Flashbacks to the Sixties: Was Life Better?

 What an intense time we live in.  Where do we hide?  Where do we find peace?

Remember the Sixties?  Hectic.  Unless you were in high school in a small Ohio school.  I loved it!  The class of 1964! Slotted in the middle of a chaotic decade.  Was life better?  (Duh!)  

JFK, RFK, MLK.  Three significant assassinations, just unraveling in 2025.

Elvis. The Everley Brothers.  Pat Boone.  Connie Francis.  The Ronettes.  Leslie Gore.  Aretha Franklin.  Bill Haley.  Patsy Cline.  The Beatles.  The Supremes.  Cilla Clark.  The Limeliters.  Peter, Paul and Mary.  Joan Baez. Bob Dylan. Joni Mitchell. and many more singers carried the sixties with music.

Transister radios made it happen. 78 RPM records preceded 45 RPM.  Suddenly w had record players that would play both and allow stacking for longer play.

Sock Hops at school events enabled expression through movement- up to a point.  We weren't supposed to gyrate like Elvis.  Even Elvis was censored on TV which wouldn't show him on the screen below his waist when he sang on the Ed Sullivan show.

It was a good time to be young.  What do you think?

"Opening and Closing a Family Medicine Career with Direct Primary Care (DPC)"

Dr Jonas, your host, is excited to interview Lily White, MD about the start of her Direct Primary Care practice in the Cleveland area at Rocky River.  Empowered Health DPC opens in October, 2023 

https://www.empoweredhealthdpc.com/

Lily decided early in her career to be a holistic physician.  She will explain how that happened and what path she followed to follow her dream into her first practice.  She will speak of medical school at Wright State and her Family Medicine Residency at the Cleveland Clinic, revealing some highs and lows as she explored the options available to Family Physicians who are just launching into post residency positions.

She is a leader and an author.  We'll hear about those aspects of her training years and more.  Including something about her values, goals and dreams as a unique person.

Dr. Jonas also has a DPC practice- Neighborly Family Medicine in Beavercreek, OH.  It's been 50 years since he started medical school at Ohio State.  He's ready to wind down and get another holistic minded Family Physician to take over his practice.  He's interested in hearing about how Lily sees her future in DPC and comparing how a start up career differs from a winding down career.

They worked together at Open Arms Health Clinic- a free clinic in Bellbrook, OH where Lily founded Paths to Wellness, a lifestyle counceling program with medical and psychology students at WSU.

They have shared in planning and presenting the DPC Ohio Unsummit last February and are repeating for the 10th Unsummit February 17, 2024 in Dublin, Ohio.

Last Day in Vietnam 7/25/1971: We Made It!

 

On my last day in Vietnam, I signed out at 45th engineer Group Headquarters, sent my trunk of whatever possessions I had to be shipped to my home of record in Ohio and went to an out-processing center in Danang to be tested for illegal substances and sent home, if I passed the urine test. The DC 10 jet was packed with 210 people in Danang. After taxiing onto the runway, most of us seemed to be quiet or engaged in conversation with our seat neighbor. Going down the runway with increasing speed the jet seemed to generate total silence in the plane, until we broke ground and, suddenly, there was a spontaneous roar of 210 new Vietnam Veterans with more enthusiasm than the best sports victory we had ever seen. Incredible feelings of intense relief poured through all of us at the same moment.

We made it!

We are goiWe made it!We are going home!

Is the COVID-19 Pfizer Vaccine Going to Protect Your Child? Guest Post by Pediatrician Patricia Fine, MD

The past 15 months have been difficult for all mankind. Each one of us have suffered a loss of some kind or another. During this time, we have desperately attempted to protect ourselves and those we care for. Fortunately, we have also learned more about the new SARS Co-V2 COVID-19 coronavirus organism. Recognizing what we have learned and using that information accurately is important when making recommendations for prevention and treatment of this disease.

One important piece of information we now have is that children 17 years old and younger have such a low rate of death if they become infected with COVID-19, that their survival rate is essentially 100%. Their risk of getting post COVID-19 MIS-D (multi system inflammatory disease) is also less than 0.1%. Additionally, there are several treatments available that when given early in COVID-19 infection dramatically decrease the risk of being hospitalised or dying from the infection, even in the most at risk. We have several new vaccine products intended to prevent severe disease that are also available.

However, accepting what is unknown about the COVID-19 vaccines is vital to ensure they do not cause unintended harm. No long-term safety information is available for these vaccines, which have only been used in the general population for approximately six months. The FDA made their decision to grant an emergency use authorization for the Pfizer mRNA vaccine for children aged 12-15 using a single small study with only 1100 children receiving the vaccine. Of those 1100 children there were several serious adverse reactions. The vaccine was still pushed through without further evaluation of the observed concerning reactions. Since the roll out of the Pfizer product for children we are seeing rapidly rising rates of serious adverse reactions to these vaccines in children. Germany’s vaccine advisory board, called STIKO, has evaluated the data and ONLY recommends use of this product in children with underlying medical conditions. The CDC now recognizes there is a real concern and has called for an emergency meeting to discuss this issue on June 18th 2021.

As a pediatrician, I took a vow to “first do no harm” and to advocate for the protection of the children I care for. Using currently available data, I conclude that the risk of serious adverse reactions in children 17 years old and younger receiving the Pfizer mRNA vaccine is greater than the possible benefit they may gain. I implore all medical providers to “first do no harm” as well, and to stop advocating for these vaccines to be given to our youth. I strongly suggest all parents and caregivers stop vaccinating their children with mRNA-based vaccine products until they can be studied further. I request our leaders exercise patience and recommend holding off on COVID-19 vaccinations for those 17 years old and younger until potential risks are better understood. I suggest we all continue to recommend and use well vetted childhood vaccines with a long track record of safety for all children. Finally, we should all educate ourselves on how to rapidly access COVID-19 early treatment options should we become infected. Following these suggestions will ensure each citizen the opportunity to be protected from severe disease from COVID-19 infection with the least potential risk of harm.

Forty-Five Years since June 10, 1976

 I just realized tonight that today is actually June 10, 2021 and it's been 45 years since my graduation from The Ohio State University College of Medicine.   What a journey, from Columbus to Hershey, PA to Granville, OH, to Spring Valley Township/ Bellbrook, OH with practices at The Department of Family and Community Medicine at the M. S. Hershey Medical Center of Penn State University, The Granville Medical Center, Newark (2 different locations in Licking County, OH), Denison University Whistler Hall, OSU Department of Family Medicine, The Frederick A. White Center of Wright State University, The Indian Ripple Family Health Center, Family Health Connections, Inc., The Central State University Campus Health Center, Open Arms Health Clinic, and Neighborly Family Medicine.

I learned so much from, for and about  patients and health and disease and pain and suffering and the amazing talents of the human body by  about 225, 000 interactions with patients.  I'm still learning and listening and thankful for the opportunity.

The Dr. Synonymous photo with this blog was taken on that day.  The Class of 1976 of The Ohio State University College of Medicine has touched a lot of lives.  What a journey!