Clinician's Roundtable

Host: Bruce Japsen Guest: Helen Darling Employers are finding it tougher and tougher to provide increasingly expensive health benefits. So when President Barack Obama makes healthcare reform a priority this year, what would employers like to see in this proposal? Helen Darling, president of the National Business Group on Health, discusses with the Chicago Tribune's Bruce Japsen what employers are looking for in healthcare reform.

Host: Lisa Mazzullo, MD Guest: Tarun Jain, MD The issue of embryo management has come to the forefront recently with the birth of octuplets in California. More than 400 thousand embryos are currently in storage across the United States. Many couples decide to use their embryos at a later date. But what about the embryos that are not used by fertility patients? Dr. Tarun Jain, in vitro fertilization director of IVF at Chicago IVF, talks with host Dr. Lisa Mazzullo about the potential uses for extra embryos, including stem cell research, donation to other couples and whether or not they should be sold.

Host: Lisa Mazzullo, MD Guest: Lisa Ishii, MD Hair loss can be a troubling situation for women. More than 30 percent of women of all ages suffer from some type of hair loss, either due to medication or medical issues. Dr. Lisa Ishii, an assistant professor of facial plastic and reconstructive surgery in the department of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, talks with host Dr. Lisa Mazzullo about how to evaluate and treat hair loss for women.

Host: Bruce Japsen Guest: Greg Brown For breast cancer patients, there is often an untold story after mastectomy and treatment. Greg Brown, chief executive officer of ImpediMed, tells host Bruce Japsen about how women can suffer a debilitating complication known as lymphedema and how test makers are moving to help diagnose the problem early.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Amy Hendel, R-PA The obesity epidemic causes numerous health problems but it's hard for one person to change their ways when the rest of the family continues old patterns. Amy Hendel joins host Lisa Dandrea Lenell to discuss how to help the group change their eating habits and take on a healthy lifestyle. The two discuss how families can work together as a team as well as how medical professionals can tackle the overweight issue with their patients.

Host: Jennifer Shu, MD, FAAP Guest: Caroline Hall, MD Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a well-known cause of hospitalization in infants, but new research suggests the burden of illness may be more substantial than previously recognized in healthy, older children as well. Investigators estimate over two million children under the age of five require medical treatment for RSV each year. Because it can be difficult to prevent and treat RSV infections, is there a role for a vaccine against the illness? Host Dr. Jennifer Shu welcomes Dr. Caroline Hall, professor of pediatrics and medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, to explore these questions. Dr. Hall also explains how the characteristics of the virus and its mechanisms of transmission contribute to its proliferation.

Host: Bruce Japsen Guest: Jian Han, MD The 'superbug' methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, is a top concern for hospitals and doctors nationwide. So what are we doing to combat this? Dr. Gian Han, director of Diatherix Laboratories, tells host Bruce Japsen about molecular diagnostic technologies being developed for doctors to detect MRSA and prevent infection in patients.

Host: Mary Leuchars, MD Guest: Alex Haynes, MD The annual number of surgeries performed worldwide outnumbers even childbirth. What do the latest studies examining surgical checklists tell us about their impact on reducing global morbidity and mortality? Sharing insights on this subject is Dr. Alex Haynes, surgical research fellow at the Harvard School of Public Health and Massachusetts General Hospital, and lead author of a recent study evaluating the WHO surgical safety checklist. Dr. Haynes and colleagues successfully demonstrated that the use of a simple surgical checklist during major operations can lower the incidence of deaths and complications by more than one-third. Dr. Mary Leuchars hosts.

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Steven I. Kern, JD Will openness and honesty about medical errors help you avoid medical litigation? By quickly disclosing errors, offering apologies and, when necessary, providing fair compensation, some medical centers around the country are trying to get out in front of their medical mistakes. Yet, this may not be the best approach for all practitioners. Host Dr. Larry Kaskel reviews your options and a few specific cases with Steven Kern, a health law attorney with Kern, Augustine, Conroy & Schoppmann, a firm representing physicians and other health professionals.

Host: Michael Greenberg, MD Guest: Anne Louise Oaklander, MD, PhD How is complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) distinguished from chronic or phantom limb pain? Can something as simple as a fracture or blood drawing trigger this condition? Dr. Anne-Louise Oaklander, associate professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, joins host Dr. Michael Greenberg to discuss the intricacies of neuropathic pain. Since CRPS is rare, at what point should a physician suspect CRPS, and can this condition be treated?

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Patrick Killeen, PA-C Where do physician assistants fit into the organizational chart within hospitals? How are PAs categorized within the organization? Are they considered allied health staff with no vote on hospital issues, or are they medical staff with a voice? Host Lisa Dandrea Lenell and Patrick Killeen, director at large on the American Academy of Physician Assistants' board of directors, tackle the difficult issue of the evolving role of the PA within a large hospital setting. They discuss the importance of having PAs serve within the administration and the challenges of achieving that goal.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Eric D. Levens, 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.

Host: Jennifer Shu, MD, FAAP Guest: Sten Vermund, MD, PhD Past research tells us that many young lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender patients are at higher risk for health problems, such as depression, substance abuse, and sexually transmitted diseases. We're also learning that the response of the young person's family can trigger or worsen these conditions. Dr. Sten Vermund, professor of pediatrics, medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, and preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, joins host Dr. Jennifer Shu to explore how physicians can work with families and patients to create a healthy dynamic as patients begin to express their sexual orientation and gender identity.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Ken Harbert, PhD More than 8000 military corpsmen will head back to civilian life this year after being released from the military. How do they go about furthering their education to become a physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or even pursue a medical degree, after serving their country? Dr. Ken Harbert, president of Health Watch, Ltd., talks with host Lisa Dandrea Lenell about the education challenges for corpsmen who want to pursue an advanced health degree. The two talk about the need for bridge programs and mentoring programs for veterans.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Charlene Morris, MPAS, PA-C As part of a profession whose role is not always clearly understood, physician assistants rely on the voice of their Associations. Host Lisa D'Andrea Lenell talks to Charlene Morris, past-president of the Association of Family Practice Physician Assistants, about practical ways PAs can get involved and lead.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Donald Pedersen, PA-C, PhD Have you ever thought of traveling the world and working at the same time? There are many international volunteer programs across the world that could benefit from the expertise of a PA. Dr. Donald Pedersen, a professor at the University of Utah School of Medicine Physician Assistant Program, talks with host Lisa Dandrea Lenell about the specific programs geared to PAs, the role of the PA in other countries, as well as the cost and planning involved in an international volunteer program.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Donald Pedersen, PA-C, PhD What role are physician assistants playing in global healthcare efforts? About half of the student PA programs in the United States offer international rotations in over 50 countries. Host Lisa D'Andrea Lenell discusses the possibilities with Dr. Donald Pedersen, program director at the University of Utah's Physician Assistant Program and past president of the Association of Physician Assistant Programs.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Jason Lunsford Physician assistants serving in Iraq treat everything from life threatening injuries to coughs and colds. In a combat zone, the PA never knows what will come up. Captain Jason Lunsford, a physician assistant on active duty in Iraq, joins host Lisa D'Andrea Lenell, to talk about his first-hand experiences as a military PA.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: Jason Lunsford On the battlefield, the physician assistant's medical support is a lifeline for the troops. Cpt. Jason Lunsford, a physician assistant on active duty in Iraq, joins host Lisa D'Andrea Lenell to discuss the PA's role in battle.

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Ronald Sherman Join host Dr. Bill Rutenberg as he discusses the magical mysteries of the wound debridement biotherapy with our guest Dr. Ronald Sherman, director of the non-profit BioTherapeutics, Education & Research Foundation. Learn about the medical uses for maggots, how maggot therapy is executed and what controlled studies show about the use of medical grade maggots.