Women don’t like being told what to do. As a woman, a doctor and journalist, Dr. Nancy Snyderman, knows this on many different levels.
“We want information so we can make smart choices,” Snyderman told the over 500 attendees at our 17th annual Celebration of Life™ Luncheon.
“It’s a little bit like standing in the cereal aisle,” Snyderman explained. “There are a million different choices, and we know that Cheerios is a better choice than Froot Loops but, you know, some days you want the Froot Loops. But you do it as an informed consumer.”
Snyderman took the opportunity to have “a frank discussion about what we know about breast cancer, as well as what we don’t know.”
“There’s been so much news with regard to breast cancer: genetics, how we test, who we should test, reimbursements and the real loaded science that came down last year about the use of mammography in women below age 50, “ she said.
And, needless to say mammograms and hormones were very hot topics discussed during the question/answer session that took place at the conclusion of Dr. Snyderman’s speech.
“I bring a certain bias with me as a scientist that we don’t always like what we hear, but we have to talk about it,” she said.
The one theme that carried through everything Snyderman does and spoke about is patient education. She helped found HYPERLINK “http://www.BeWell.com” www.BeWell.com, a website that connects the country’s top health experts to Fortune 500 companies on health topics.
“The days in the 50’s and 60’s where you could rely your doctor to take care of you and the local hospital would always be open and you could have access to health care and the economy – those days are long gone,” Snyderman said. “These days self-sufficiency is more important than ever.
“At this stage in my life, I’ve figured out the difference between being a doctor and being a healer, and so much of being a healer is to have patients stay well so they don’t have to have access to the system. A lot of that is self-responsibility, which comes back to knowing risk factors, to living smartly and knowing the warnings signs when you might be in trouble.
“At the end of the day, whether we have good doctors or lousy ones, we are responsible for ourselves.”
Excerpts in this article courtesy of Caramie Schnell, High Life Editor, The Vail Daily
Connect With Us