Clinician's Roundtable

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Dale MaGee, MD What is the value of physician ranking in the overall discussion of improving healthcare in the United States? How can standards be developed that are acceptable to both insurance companies and healthcare providers? Is the answer a governing body to develop national standards? In this segment, Dr. Dale Magee, President of the Massachusetts Medical Soc...

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Dale MaGee, MD What is it like for a physician to be profiled inaccurately by claims data? Is the data verified? Validated? What if a physician is rated poorly for a test they omitted but with valid reason? These are concerns that could impact a physician’s career. Are physicians overconcerned? Join host Dr. Bill Rutenberg in discussing physician ranking systems wit...

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Dale MaGee, MD Many physicians are outraged and the thought of being ranked by insurance companies altogether, let alone via an analysis of claims data. Can claims data accurately provide a picture of the quality of a physician? What part of the story does claims data fail to show? Can a physician benefit from ranking systems? Is there opportunity for doctors to get...

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Pedro Moreno, MD What are the best imaging techniques for detecting sub-clinical coronary artery disease and how do you interpret and act on the results? Join host Dr. Larry Kaskel speaking with world renowned expert in high-risk atherosclerosis, Dr. Pedro Mereno.

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Pedro Moreno, MD In this segment, host, Dr. Larry Kaskel speaks with Dr. Pedro Mereno about the lesser known causes of athlersclerosis. For heart attack prevention learn why physicians need to start focusing on the vaso vasorum rather than the endothelium.

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Ron Waksman, MD How is a bio degradeable stent superior to a polymer stent and how specifically do the differ in their ability to support the vessel in which they are implanted? Host Larry Kaskel talks with Dr. Ron Waksman about different types of stents and about what evidence exists that stenting is the better solution than non-stent alternatives to treat vulnerable...

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Ron Waksman, MD In this segment, Dr. Ron Waksman talks with host Larry Kaskel about the use of intravascular MRI to detect vulnerable plaques in the heart or carotid artery. He compares the type of information and reliability between angiograms and other imaging techniques and he also discusses how an internist can stablize vulnerable plaque.

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: David Bailey, PhD More than 40 drugs have been demonstrated to interact with grapefruit juice, primarily drugs that are first-pass metabolized. Join host Dr. Larry Kaskel and guest Dr. David Baily to discuss the serious nature of potential grapefruit juice/drug interactions and how best to communicate the required cautions to patients. Then learn of current research w...

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carol Haraden, PhD Institute for Healthcare Improvement Vice President and patient safety expert, Carol Haraden, PhD, comments on the state of quality improvement and patient safety in the U.S. and abroad, and discusses the necessary tools and processes that can improve flow in the hospital setting and reduce harm.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carol Haraden, PhD Institute for Healthcare Improvement Vice President and patient safety expert, Carol Haraden, PhD, comments on some of the priority initiatives of the organization such as the introduction of "change packages" for healthcare insitutions to evaluate and improve care quality. While the allure of this tool is undeniable, says Haraden, quality teams...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Scott Finlay How can you get your own .md top-level domain, and what are the benefits of a .md? Host Dr. Michael Benson discusses the services provided through a .md web address with Mr. Scott Finlay, CEO of MaxMD, provider of .md domain names in the United States and worldwide.

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Scott Finlay The internet is a wonderful educational resource for patients, except for two minor details. First, much of the information is not accurate. Also, the facts that are true are not tempered with perspective and may not be relevant for a specific patient. What if there were a better way to provide high quality information for your patients via the web? In...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Scott Finlay Did you know that e-mailing your patients over the normal routes that you use for business or personal correspondence is strictly prohibited under HIPAA? Why? If true, how can e-mail ever be used to communicate with patients? Today we will be discussing HIPAA compliant, secure e-mail with Mr. Scott Finley, Chief Executive Officer of MaxMD. Scott is a gr...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Scott Finlay What’s in a name? Over the internet: plenty. Spam, viruses, identity theft. And above all, e-mail is not HIPPA compliant. What can doctors to do to safely communicate with their patients over the internet? Today we will be discussing the .MD domain with Mr. Scott Finlay, Chief Executive Officer of MaxMD.

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Richard Karas, MD, PhD What do our animal friends have to tell us about the effects of hormones on cardiovascular risk? Does a mouse or monkey really have anything to teach us? Our guest today is Dr. Richard Karas, Professor of Medicine, at the Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. He has several titles including: Co-Director, Molecular Cardiology Research...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Richard Karas, MD, PhD First we hear that estrogens increase the risk of heart attack, then we hear, “not so fast.” What is a doctor to do? Who would benefit from estrogen in the menopause and who should avoid it? Our guest addressing these topics is Dr. Richard Karas, Professor of Medicine at the Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. He has several titles...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Richard Karas, MD, PhD After the initial findings from the Women’s Health Initiative were published, hormone replacement therapy in menopause stopped practically overnight. But the first analysis may not be the last word. Our guest today is Dr. Richard Karas, Professor of Medicine at the Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. He has several titles including:...

Host: Michael Benson, MD Guest: Richard Karas, MD, PhD The government funding prospective study of the safety and efficacy of hormone replacement therapy in the menopause practically stopped the routine prescription of estrogen overnight. Why? Our guest today is Dr. Richard Karas, Professor of Medicine, at the Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. He has several titles including: Co-Direc...

Host: Andrew Krakowski, MD Guest: Peter Wagner, MD Join UCSD's Dr. Peter Wagner and the crew from boonDOCS Medicine for "Out of the Ashes: Lessons Learned from the San Diego Wildfires!" We'll discuss the health effects of soot and ash on lung function and hear why it wasn't a good idea to bike to work two days after the fires!

Host: Andrew Krakowski, MD Guest: D.J. Phalen Join Dennis Phalen, a member of San Diego County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team, and the crew from boonDOCS Medicine for "Out of the Ashes: Lessons Learned from the San Diego Wildfires!" In this segment, we'll hear what it is like at Ground Zero during a wildfire disaster and meet some of the people that put their life on the line to make sure we sta...

Host: Andrew Krakowski, MD Guest: Chris Van Gorder Join Chris Van Gorder, CEO of Scripps Health, and the crew from boonDOCS Medicine for "Out of the Ashes: Lessons Learned from the San Diego Wildfires!" In this segment, we'll get a behind-the-scenes look at how San Diego plans for a wildfire disaster, and meet some of the people that keep the "emergency medical machine" running smoothly!

Host: Andrew Krakowski, MD Guest: Chris Van Gorder Join Chris Van Gorder, CEO of Scripps Health, and the crew from boonDOCS Medicine for "Out of the Ashes: Lessons Learned from the San Diego Wildfires!" In this segment, we'll get a behind the scenes look at how San Diego plans for a wildfire disaster and meet some of the people that keep the "emergency medical machine" running smoothly!

Host: Andrew Krakowski, MD Guest: Charles Wilson Join Charles Wilson, Executive Director of the Chadwick Center at Rady Children's Hospital of San Diego and the crew from boonDOCS Medicine for "Out of the Ashes: Lessons Learned from the San Diego Wildfires!" In this segment, we'll discuss how to answer children's questions about potentially traumatic events like the San Diego wildfires and how to...

Host: Paul Raeburn Guest: Beth Fuchs, PhD Paul Raeburn talks to Washington health policy expert Beth Fuchs about the details of Senator Barack Obama's health care plan. They look at how Obama's plan differs from other democratic presidential candidates and what the strengths and weaknesses of the plan are.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Wendy Troxel, PhD Some relationships confer health benefits and others health risks. Married men and happily married women live longer, could better sleep be a reason why? Host Dr. Leslie Lundt welcomes Dr. Wendy Troxel as she discusses her research on attachment and sleep.