Dr. Val Is A Finalist In The Medblog Awards!
I’m so excited and honored to have been nominated – and now selected as a finalist – for the “Best New Medblog, 2007” award! Thank you MedGadget team! If you’d like to vote for me, please go to this page. The winners will be selected based purely on quantity of votes. The polls are open until midnight, January 20th.
I’ve also collected the best posts from 2007 below so you can get an overview of what my blog is like – where else can you join a weight loss group, read weekly round ups of the best posts from medical experts, stay in touch with breaking medical news, and have a generally cathartic experience with true health stories?
The Best “Feel Good” Posts
A Baby’s Life Is Saved – a young mother forces a doctor to reconsider his diagnosis, saving her baby’s life.
Do the Right Thing– a young intern fights to save the life of a patient that everyone else has written off.
The Wounds of Childhood– how I might have made a difference for a little girl who was marginalized.
Medicine: Face-to-Face– the story of how I treated a child for the same injury I had at her age: being mauled by a dog.
Informed Consent and the Animal Guessing Game– my reflection on the emotional side of consenting for a procedure.
Thanks to Surgeons– a heartfelt tribute to the surgeon who saved my life.
Fly the Ball– the life and times of a Pakistani doctor who builds a successful career in the US.
The Best Infuriating Posts
The Last Straw: My Road to a Revolution– the true story of a child with cerebral palsy who died because he was denied a wheelchair part by Medicare.
The Benefit of the Doubt– how my friend was labeled as a drug seeker and mistreated in the ER.
VIP Syndrome: A No-Win Situation – the story of how a young man with “connections” demanded and received inappropriate and expensive medical tests, leaving the doctors holding the bag.
The Case of a Predator in the Hospital– how one drug user managed to game the system, wreaking havoc on her fellow patients.
Don’t Believe Everything You Read in a Medical Chart– the story of how a misdiagnosis resulted in a patient being wrongly labeled as a drug seeker.
The Real Dangers of Pain Medicine – a woman who died of opiate induced constipation.
The Best Sad Posts
The Scream– how a cavalier end-of-life decision destroyed a family member.
The Size of Unhappiness– a reflection on America’s obsession with thinness.
Baking Cookies– that’s all I could do as a doctor in Manhattan on 9/11.
Unencumbered by Prognosis– my dear friend handles her diagnosis of stage 4 colon cancer with optimism and grace.
Alzheimer’s Dementia: A Life Lived In Reverse– the story of my grandmother’s dementia and her slow mental decline.
The Best Humorous Posts
Conversations at the Spa– the true story of my recent trip to a high end spa in California.
Kids Say the Darndest Things– these are some pretty good ones.
The Christmas Miracle– a “miraculous” icicle forms on a Christmas tree and pandemonium ensues.
Medical Haiku– some irreverent poems I created a few years ago.
Is that Your Real Skin?– the silly conversations that arise when you’re really pale.
Dudes– a quick look at how men perceive a new hairstyle.
The “Perfect” Wedding– the story of how my hair was transformed into an alien head on my wedding day.
The Best Healthcare Policy Posts
Why I Worry about a Government Sponsored Single Payer System – previous experience with government rulings make me distrustful of population based healthcare savings initiatives.
Pay for Performance: More Red Tape without Improved Quality of Care – the title pretty much sums this post up.
Are Physician Salaries Too High? – compare them to health insurance and corporate executive salaries.
Concierge Medicine for the Masses?– my physician is part of an “off the grid” movement in healthcare.
Rationing Healthcare and the Emperor’s New Clothes – I take a look at some of the funding allocation decisions being made by the government.
End of Life Care: Healthcare’s Big Ticket Item– I explore some of the high costs of end-of-life care and the ethical dilemmas that rationing it creates.
Posts That Make You Go…Hmmm
My First Day as a Doctor– it was a baptism by fire.
The Great Unveiling– who are we deep down inside?
Night Float in the Hospice– what it feels like to care for the dying.
Dying with Dignity– I refused to practice intubation on a deceased patient as his family members waited for news in the next room.
Face Transplants: Ethical Dilemmas– should they be covered by health insurance?
The Man Who Couldn’t Speak– a strange diagnostic dilemma solved by a doting mom.
The Best High Brow Posts
Cancer: Do We Really Understand It?– a wonderful post by guest blogger Avrum Bluming, questioning if we really do know as much as we think we do about this formidable foe.
Hormone Replacement Therapy: A Critical Review– another wonderful post by Dr. Bluming.
Good Science Makes Bad Television– a series on research methodology and why the public should care about it.
The Power of Magical Thinking– describes how to recognize snake oil salesmen.
What You’ll Learn in Pre-Med Classes– a rant about how irrelevant some of the course work is that is required for admission to medical school.
What the Heck is a Rehab Doc?– the history of my medical specialty: PM&R.
This post originally appeared on Dr. Val’s blog at RevolutionHealth.com.
Oh how exciting Dr. Val. I will make sure I vote for you 🙂
Congrats Val. We’re on the same list, but I certainly wish you the best. I am very pleased with your success as you are a favorite blog of mine.
Thanks so much ZA – how sweet of you to say so! As finalists I think we’re allowed to display the trophy button going forward – which is all the honor I need…
Congrats Val! Keep us posted as to what happens. I’ll be sure to send in my vote.
Congratulations! Well deserved. You set the standard for many of us. I look forward to many more years of learning from you.
Best of luck.
Jeff