Podcast appearances and mentions of maurice pickard

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Elaine Birchall Although hoarding was only recently added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, understanding what exactly this disorder it and how it impacts approximately 21 million Americans is essential. So to help shed light on this often-overlooked disorder, Dr. Maurice Pickard is joined by Elaine Birchall, co-author of Conquering the Clutter: Strategies to Identify, Management, and Overcome Hoarding.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Elaine Birchall Although hoarding was only recently added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, understanding what exactly this disorder it and how it impacts approximately 21 million Americans is essential. So to help shed light on this often-overlooked disorder, Dr. Maurice Pickard is joined by Elaine Birchall, co-author of Conquering the Clutter: Strategies to Identify, Management, and Overcome Hoarding.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Dov Fox Reproductive negligence occurs in three major areas: deprived pregnancy or parenthood, imposed pregnancy, and confounded efforts. Joining Dr. Maurice Pickard to explain each of those areas—and why there’s such a controversy surrounding them—is Dov Fox, a Professor of Law at the University of San Diego School of Law where he directs the Center for Health Law Policy and Bioethics.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Dov Fox Reproductive negligence occurs in three major areas: deprived pregnancy or parenthood, imposed pregnancy, and confounded efforts. Joining Dr. Maurice Pickard to explain each of those areas—and why there’s such a controversy surrounding them—is Dov Fox, a Professor of Law at the University of San Diego School of Law where he directs the Center for Health Law Policy and Bioethics.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Katherine Eban Joining Dr. Maurice Pickard is award-winning journalist and author of Bottles of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom Katherine Eban, who investigates the health concerns that are beginning to surface on a global scale due to the rise in generic drug use.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Katherine Eban Joining Dr. Maurice Pickard is award-winning journalist and author of Bottles of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom Katherine Eban, who investigates the health concerns that are beginning to surface on a global scale due to the rise in generic drug use.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Haider Warraich, MD Dr. Haider Warraich, author of The New York Times article “Dr. Google is a Liar,” speaks with Dr. Maurice Pickard on the growing pandemic of fake medical news and its startling repercussions for healthcare providers and their patients.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Haider Warraich, MD Dr. Haider Warraich, author of The New York Times article “Dr. Google is a Liar,” speaks with Dr. Maurice Pickard on the growing pandemic of fake medical news and its startling repercussions for healthcare providers and their patients.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Baker, MD Dr. Maurice Pickard connects with Dr. Bob Baker, author of The Performance of Medicine: Techniques from the Stage to Optimize the Patient’s Experience and Restore the Joy of Practicing Medicine, who shares his strategies and techniques that you should be implementing in your practice to boost the doctor-patient relationship.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Baker, MD Dr. Maurice Pickard connects with Dr. Bob Baker, author of The Performance of Medicine: Techniques from the Stage to Optimize the Patient’s Experience and Restore the Joy of Practicing Medicine, who shares his strategies and techniques that you should be implementing in your practice to boost the doctor-patient relationship.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Beth Macy Beth Macy’s Dopesick is a heartbreaking trajectory that illustrates how America’s twenty-plus year struggle with opioid addiction has persisted for this long and has become so firmly entrenched in practically every corner of our country—from desolate cities to once idyllic farm towns. Tune in as Beth Macy joins Dr. Maurice Pickard to illuminate the persistent and often conflicting gaps in the treatment and criminal-justice landscapes while shining a hopeful light on the heroes battling the worst drug epidemic in American history.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Beth Macy Beth Macy’s Dopesick is a heartbreaking trajectory that illustrates how America’s twenty-plus year struggle with opioid addiction has persisted for this long and has become so firmly entrenched in practically every corner of our country—from desolate cities to once idyllic farm towns. Tune in as Beth Macy joins Dr. Maurice Pickard to illuminate the persistent and often conflicting gaps in the treatment and criminal-justice landscapes while shining a hopeful light on the heroes battling the worst drug epidemic in American history.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Beth Macy Beth Macy’s Dopesick is a heartbreaking trajectory that illustrates how America’s twenty-plus year struggle with opioid addiction has persisted for this long and has become so firmly entrenched in practically every corner of our country—from desolate cities to once idyllic farm towns. Tune in as Beth Macy joins Dr. Maurice Pickard to illuminate the persistent and often conflicting gaps in the treatment and criminal-justice landscapes while shining a hopeful light on the heroes battling the worst drug epidemic in American history.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Beth Macy Beth Macy’s Dopesick is a heartbreaking trajectory that illustrates how America’s twenty-plus year struggle with opioid addiction has persisted for this long and has become so firmly entrenched in practically every corner of our country—from desolate cities to once idyllic farm towns. Tune in as Beth Macy joins Dr. Maurice Pickard to illuminate the persistent and often conflicting gaps in the treatment and criminal-justice landscapes while shining a hopeful light on the heroes battling the worst drug epidemic in American history.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Mitchell Quite suddenly, Bob Mitchell became very sick. He would endure three near-fatal episodes of ventricular tachycardia due to a heart muscle comprised of 54% scar tissue, as well as heart surgeries, two harrowing months of waiting on the transplant list for a new heart on life-supporting IV drips (during which time a malignant tumor was detected in his kidney), partial nephrectomy surgery to remove the cancer, another month of waiting, a 12-hour heart and kidney transplant surgery, and 100 days on life support in four different hospitals. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with novelist Bob Mitchell, author of Time for a Heart-to-Heart: Reflections on Life in the Face of Death about his inspiring story of the triumph of hope in the face of the direst of circumstances.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Mitchell Quite suddenly, Bob Mitchell became very sick. He would endure three near-fatal episodes of ventricular tachycardia due to a heart muscle comprised of 54% scar tissue, as well as heart surgeries, two harrowing months of waiting on the transplant list for a new heart on life-supporting IV drips (during which time a malignant tumor was detected in his kidney), partial nephrectomy surgery to remove the cancer, another month of waiting, a 12-hour heart and kidney transplant surgery, and 100 days on life support in four different hospitals. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with novelist Bob Mitchell, author of Time for a Heart-to-Heart: Reflections on Life in the Face of Death about his inspiring story of the triumph of hope in the face of the direst of circumstances.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Katherine Baicker In early 2008, Oregon opened a waiting list lottery for a limited number of spots in its Medicaid program. From the 90,000 people who signed up, the state drew approximately 30,000 names of people who were allowed to apply to its Medicaid program. The results of this lottery have been studied over subsequent years, allowing researchers the ability to analyze the effect of expanding access to public health insurance on health care use and patient outcomes. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with Katherine Baicker, Dean and the Emmett Dedmon Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago. She is one of the leaders of the Oregon Health Insurance Experiment, which investigated the effects of the Oregon Medicaid lottery. They discuss some of the conclusions from this study, including how a person’s increased exposure to health care through insurance coverage appears to produce significant, multifaceted, and nuanced benefits to one's health.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Mitchell Quite suddenly, Bob Mitchell became very sick. He would endure three near-fatal episodes of ventricular tachycardia due to a heart muscle comprised of 54% scar tissue, as well as heart surgeries, two harrowing months of waiting on the transplant list for a new heart on life-supporting IV drips (during which time a malignant tumor was detected in his kidney), partial nephrectomy surgery to remove the cancer, another month of waiting, a 12-hour heart and kidney transplant surgery, and 100 days on life support in four different hospitals. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with novelist Bob Mitchell, author of Time for a Heart-to-Heart: Reflections on Life in the Face of Death about his inspiring story of the triumph of hope in the face of the direst of circumstances.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bob Mitchell Quite suddenly, Bob Mitchell became very sick. He would endure three near-fatal episodes of ventricular tachycardia due to a heart muscle comprised of 54% scar tissue, as well as heart surgeries, two harrowing months of waiting on the transplant list for a new heart on life-supporting IV drips (during which time a malignant tumor was detected in his kidney), partial nephrectomy surgery to remove the cancer, another month of waiting, a 12-hour heart and kidney transplant surgery, and 100 days on life support in four different hospitals. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with novelist Bob Mitchell, author of Time for a Heart-to-Heart: Reflections on Life in the Face of Death about his inspiring story of the triumph of hope in the face of the direst of circumstances.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carl Hart, MD Carl Hart, who grew up in one of Miami's toughest neighborhoods, escaped a life of crime and drugs and avoided becoming one of the crack addicts he now helps treat as the Chair of the Department of Psychology at Columbia University. His landmark, controversial research is redefining our understanding of addiction and demonstrates how personal experience and scientific study can inform and validate each other for a deeper understanding of human behavior and addiction. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with Dr. Hart, author of the book High Price, about the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. They explore how his research sheds new light on common ideas about race, poverty, and drugs, and explain why current policies are failing.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carl Hart, MD Carl Hart, who grew up in one of Miami’s toughest neighborhoods, escaped a life of crime and drugs and avoided becoming one of the crack addicts he now helps treat as the Chair of the Department of Psychology at Columbia University. His landmark, controversial research is redefining our understanding of addiction and demonstrates how personal experience and scientific study can inform and validate each other for a deeper understanding of human behavior and addiction. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with Dr. Hart, author of the book High Price, about the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. They explore how his research sheds new light on common ideas about race, poverty, and drugs, and explain why current policies are failing.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carl Hart, MD Carl Hart, who grew up in one of Miami’s toughest neighborhoods, escaped a life of crime and drugs and avoided becoming one of the crack addicts he now helps treat as the Chair of the Department of Psychology at Columbia University. His landmark, controversial research is redefining our understanding of addiction and demonstrates how personal experience and scientific study can inform and validate each other for a deeper understanding of human behavior and addiction. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with Dr. Hart, author of the book High Price, about the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. They explore how his research sheds new light on common ideas about race, poverty, and drugs, and explain why current policies are failing.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Carl Hart, MD Carl Hart, who grew up in one of Miami’s toughest neighborhoods, escaped a life of crime and drugs and avoided becoming one of the crack addicts he now helps treat as the Chair of the Department of Psychology at Columbia University. His landmark, controversial research is redefining our understanding of addiction and demonstrates how personal experience and scientific study can inform and validate each other for a deeper understanding of human behavior and addiction. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard talks with Dr. Hart, author of the book High Price, about the relationship between drugs and pleasure, choice, and motivation, both in the brain and in society. They explore how his research sheds new light on common ideas about race, poverty, and drugs, and explain why current policies are failing.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bonnie Rochman With the ever-expanding array of prenatal and postnatal tests, from carrier screening to genome sequencing, parents’ access to this previously unknown information is altering perceptions of disability, redefining the question of what sort of life is worth living, and who draws the line. Is this technology a triumph of modern medicine or a Pandora’s box of possibilities? Host Dr. Maurice Pickard chats with Bonnie Rochman, author of the book The Gene Machine: How Genetic Technologies are Changing the Way We Have Kids - and the Kids We Have, about the new frontier of gene technology and how it is transforming medicine, bioethics, health care, and the factors that shape a family.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bonnie Rochman With the ever-expanding array of prenatal and postnatal tests, from carrier screening to genome sequencing, parents’ access to this previously unknown information is altering perceptions of disability, redefining the question of what sort of life is worth living, and who draws the line. Is this technology a triumph of modern medicine or a Pandora’s box of possibilities? Host Dr. Maurice Pickard chats with Bonnie Rochman, author of the book The Gene Machine: How Genetic Technologies are Changing the Way We Have Kids - and the Kids We Have, about the new frontier of gene technology and how it is transforming medicine, bioethics, health care, and the factors that shape a family.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Bonnie Rochman With the ever-expanding array of prenatal and postnatal tests, from carrier screening to genome sequencing, parents’ access to this previously unknown information is altering perceptions of disability, redefining the question of what sort of life is worth living, and who draws the line. Is this technology a triumph of modern medicine or a Pandora’s box of possibilities? Host Dr. Maurice Pickard chats with Bonnie Rochman, author of the book The Gene Machine: How Genetic Technologies are Changing the Way We Have Kids - and the Kids We Have, about the new frontier of gene technology and how it is transforming medicine, bioethics, health care, and the factors that shape a family.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Danielle Ofri, MD Despite modern medicine’s infatuation with high-tech gadgetry, the single most powerful diagnostic tool is the doctor-patient conversation, which can uncover the lion’s share of illnesses. However, what patients say and what doctors hear are often two vastly different things. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard chats with Dr. Danielle Ofri, Associate Professor of Medicine at NYU and author of What Patients Say, What Doctors Hear. The two discuss ways in which refocusing conversations between doctors and their patients can lead to better health outcomes.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Danielle Ofri, MD Despite modern medicine’s infatuation with high-tech gadgetry, the single most powerful diagnostic tool is the doctor-patient conversation, which can uncover the lion’s share of illnesses. However, what patients say and what doctors hear are often two vastly different things. Host Dr. Maurice Pickard chats with Dr. Danielle Ofri, Associate Professor of Medicine at NYU and author of What Patients Say, What Doctors Hear. The two discuss ways in which refocusing conversations between doctors and their patients can lead to better health outcomes.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Annette Hanson, MD Is forced treatment helpful or harmful? Battle lines have been drawn over involuntary treatment for psychiatric patients. Psychiatrist Dr. Annette Hanson offers a thought-provoking and engaging account of the controversy surrounding involuntary psychiatric care in the United States. She brings the issue to life with first-hand accounts from patients, clinicians, advocates, and opponents. Committed takes on the difficult question of psychiatry's role in preventing violence, suicide, and mass murder. Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Maurice Pickard speaks with psychologist Dr. Bernard Golden, an anger management specialist and author of Overcoming Destructive Anger: Strategies That Work. Dr. Golden draws on both compassion-focused therapy―a model for change that encompasses and expands on cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and practices in compassion and self-compassion―and theories of emotional intelligence to offer concrete tools for turning destructive anger into healthy anger. This in turn can have positive health effects on a range of disease states, from cardiovascular disease to diabetes to depression. Bernard Golden, PhD has been a practicing psychologist for almost forty years. He specializes in working with children, teens and adults on anger management issues, utilizing cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness techniques and practices in compassion and self-compassion. Dr. Golden is the author of Overcoming Destructive Anger: Strategies That Work (John Hopkins University Press, 2016), which teaches readers to recognize, sit with, and move beyond the triggers that cause destructive anger. Emphasizing anger's link to the old brain (limbic cortex) and habits of mind, Dr. Golden offers multiple strategies for engaging the “rational brain” (prefrontal cortex) to overwrite established neural pathways and form new patterns of behavior.

Guest: George Blackburn, MD, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Food nutrition labels are becoming ubiquitous— in restaurants, on the front of packaged food, and soon, on meat products. But is all of this nutrition information actually impacting consumer behavior and encouraging healthier food choices? Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard's guest is Dr. George Blackburn, associate professor of surgery and nutrition, associate director of the division of nutrition, and the S. Daniel Abraham chair in nutrition medicine at Harvard Medical School, says nutrition labeling is beneficial, but all of the information can be overwhelming. How can we help consumers and patients, find clarity in the food aisles, and steer away from marketing "nutrition keys" featured on the front of many packaged foods? How could nutrition fact labels be re-designed to improve consumer understanding?

Guest: Diana Zuckerman, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD The lap-band device dramatically reduces the size of a patient's stomach, and as such, it can be effective for weight loss in very obese patients. It offers at least one major advantage over gastric bypass surgery, in that the lap-band can be removed. But can the lap-band procedure also be safe and effective for patients who are even slightly obese, or do the potential risks outweigh the benefits for these patients? Dr. Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women & Families and its cancer prevention and treatment fund in Washington, D.C., discusses the criteria for patients to receive lap-banding. What concerns surround the issue of lowering the body-mass index (or BMI) threshold for patients eligible for this procedure? What are the long-term risks of lap-bands? Dr. Maurice Pickard hosts.

Guest: Tatjana Rundek, MD, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Hundreds of millions of people may have insulin resistance worldwide. What is the connection between insulin resistance and the risk of ischemic stroke? Dr. Tatjana Rundek, associate professor of neurology and director of the clinical translational research division in the department of neurology of the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, Florida, discusses her research on the risk of developing ischemic stroke among non-diabetic patients with insulin resistance with host Dr. Maurice Pickard. How can lipid-lowering medications help reduce the risk of stroke for non-diabetic patients with insulin resistance, and are any other medications on the horizon for these patients?

Guest: Gerald Reaven, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Metabolic syndrome is generally considered to be a combination of conditions that increases a patient's risk of developing coronary artery disease. These conditions include elevated blood pressure, obesity, insulin resistance, elevated C-reactive proteins and high triglycerides or HDL cholesterol. If a patient has three or more of these conditions, he or she is classified as having metabolic syndrome. But what is the clinical applicability of this "syndrome," and should practicing physicians still be using the metabolic syndrome concept? Dr. Gerald Reaven, active emeritus professor of medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine in Stanford, California, suggests that there are more reliable methods than the metabolic syndrome classification for determining a patient's risk of developing coronary artery disease. Dr. Maurice Pickard hosts.

Guest: Guy Diamond, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Depression is one of the most common mental health conditions in the US, affecting 4-6% of adolescents. Suicide is also a significant issue in this age group, and is the the third leading cause of death among adolescents. How effective are the various types of psychotherapy and medications typically used to treat adolescent depression, and how is a newer form of therapy, attachment-based family therapy, aimed at engaging this patient population more effectively? Dr. Guy Diamond, director of the Center for Family Intervention Science at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and associate professor of psychology at Penn Medicine, joins host Dr. Maurice Pickard to discuss the theory behind attachment-based family therapy, which is intended to address the patient's environment and stressors that may be contributing to their depression. When might attachment-based family therapy be more beneficial than enhanced usual care (including cognitive-behavioral therapy and medications)?

Guest: Robert Brzyski, MD, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD When a mother was granted legal permission to collect her 21 year old deceased son's sperm in April 2009, questions were raised about posthumous reproductive rights. Although the mother declared that her son always wanted to have children, does this meet the criteria of informed consent, or is it an example of substituted judgment? Can this situation be compared to a spouse or girlfriend having an in depth discussion about having a posthumous child? How should we consider the welfare of the child in such a situation? Host Dr. Maurice Pickard discusses these ethical questions with guest Dr. Robert Brzyski, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and chair of the ethics committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

Guest: Abraham Morgentaler, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Testosterone therapy for men is controversial, but some new research suggests physicians might want to re-evaluate increasing the levels of testosterone in men with lower levels. Sexual dysfunction is one of the more apparent symptoms of low testosterone, but what are the other non-sexual symptoms of low "T" physicians should be aware of? What are the parameters for determining appropriate testosterone levels in our male patients? Isn't there an increased risk of developing prostate cancer among men undergoing testosterone therapy? Tune in to hear Dr. Abraham Morgentaler, associate clinical professor of surgery (urology) at Harvard Medical School and author of the book Testosterone for Life, weigh in on these and other questions surrounding testosterone therapy. Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard.

Guest: Stuart Finder, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD The face transplant is a relatively new, experimental procedure still in its early stages. This operation is comparable to a hand transplant, in that the patient’s quality of life may be improved with the procedure, but the condition is not immediately life-threatening. How can physicians discuss the risk-benefit ratio of this procedure with potential face transplant patients? What happens if the procedure fails? How does a multidisciplinary team prepare a patient considering this procedure, from the psychological to the financial aspects? Tune in to hear Dr. Stuart Finder, director of the center for healthcare ethics at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, discuss these and other ethical considerations of the face transplant procedure with host Dr. Maurice Pickard.

Guest: Daniel Remick, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD While many patients with asthma are allergic to pollen or pet dander, new evidence suggests inner city asthma patients may be most allergic to cockroach remains found in household dust. Dr. Daniel Remick, chair and professor of pathology at Boston University School of Medicine, discusses his new research demonstrating the relationship between household dust from city buildings and asthma. What implications for treatment does this research provide? Will there be an attempt to desensitize children to this cockroach allergen in the future? Dr. Maurice Pickard hosts.

Guest: Eric D. Levens, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Eric Levens, Lieutenant Commander in the United States Public Health Services, discusses ethical issues that arise when research involves human oocyte donation. Among the topics discussed by Dr. Levens and host Dr. Maurice Pickard are issues surrounding donor protection. There are tensions around the potential greater risks than benefits to the donor. Additional controversies exist around the issues of informed consent and compensation.

Guest: Donald J. Palmisano, MD JD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Donald Palmisano, past-president of the American Medical Association and professor of surgery and medical jurisprudence at Tulane University School of Medicine, talks about his new book, On Leadership: Essential Principles for Success, and the idea that leadership qualities can be taught. He discusses how and why physicians should make their voices heard and take on roles of leadership in the greater world beyond the hospital walls. Dr. Maurice Pickard hosts.

Guest: Alexia Torke, MD, MS Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Alexia Torke, assistant professor of medicine at Indiana University, discusses how standard bioethical approaches with surrogates do not often match what actually happens at the bedside. Physicians use their clinical judgement and what they feel is right for the incompetent patient in determining a course of action. Much can be done to establish this important relationship with surrogates, beginning with creating trust and assessing their own grief and emotional stress. Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard.

Guest: Thomas Barr Graboys, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Thomas Graboys, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and president emeritus of Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation in Brookline, Massachusetts, discusses his new book Life in the Balance: a Physician's Memoir of Life, Love and Loss with Parkinson's Disease and Dementia. Dr. Graboys talks to host Dr. Maurice Pickard about his struggles to live with illness without letting illness control his life. He hopes others will find in his story comfort, inspiration, and validation of their own struggles.

Guest: Lisa A. Jackson, MD, MPH Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Do influenza vaccines for the elderly really make a difference? Dr. Lisa Jackson, research professor of epidemiology at the University of Washington and senior investigator at The Center for Health Studies in Seattle, Washington calls into question previous documentation of reducing deaths and hospitalizations in the elderly from flu vaccination. This is based on a fundamental difference between the kinds of people who get vaccines and those who do not. Join host Dr. Maurice Pickard to learn more.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: James Webster, MD Despite dramatic improvement in American health and life expectancy over the past several decades, racial and ethnic minorities have not benefited equally from this progress. Dr. James Webster, professor of medicine at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, and president of the Chicago Board of Health, discusses how improving cultural competence in health care workers can reduce disparities amongst patients. Dr. Maurice Pickard hosts.

Guest: Steven Greenberg, MD, PhD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Steven Greenberg, associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School and director of the Hemorrhagic Stroke Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, talks with host Dr. Maurice Pickard about the somewhat unexpected finding of an increased frequency of cerebral microbleeds, and explains the potential impact of this discovery on cases of uncontrolled hypertension and cognitive changes. How might this complicate decisions to use antithrombotic therapy? Does this research add a new dimension to certain unexplained phenomena, such as lacunar infarcts or cerebral atrophy?

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Nortin Hadler, MD Dr. Nortin Hadler, professor of medicine and microbiology/immunology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, joins host Dr. Maurice Pickard to discusses his book, Worried Sick: A Prescription for Health in an Overtreated America. Dr. Hadler's book examines the reach of medical treatment in America and the degree to which health is determined by socioeconomic factors that are out of a doctor's hands.

Guest: Nortin Hadler, MD Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. Nortin Hadler, professor of medicine and microbiology/immunology at the University of North Carolina discusses his new book Worried Sick. A prescription for Health in an Overtreated America. He documents how the consumer needs to adopt an attitude of skepticism regarding the claims of modern medicine and arm themselves with enough information to make some of their own decisions about what care is truly necessary. Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Jonathan Kimmelman, PhD Dr. Jonathan Kimmelman, assistant professor of the Biomedical Research unit at McGill University, discusses with host Dr. Maurice Pickard what appears to be a ‘job' that may exploit the underclass in Phase 1 clinical studies. The poor in the studies are less likely to have access to the drugs when approved, which calls the risk/benefit ratio into question. Do for-profit research companies and for-profit Institutional Review Boards provide adequate protection for the rights of the volunteers?

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Vikram Patel, PhD Dr. Vikram Patel, professor of international mental health and the Wellcome Trust Senior Clinical Research Fellow at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, discusses a community model in developing countries that empowers patients with mental illness to use collaborative psychosocial intervention. In India, where there are 3,000 psychiatrists for 1 billion people, technicians can be trained to diagnose and treat depression and anxiety with cost-effective results. Hosted by Dr. Maurice Pickard.