Blogs

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3P Episode 7: Headache Hassles–Part 1

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello again everybody and welcome to the next episode of 3p, Pills, Pearls and Patients. I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak and today we have an interesting and I think highly relevant topic that almost everybody can relate to. Today's episode is called Headache Hassles and it is actually the first of two episodes that's going to be focusing on headaches. Today is going to focus on a general overview of headaches, very basic and next episode is going to take a deeper delve into migraines.

So let's talk all things headache. It's kind of funny because I don't think we actually know or at least take the time to think about what exactly a headache means. You know Sometimes the expression says oh you know this is such a headache or doing this is going to be a headache and have you ever really thought about what the word headache means? I mean breaking it down into syllables it literally means your head aches, the head hurts. Now the word headache in medicine has a very wide differential diagnosis and sometimes patients don't know how to accurately describe exactly what it is they're feeling in their head and it's not their fault, I mean there are different types of headaches, there are different causes of pain in the head. There's referred pain, there's primary headaches, there's secondary headaches so my goal today is not to do a very extensive delve into headaches mostly because number one I am not a neurologist and number two you could probably do five, six, seven even ten episodes about headaches and still not cover everything.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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3P Episode 6: Diving into Diabetes–Part 2

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello again and welcome to Episode 6 of the 3P podcast, Pills, Pearls and Patients. I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak and today we're taking a Dive into Diabetes and this time for Part 2.

So if you remember in the last episode we kind of quickly went over the diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes. We focused a little bit on when to screen, as well as, some risk factors and then very quickly we talked about an algorithm management for diabetes. So we talked about the impact and importance of lifestyle including how to educate patients about diet and exercise. We also quickly went through the medications that you can use to treat patients with Type 2 diabetes. Of course we did not talk about insulin and again in this episode we will not be talking about insulin management. We reviewed that Metformin is often the first-line therapy and then there's some novel agents out like the GLP-1 agonists, as well as, the SGL2 inhibitors and their place in managing diabetes, as well as, some risks that you need to know associated with these medications and the benefits of using these medications.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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3P Episode 5: Diving into Diabetes–Part 1

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello again and welcome to Episode 5 of the 3P podcast, Pills, Pearls and Patients. I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak.

Now I wish that I could say XYZ disease is the most prevalent disease that we see in primary care because to be honest there are so many of the "top most common" illnesses that we see. This can range from diabetes to hypertension to depression and anxiety to asthma. I mean of course these are probably some of the most common or at least prevalent illnesses we see and I want to start off by saying although this podcast episode is going to talk about diabetes, there you go I spoiled it.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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3P Episode 4: Inflation as a Medical Emergency

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello and welcome to the next episode of 3P, Pills, Pearls and Patients. I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak and today we're going to be talking about inflation, in fact, today's episode is called Inflation as a Medical Emergency.

Yikes a medical emergency sounds a lot like something where you might walk into an emergency room and see a bunch of doctors around a patient, see nurses scrambling everywhere, hospital bells ringing, and so forth. Or maybe something more like the pandemic where covet cases were rising, increasing rapidly, people were scattering by toilet paper, stocking up on personal protective equipment. Other medical emergencies that come to mind might be in a physician's lens such as Cauda Equine Syndrome or an acute stroke atrial fibrillation presenting with syncope etc. So why are we saying that inflation is a medical emergency what about inflation is medical exactly?
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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Episode 2: Having the Conversation

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Morning, my name is Dr. Michael Gordon and I'm one of the contributors to this new enterprise of podcasts in healthcare for the older population. This is the second of what will be a series of podcasts and I'm fortunate today to have a colleague who once upon a time was a student who is going to join me in the discussion of what I often call having the conversation.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Morning, my name is Dr. Michael Gordon and I'm one of the contributors to this new enterprise of podcasts in healthcare for the older population.

This is the second of what will be a series of podcasts and I'm fortunate today to have a colleague who once upon a time was a student who is going to join me in the discussion of what I often call having the conversation.

So I'd like to introduce Michelle Hart who's an attending physician in the department of community and family medicine at Baycrest Geriatric Health Sciences and I've worked with on and off for many years and I think what you'll hear from her is a very important perspective on the concept of having the conversation. Good morning Michelle.

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Welcome to the second episode of the Medical Narratives podcast with Dr. Michael Gordon. Dr. Gordon is joined by his colleague Dr. Michelle Hart to discuss Having the Conversation.

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3P Episode 3: Dealing with Death

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello and Welcome to Episode 3 of triple P! Pills, Pearls and Patients. Again I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak.

So I struggle to think about when to talk about this topic for today's episode. Today's episode is called Dealing with Death and I know that sounds really cryptic. Nobody really likes to talk about death, but at the same time it's important to talk about it and there's been lots of things happening lately in the world, you know this little thing called the Covid pandemic, that's really highlighted to myself as the family doctor and as a person why it's important to have these discussions about death and dying. Today we're going to talk about dealing with death both as a family physician and as a person because let's be honest, talking about death is kind of scary, and for some people and some cultures for that matter a little bit taboo.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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3P Episode 2: Paxlovid Primer

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello and Welcome to Episode 2 of triple P! Pills, Pearls and Patients. Again I'm your host Dr. Marina Malak.

Thank you so much for joining me today on our second episode and it's a pretty timely episode at that. Today I'm calling this episode Paxlovid Primer.

For Healthcare Providers out there you have likely heard about Paxlovid, and for patients you've probably heard about Paxlovid as well. A lot of people are calling it the Covid pill. It's been about two and a half years in the pandemic, oh my goodness, just saying that is strange, two and a half years and we've come a long way.

Do you remember when we didn't even have vaccines for Covid-19. Yeah, now we're giving people triple boosters and some people even four vaccines. We've also come a long way in treatment. I'm sure many of you have heard about the monoclonal antibodies that were being given to treat Covid-19.

Likely you guys have heard of Paxlovid as well as this is the main treatment for Covid-19 right now. In today's episode I want to just give a quick overview of what Paxlovid is, some common things that primary care providers or all doctors should really know about it, and how you can communicate with your patients about Paxlovid.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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Episode 1: The Launch of the Medical Narratives Podcast

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Welcome to the launch of the Medical Narratives podcast with Dr. Michael Gordon. Your go-to source for discussions on important issues in medicine and stories from real patient-physician encounters.

Please note, that to access this episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Welcome to the launch of the Medical Narratives podcast with Dr. Michael Gordon. Your go-to source for discussions on important issues in medicine and stories from real patient-physician encounters.

My name is Regina Starr and I'm the Managing Editor for www.healthplexis.net and the Journal of Current Clinical Care, the home of the Medical Narratives podcast. I am pleased to introduce the host of Medical Narratives podcast Dr. Michael Gordon.

Dr. Michael Gordon recently retired after a fulfilling career as a geriatrician that spanned 56 years, 44 of which he spent working at the Baycrest Center in Toronto. He is Emeritus Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Michael is a recognized ethicist and a thought leader on all topics of care of the elderly and end-of-life decisions.

Michael is also a prolific writer and a masterful storyteller. He is a regular contributor to the Journal of Current Clinical Care and he will be hosting his own channel within the soon to be upgraded Health Plexus where all of his work will be organized in a curated section.

I've had the privilege to work with Michael the past 10 years.

Hi Michael, I am so excited for the launch of this podcast. Congratulations on this new venture. Welcome.

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Welcome to the launch of the Medical Narratives podcast with Dr. Michael Gordon. Your go-to source for discussions on important issues in medicine and stories from real patient-physician encounters.

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3P Episode 1: About Pills, Pearls & Patients (3P)

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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

Please note, that to access ths episode in full instead of the teaser available just below you would need to login.

 

Hello there and welcome to 3P. Pills, Pearls & Patients. I'm your host Dr. Marina Malik.

So welcome. Today is the first episode of Pills, Pearls & Patients. This is the introductory episode where we'll talk a little bit about myself, my practice and what the point of this podcast is and where it's going.

First just a disclaimer. Anything shared on this podcast is obviously not meant to replace any medical advice. It's the opinions of myself and any guests that we might have and if there are any references, they'll always be provided as well.

Please feel free to share any comments that you might have. Obviously we're aiming for an open discussion here and I look forward to you guys interacting with us for this podcast.

So a little bit about myself. As I mentioned, my name is Dr. Marina Malik. I am a fairly new medical graduate in family medicine. I practice in Mississauga, Ontario. I am a Lecturer and Faculty Member of the University of Toronto, Faculty of Family Medicine and Community Medicine. I'm really interested in teaching and medical education and I don't have any particular interests in medicine and I guess that's why i became a family doctor. I like to do it all from young to old, big, small, mental health, respiratory diseases, endocrine diseases, you name it.

I also do have my own personal blog, Health is Wealth and this is where I talk a little bit about my previous experiences as well as just some day-to-day thoughts. So if you're interested in checking it out it's anorexiarecovery1.blogspot.com

Book CoverI've also written a book which is called Recipe for Recovery, I battled and Overcame an Eating Disorder and You Can, Too! and that's mostly available on the publisher website at burnstownpublishinghouse.com. Again that's burnstownpublishinghouse.com, and eventually you'll be able to find this podcast transcribed so please feel free to read that afterwards if you're interested in any links as well as any information shared in this podcast.
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Welcome to 3P: pills, pearls, and patients where we will discuss current events in medicine, stories from real patient-physician encounters, and gain insight into what it's like being a physician in today's society.

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Tales from the Uber Scene

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For the 6 months that I have not been able to drive because of medical reasons I have become a regular user of Uber.
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As regular users of Uber services know, many of the drivers are originally from elsewhere...

For the 6 months that I have not been able to drive because of medical reasons I have become a regular user of Uber. I find Uber more flexible and convenient than standard taxis.

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