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My Definitive Journey Revisited
A couple of days ago, I got my retirement gift from The University of Iowa. It’s a about a year and a half late because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but it’s welcome nonetheless. Normally there is an Annual Faculty Retirement Dinner, but it had to be cancelled. It’s a stunningly beautiful engraved crystal bowl with…
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Congratulations to 2021 UI Physicians Clinical Awards Winners
I was so happy to see the winners of the 2021 University of Iowa Physicians Clinical Awards winners. I have a special bias for a couple of them because I worked with them for years in my capacity as psychiatric consultant in the general hospital prior to my retirement in June of 2020. Dr. Kevin…
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Waiting for Another Jab
I’m still waiting for my Moderna booster, which has to be blessed by the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Every time I check the schedule for their next meeting on October 20, 21, I still see a draft agenda. The CDC still does not recommend heterologous boosting, although last week the FDA advisory…
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Catatonia and Delirium in COVID-19
This is just a short post on delirium and catatonia in patients sick with COVID-19, which is important to look out for. There are two references below that are pertinent. One is a case report of a patient diagnosed with both catatonia and delirium in a woman with COVID-19 (Amouri et al). One of the…
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Thoughts on Transplant Psychiatry
I see in the news that organ transplant centers have removed a few patients from wait lists because they refuse COVID-19 vaccines. It may seem odd, but this reminds me of an even more difficult situation in organ transplantation. What do you do about those who just refuse organ transplant altogether? I used to be…
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COVID Conspiracy Theories
A few days ago, I read the news story about COVID-19 antivaxx vigilantes interfering with the medical care of patients hospitalized with COVID-19. The writer interviewed Dr. Wes Ely, MD, MPH. He’s an intensive care unit (ICU) specialist at Vanderbilt University. I first corresponded with Dr. Ely by email about 10 years ago when I…
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Love Each Other More Now
When I think about all the mandates and bans against mandates for the COVID-19 vaccines and masks, I wonder about my own motive for getting the vaccine and wearing a mask. In one sense, I’m doing it for myself. I’m a retired consultation-liaison psychiatrist and I got called to the intensive care units a lot.…
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My Most Dreaded Retirement Question
Yesterday somebody asked me “So what do you do now that you’re retired?” I have come to dread the question. I told him I write this blog. That seemed to surprise him a little. It sounded a little lame to me as I said it. I’m not sure it’s the right answer to this question…
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Just Because it’s Vintage Doesn’t Mean it’s Wreckage
I still have a vintage calculator. It’s a Sharp ELSI MATE EL-505. You can buy one on eBay for $30. I bought this dinosaur back in the early 1980s just before heading to college at Iowa State University. It’s still usable, so just because it is vintage doesn’t mean it is wreckage. The original batteries…
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COVID-19 Long Haul: Pizza in the Pan Again?
I remember a scene in the 1979 movie The Jerk, starring Steve Martin as Navin. He was telling Marie (played by Bernadette Peters) about pizza in a cup. They were both eating pizza in a cup. At the time, this was funny because it was ludicrous to think of pizza being served in a cup.…
Go Retire Psychiatrist 