Open Your Mouth, Stick Out Your Tongue, and Say “Five”
Most people believe that filling out a survey to rate their doctor will improve their health care. However, current data shows that the opposite is true.
Carol A Westbrook
Carol Westbrook MD, PhD is a Medical Oncologist with over 20 years of faculty experience and research at the University of Chicago, University of Illinois, and Boston University. She is a licensed medical oncologist, formerly at Geisinger Health Systems in Wilkes-Barre, PA. She has served on numerous federal advisory panels for cancer and genomics, and has authored over 100 scholarly articles, and three books , including Ask an Oncologist: Honest Answers to Difficult Questions about Cancer; To Your Health! The Beer Doctor on Good Beer, Good Times, and the Finer Things in Life; and Miss Victory, 1942. Now retired from clinical practice, she consults on medical-legal affairs, and is an author of the blog, Ask-an-Oncologist.com. Her email: carolwestbrook [at] me.com; twitter @Carolwestbrook1.
Let’s Take A Walk
It is a sad fact of American life today that people don’t walk. Perhaps they are out of the habit, or they never got into the habit. Most, though, will tell you that there is no place to go.Come along with me and I’ll show you things you wouldn’t otherwise notice in a car. There is poetry in every neighborhood if you look for it. For me, that is the wonder of walking.
My Life in Books
I was a book addict, and I had reached gridlock. My bookshelves were stacked two and three deep, with no more room for new books. It was time to get rid of some of these books, and in the process go through some old memories , because each book that you embrace fits into a specific time in your life.
The Thrill is Gone: Six Months with an Apple Watch
I love my Apple Watch…or I used to love it. Now, I’m not so sure. Yes, it is a beautifully-engineered instrument representing a quantum leap in the world of small, personal electronics, in much the same way that the iPod changed our music habits, and the iPhone our cellular phone habits. It is paradigm shift in how we use wristwatches. Yes, I love my Apple Watch… but do I really like it?
Stand-up for Cancer
I’m a big fan of stand-up comedy, and I especially enjoy live performances. There is nothing funny about cancer. What is funny, though, is how awkward it is for most people to talk about death. The author recounts an experience at a stand-up comedy show where the subject came up, and how the comedian turned it into a laughing matter.
Two Years At The Free Clinic: So Successful We May Fail?
Back and shoulder pain are among the most common problems we see here in the Care and Concern Free Medical Clinic, where I have been a volunteer physician for the last two years. Many of our patients have lost their health care insurance and that is why they seek free medical care. Our patient numbers have sharply declined this year, and this is attributed to improving economy and more jobs in the area, as well as increased access to healthcare insurance.
Not My Mother’s Home Cooking…Please
Like many post-war mothers of the 1950s, Mom was a terrible cook. She cooked “American style” relying on canned foods and processed food ingredients. Ethnic cuisine was considered unpatriotic. But my mother was an excellent Polish cook, and she learned from my grandmother. Two recipes are included.
You’re on the Air!
The story of television broadcasting is a fascinating one about technology development, entrepreneurship, engineering, and even space exploration. It is an American story, and it is a story worth telling
Remembering Old Friends: Cars I have known and loved
The first car I bought and paid for on my own, after the divorce, was a 1992 maroon Toyota Corolla. I loved that car, and so did my children! The story of the Corolla is the story of my family.
Do I Look Fat in These Genes?
Are you pleasantly plump? Rubinesque? Chubby? Weight-challenged? Or, to state it bluntly, just plain fat? …If you are among the 55% of Americans who are overweight, take heart. You now have an excuse: blame it on your genes. It seems obvious that obesity runs in families; fat people have fat children, who produce fat grandchildren… but there is more to it than merely being overfed by fat, over-eating parents… fat families may be that way because they have genes in common.
Bookworm
by Carol A. Westbrook I gave a signed copy of my new book about beer, “To Your Health!” to a couple of favorite bartenders and a bar owner, all of whom had been featured in a story or two in this book about beer. A few weeks later I asked each one how he enjoyed…
How to say “No” to your doctor: improving your health by decreasing your health care
by Carol A. Westbrook Has your doctor ever said to you, “You have too many doctors and are taking too many pills. It's time to cut back on both”? No? Well I have. Maybe it's time you brought it up with your doctors, too. Do you really need a dozen pills a day to keep…
Taking Standardized Tests in Middle Age: Examining the Doctor
by Carol A. Westbrook The single most important skill you need to practice medicine is the ability to pass multiple-choice exams. Most people saw their last standardized test when college or grad school ended. No so for us doctors– exam taking continues until retirement. The process begins with the high SAT score required for entry…
My Genome Report Card
Less than 100,000 people in the entire world have had their genome sequenced. I am now one of them. This is my genome report. Was it valuable? Absolutely. The value to me was not in learning what I have, but what I don’t have.
Does Beer Cause Cancer?
Is moderate beer drinking good for your health, as I have always maintained, or does it cause cancer? .. assuming that my readers are not alcoholics, the question that they are really asking is whether or not they are going to get cancer from low to moderate beer drinking. So what, then, are the facts? …Is beer drinking good for you? Or bad? Are you healthier if you drink, say, a beer or two per day, or are you worse off? We review some of the facts and myths about alcohol and your health.
My New Year’s Resolution: Getting to Know my Genome Sequence
In November I placed a package containing a small sample of my blood into a UPS drop box. It is a fait accompli. I’m going to get my Genome Sequenced! No doubt you are wondering why I wanted to do this. The short answer — because I can. Why did I do this and what do I hope to learn? Read on.
Homo Erectus, or I Married a Ham
by Carol A. Westbrook My husband loves big erections. Don't get me wrong, I'm not speaking here about Viagra, I'm talking about tall towers made of metal, long wires strung high in the sky, and tall antennas protruding from car roofs. He loves anything that broadcasts or receives those elusive radio waves, the bigger the…
Third World Medicine in a First World Town
by Carol A. Westbrook On Wednesday evenings, I volunteer at a free clinic. For a few hours I become a primary care doc in an urban setting, instead of a high-priced oncologist in a modern medical center. Our clinic, The Care and Concern Clinic, in Pittston, PA, opens weekly at 5:30 pm, and closes when…
On Being A Beer Snob
by Carol A Westbrook The late Kingsley Amis, a noted authority on drink and a beer-lover himself, acknowledged that “the best wine is much better than the best beer,” but also pointed out that “wine is a lot of trouble, requiring energy and forethought.” He might be pleased today to find that beer, which requires…
The Bystander Effect in Medical Care. Why Do I Have So Many Doctors Not Taking Care of Me?
by Carol A Westbrook In a recent editorial in the New England Journal of Medicine1, Drs. Stavert and Lott used the tem, “The Bystander Effect,” to describe a new health care phenomenon, in which multiple physicians participate in the care of a patient, while none acknowledges primary responsibility for managing it. In their example, a…