Historic Healthcare Speech Tonight

obamaTonight, President Obama will address a full session of Congress in prime time on the topic of the healthcare legislation currently being debated on Capitol Hill.  Rarely do presidents address the fully assembled Congress outside of the annual State of the Union Address.  So this unusual step is designed to underscore the importance of this topic.  What will the President say? Continue reading…

The Lion and the King

tedjacko1In the last month, the world lost two iconic figures: Michael Jackson and Senator Edward Kennedy.   The King of Pop and the Lion of the Senate, both these beloved figures left behind a message that has at its core, wisdom for those in the healthcare field.  Follow me over the fold to discuss the thread that ties these two stories together. Continue reading…

The Importance of Sleep

sleeping1I probably don’t need to tell people who juggle online studies, work and family that it is important to make sure you carve out enough time for sleep.  We all know how spacey and “out of it” we feel when we miss sleep.  Sleep deprivation can be very dangerous.  Yet, recently, UCLA professor and sleep expert, Jerome Siegel questioned whether sleep had any correlation to physiological and neural functions.  In short, do we really need to sleep? Continue reading…

Unemployment Spawns New Gold Rush

goldpanningWith a promising future in a growth field, most Allen School students are not fretting over their long term employment prospects.  Yet the overall poor state of employment in the US driven by the recession has left many without any solid prospects in the near term.  While most will wait it out, some have taken to a different type of “prospecting” – panning for gold in California. Continue reading…

Another Reason to Love Online Education

trafficAllen School’s brick and mortar campuses are in the greater New York Metro area.  So many of us in this community are well aware of the logistics of getting around in one of the world’s most densely  populated areas.  But if you live in any major city, you know what it is like to drive or take transit during peak hours.  It ain’t pretty! Continue reading…

Obesity and the Latest in Weight Loss

Colossal CupcakeThis weekend in Royal Oaks, Michigan, officials from the Guinness Book of World Records were on hand to certify the world’s largest cupcake. The 1200+ pound gargantuan snack-cake with bright pink frosting was made using more than 800 eggs, and 200 pounds each of sugar and flour.  Is it any wonder that 75% of Americans are either overweight or obese? Continue reading…

End of Life Planning Doesn’t Kill Granny

firing-squadWhichever side of the healthcare debate you come down on, everyone can agree that premeditated lying is never cool.  I was especially saddened this week to see so many people – broadcasters, politicians and private citizens  – repeating the ridiculous claim that the current draft of the healthcare bill in Congress contains provisions that establish “death panels” to decide if  elderly folks in poor health should be treated or be euthanized to “save costs”. Continue reading…

User Feedback

listening_deviceIn an effort to generate content that will be useful to the user community, I would like to take this opportunity to open the discussion to all of you who visit this blog.  Please take a moment to leave comments for me, your humble moderator, regarding the kind of information you would find the most useful, interesting and engaging. Continue reading…