with ease, and Jenny Backus (Acting Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs – pictured with me) moderated the incoming blogger and Twitter questions.

This was a particularly entertaining webcast for me because I was invited “behind the scenes” to witness the event at the HHS studio as well as submit questions for Dr. Schuchat’s consideration. The webcast is available for viewing on the HHS YouTube channel.

What you may not get from the webcast, however, is how much work goes into HHS’s efforts to communicate accurate information to the public. I was very impressed with the studio space (it has a National Press Club feel) and the staff are technically skilled and affable. So friendly were they that I “memorialized” our meeting with a few candid shots (below). Read more »

Do Physicians Have A Moral Obligation To Engage In Social Media?

Some physicians may be hesitant to participate in social media outlets, like Facebook and Twitter.

Well, get over it.

Great post by pediatrician Bryan Vartabedian who addresses this topic. Indeed, physicians have lost control of the online message, especially with, according to recent data, 60+ percent of patients visiting the web first when looking for health information.

Instead, anti-vaccine proponents and homeopaths have embraced the Internet, and now exert tremendous influence on patients. We doctors have no one to blame but ourselves for being so slow to get online. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*

Amy Wallace On The Anti-Vaccination Movement: Superb, Engaging Science Journalism

amywallace200px.jpgOne of the most engaging and clearly-written pieces of science journalism over the last year or so was published in Wired magazine last week. Amy Wallace’s, “An Epidemic of Fear: How Panicked Parents Skipping Shots Endangers Us All,” is part interview with rotavirus vaccine developer, pediatric infectious disease physician, Dr Paul Offit, and description of the anti-vaccination movement in the United States.

Wallace’s work is the centerpiece a collection of smaller articles providing science-based information about vaccination that also refutes common anti-vaccination myths including “How To Win An Argument About Vaccines” and “The Misinformants: Prominent Voices in the Anti-Vaccine Crusade”.

Wired’s follow-up discussion of the issue includes, “A Short History of Vaccine Panic,” for those of us who “have a day job” and not enough time to read Paul Offit’s 2008 book, “Autism’s False Prophets.”
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*This blog post was originally published at Terra Sigillata - PostRank (PostRank: All)*

Latest Interviews

IDEA Labs: Medical Students Take The Lead In Healthcare Innovation

It’s no secret that doctors are disappointed with the way that the U.S. healthcare system is evolving. Most feel helpless about improving their work conditions or solving technical problems in patient care. Fortunately one young medical student was undeterred by the mountain of disappointment carried by his senior clinician mentors…

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How To Be A Successful Patient: Young Doctors Offer Some Advice

I am proud to be a part of the American Resident Project an initiative that promotes the writing of medical students residents and new physicians as they explore ideas for transforming American health care delivery. I recently had the opportunity to interview three of the writing fellows about how to…

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Latest Book Reviews

Book Review: Is Empathy Learned By Faking It Till It’s Real?

I m often asked to do book reviews on my blog and I rarely agree to them. This is because it takes me a long time to read a book and then if I don t enjoy it I figure the author would rather me remain silent than publish my…

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The Spirit Of The Place: Samuel Shem’s New Book May Depress You

When I was in medical school I read Samuel Shem s House Of God as a right of passage. At the time I found it to be a cynical yet eerily accurate portrayal of the underbelly of academic medicine. I gained comfort from its gallows humor and it made me…

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Eat To Save Your Life: Another Half-True Diet Book

I am hesitant to review diet books because they are so often a tangled mess of fact and fiction. Teasing out their truth from falsehood is about as exhausting as delousing a long-haired elementary school student. However after being approached by the authors’ PR agency with the promise of a…

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