Category: health care

  • FDA VRBPAC Discussion Topics Today

    FDA VRBPAC Discussion Topics Today

    The FDA VRBPAC 178th annual meeting on future Covid-19 vaccine regimens includes two main discussion topics: “Future periodic vaccination campaigns:Simplification of COVID-19 vaccine use: Among the members attending the web conference is University of Iowa Professor Stanley Perlman, MD, PhD, Departments of Microbiology andImmunology, Professor of Pediatrics, Mark Stinski Chair in Virology. The meeting is…

  • Reminder: FDA Advisory Committee Meeting Thursday January 26, 2023 on Future of Covid-19 Vaccination Regimens

    Reminder: FDA Advisory Committee Meeting Thursday January 26, 2023 on Future of Covid-19 Vaccination Regimens

    Remember, the 178th Annual Meeting of the FDA Advisory Committee on the future of Covid-19 Vaccination Regimens is this Thursday from 8:30 AM-5:30 ET. The details so far include the voting question: “Simplification of current COVID-19 vaccine use:

  • More Crazy Announcements!

    More Crazy Announcements!

    Here are crucial announcements. Sena bought me Bigfoot pajamas. They clearly show Bigfoot doing the Patty walk, which refers to the historic sighting of Bigfoot caught on video decades ago in the Patterson-Gimlin film. The Amaryllis leaves have grown to about 11 inches! There is no flower. Cattle ranchers are now putting diapers and masks…

  • FDA Advisory Committee Meeting to Discuss Future Covid-19 Vaccine Regimens

    FDA Advisory Committee Meeting to Discuss Future Covid-19 Vaccine Regimens

    The FDA 178th Meeting of the Vaccine and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will meet in open session January 26, 2023 to discuss future Covid-19 vaccination regimens. The meeting will run between 8:30 AM-5:30 PM ET.

  • Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Back in November 2022, while on our way to the Stanley Museum of Art, we saw the two murals on the East Burlington Street Parking Ramp. It was the first time we saw them in person although photos were available last fall. The Little Village article published an article about them on September 30, 2021.…

  • More Thoughts on Physicians Going on Strike

    More Thoughts on Physicians Going on Strike

    I noticed Dr. H. Steven Moffic, MD had written another article in Psychiatric Times asking whether it’s time for psychiatrists to consider going on strike. Often the issue triggering discussions about this is the rising prevalence of physician burnout. I’ve already given my personal opinion about physicians going on strike and the short answer is…

  • MLK Week Redux for the New University of Iowa Psychiatry Fellows

    MLK Week Redux for the New University of Iowa Psychiatry Fellows

    I discovered the University of Iowa Dept of Psychiatry had a very successful match, filling key residency slots in Child Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and Consultation-Liaison fellowships. Congratulations! That’s a big reason to celebrate. This reminds me of my role as a teacher. I retired from the department two and a half years ago. But I’ll…

  • CDC Identifies Preliminary Covid-19 Vaccine Safety Signal

    CDC Identifies Preliminary Covid-19 Vaccine Safety Signal

    The CDC announced that a prelimary Covid-19 Vaccine Safety signal has been identified in a recent update on their website: “Following the availability and use of the updated (bivalent) COVID-19 vaccines, CDC’s Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD), a near real-time surveillance system, met the statistical criteria to prompt additional investigation into whether there was a safety…

  • Bivalent Covid-19 Booster Protects Us

    Bivalent Covid-19 Booster Protects Us

    University of Iowa Health Care participated in research which demonstrates that people over age 65 who got the updated bivalent Covid-19 vaccine booster:

  • An Old Post on Breaking Bad News

    An Old Post on Breaking Bad News

    I’m reposting a piece about a sense of humor and breaking bad news to patients I first wrote for my old blog, The Practical Psychosomaticist about a dozen years ago. I still believe it’s relevant today. The excerpt from Mark Twain is priceless. Because it was published before 1923 (See Mark Twain’s Sketches, published in…