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| | Happy New Year and Looking Ahead to the Next Ten Years
James J. Biemer Jr. M.D. January 2020 |
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| Hello to all. I hope you've had an enjoyable holiday season with friends and family. I wanted to send a brief note to recap some changes we've made in the practice and more importantly, where we are heading in the coming years. |
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We have a terrific staff with no changes in several years. Julia Jones has been with us now for over 2 years and adds tremendous depth especially in elder care, pain management, and palliative care of chronic disease. If you haven't yet met please look for opportunities to do so. We work very closely together, and even when I am traveling we are generally in touch daily.
If you have been in the office you've noticed that we are 90% through a renovation of the space, and will be updating furnishings as well. This goes along with our 5 year lease renewal for Suite 863. Assuming everyone is healthy, we'll plan on signing another lease after this one is up, taking us through to 2029.
Some of my most helpful directional decisions have been prompted by tips, advice, and interest from my own patients. This was true when we began offering a low carb ketosis diet with the Ideal Protein company 3 years ago. Since then, we have helped hundreds of patients with weight loss, some losing over 100 pounds and many resolving diseases like diabetes or preparing for major joint surgeries.
In a similar way, one of my patients made me aware of Dale Bredesen's book, The End of Alzheimer's. Dr. Bredesen has been a lifelong neuroscientist working with degenerative brain disease, and has a special interest in cognitive loss and dementia. In his clinic, he's developed the RECODE and REVERSE protocols for cognitive loss, and has published the results of hundreds of patients over 5 years or so. Instead of relying on a single pill (the pharmaceutical model that has been an abject failure over the past 30 years for treating dementia), his protocol tests for, identifies, and treats 20 to 30 risk factors that are all felt to contribute to cognitive loss. Much more to say about this, but suffice for now that I have taken his on-line training and am certified in the protocol, and will be putting it in place in the office in 2020.
His approach fits well within the area known as Functional Medicine (see WWW.IFM.ORG for more info). Functional medicine tries to identify the cause of many chronic illnesses, such as obesity, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, heart and vascular disease, and chronic brain disorders. By identifying and treating these mainly lifestyle problems, the risk of chronic illness is reduced or removed. I am particularly interested in the related Longevity Medicine, where the emphasis is on HEALTH SPAN rather than LIFE SPAN.
No doubt turning 60 myself and becoming a grandfather in the past year has something to do with my interest. It is true to say though, that I have never been more excited and enthusiastic about the practice of medicine, and hope to continue to practice for many years to come. Thanks to all of you who continue to put your trust in us, and to all of you who bring me your enthusiasm and interests. Happy New Year to you all!
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