The Dr Coffee Podcast

In this week’s Coffee with Consultants feature, my guest is Dr Yvette Lazarus, a specialist physician and Rheumatologist currently in private practice in Sandton, Johannesburg. Dr Yvette completed her undergraduate medical degree at Wits in 2005, and had a slightly non-linear path to registrar time in internal medicine. She excelled in her FCP exams and qualified as a physician in 2014, and completed her sub-specialist training in Rheumatology in 2019. In addition to private practice and teaching WITS medical students, Dr Yvette has been a key note speaker on ENCA, CNBC Africa, Good News Community Radio, and the Forbes Africa Health Summit. She has also been quoted in Forbes Magazine and nominated as a “Woman of stature 2021”. Dr Lazarus is married to Wesley and has 2 beautiful children.

Dr Lazarus unpacks her journey in medicine and tells us all about her specialty Rheumatology, which includes the treatment of autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, gout, scleroderma, and many more. We also spoke about being your best for your patients, making diagnoses for friends over whatsapp, and overcoming impostor syndrome. I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation and i’m sure you will as well!

If you have feedback on what you thought of this episode or anything else on your mind, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. You’re also invited to submit messages, questions, or responses to anything you heard in the podcast via our new “voice message” link over here. We also have social media profiles on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube. 

While you’re here, please leave a rating or review of the podcast. Consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!

In this week’s coffee with consultants feature, I interviewed Dr Alicia Porter from the Child and Family unit in the department of Psychiatry at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, about her path in medicine and her choice to specialise in Psychiatry. Dr Porter is passionate about all things mental health; she's a mental health advocate, and she is also one of the founding members of the Healthworkers Care Network, that was established as a mental health support and training network during the Covid-19 pandemic. Because of this, the mental health of junior doctors and medical students became an important topic during our conversation.

If you are concerned about your own mental health and want to reach out for help, please access one of the resources available below:

Thank you to our special guest, Dr Alicia Porter. I hope you enjoyed it and feel motivated, encouraged and inspired. If you have feedback on what you thought of this episode or anything else on your mind, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube.

If haven’t listened to episode 24 of the podcast yet, do it now! Remember to send us your stories of medical procedures you’ve performed on yourself or your loved ones, for a chance to be featured on Episode 26! Simply submit your story as a voice message here: https://anchor.fm/simon-fraser8/message

While you’re here, please leave a rating or review of the podcast! Consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!

Professor Ryan Blumenthal is a senior Specialist Forensic Pathologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Forensic Medicine at the University of Pretoria (UP). He has published widely in the fields of lightning, suicide and other areas involving the pathology of trauma. He published his first article in 2004 and has since published more than 29 articles in the scientific literature. Prof Blumenthal has been involved in the publication of several textbooks, and has helped generate both national and international standard operating procedures and guidelines. Professor Blumenthal is also involved in collaborative research with several departments and universities, both locally and internationally. In 2020, he published a book titled Autopsy – Life in the Trenches with a Forensic Pathologist in Africa, which became a non-fiction best-seller locally. He also hosted an eight-part documentary series called Lightning Pathologist, which aired on various channels on DSTV and has been viewed by more than 2 and a half million people. Both the book and the series have had a significant public health impact, and Going forward, Prof Blumenthal would like to continue with his passion for the public communication of science

Important Links mentioned in this episode:

If you have feedback on what you thought of this episode or anything else on your mind, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram and Youtube.

Please leave a rating and review of the podcast while you're here! Consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!

Welcome to Episode 23! Since this week marks the start of the academic year for many students, or the start of their clinical rotations, and because the new interns and comm serve doctors are finding their feet, this week's episode is all about setting up healthy habits and behaviours for success! Many of the keys presented are things you might know, but life is often not about what we know, but rather about what we routinely do. With the right mindset, study methods, and self-care habits this year, 2023 is going to be your best year yet!

Important Links and articles in this week's episode:

If you have feedback on what you thought of this episode, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram and Youtube, with the username “@DrCoffeeZA”. If you’ve got anything else on your mind, such as a request for additional topics or further information on how to engage with our guests, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

While you’re here, please leave a rating or review! Consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!

My guest on the podcast this week is Dr Nishlin Naidoo, a consultant in the Department of Surgery at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH) and a Fellow in Colorectal Surgery at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. Dr Naidoo unpacks his adventures in medicine as an intern and community service doctor (apparently his memory only starts where medical school ends!) with encouragement to all junior doctors that you don't need to 'know it all'. Dr Naidoo then shares why he gravitated towards surgery during his junior time and the perks and pitfalls of completing training in general surgery, and then further specialising in colorectal surgery. He also shares his perspectives and experiences with much more technical issues: oncological resections, robotic surgery, and the training of surgical specialists in South Africa. I thoroughly enjoyed this interview and I'm sure you will as well!

Thank you to our long-term partner of the Dr Coffee podcast - Aesthetikos Photography portrait studio. Check out their work and be sure to mention “Dr Coffee” when you make a booking with them to receive 15% off the price of your photography package. They're also on Instagram at @aesthetikos.studio

If you have a suggestion of an episode topic, or know of a consultant or senior registrar in a specialty that YOU would like featured on the Dr Coffee Podcast, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram and Youtube, with the username “@DrCoffeeZA”. If you’ve got anything else on your mind, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you. Please consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. It's as easy as two clicks - simply post/share the link to this episode, or tag @drcoffeeza in a post related to the content. Thank you so much for your support!

In this week's Coffee with Consultants feature, I interview Professor Laurel Baldwin-Ragaven, professor in the department of Family Medicine & Primary Care at the University of Witwatersrand (South Africa), as well as the Clinical Head in the department of Family Medicine for the Gauteng Department of Health (Southern Districts). Professor Laurel graduated from medical school at MacGill University in Montreal (Canada) in 1983, and after a career in medicine spanning almost forty years, she is now focussing on more non-clinical work such as on the social determinants of health and advocacy. Not only has she worked in higher education and training of medical students and doctors across 3 continents, she is also a human rights activist and an accomplished researcher with dozens of publications and hundreds of citations (some of which can be found on her ResearchGate bio - https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Laurel-Baldwin-Ragaven )I strongly believe there is something for everyone to take home from the wisdom and insights shared in this episode, and it is my privilege to bring it to you through this podcast. Thank you to our partners on this episode:

1. AESTHETIKOS - Aesthetikos portrait studio - based in Sandton, Johannesburg. Visit their website on https://www.Aesthetikos.art and follow them on instagram with the username @Aesthetikos.studio. Quote "Dr Coffee" to get 15% off your portrait package when you order.

2. DIRE WOLF - Dire Wolf financial services - protecting the practice. Watch/listen to Episode 17 of the Dr Coffee podcast to learn how Dire Wolf provides tech-driven solutions to medical professionals' financial and legal needs. They've also kindly given listeners of the Dr Coffee podcast free access to their CPD courses. All you need to do is register at www.DireWolf.co.za/DrCoffee. 

If you know of a consultant or senior registrar in a specialty that YOU would like featured on the Dr Coffee Podcast, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram and Youtube, with the username “@DrCoffeeZA”. If you’ve got anything else on your mind, such as a request for additional topics, further information on how to engage with our guests, feedback on the show, or anything else, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

Please consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!

In this week’s episode, we feature a specialty requested by a lot of this podcast's listeners. The 17th of November each year marks World Prematurity Day. It’s a day to raise awareness of the causes and complications of preterm birth and the concerns of preterm babies and their families worldwide. Approximately 15 million babies are born preterm each year, accounting for about one in 10 of all babies born worldwide. It’s a day that's really close to my own heart, as all three of my beautiful children were born premature. My firstborn son was born at 33 and a half weeks, my daughter at 35weeks, and my youngest son born at the the very stroke of 28 weeks gestation. All of them spent some time in the neonatal ICU, or ‘NICU’ before coming home: my firstborn spent exactly 50 days in hospital, my daughter was in NICU for just one night before they gave her the all clear, and our youngest spent 142 days in NICU before coming home! I’m disappointed that I wasn’t able to get an episode about prematurity out to coincide with World Prematurity Day, but nevertheless I’m really glad to share this episode with you, which is all about the paediatric sub-specialty of neonatology.

Dr Robin Saggers is a consultant paediatrician and neonatologist at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, who is also currently completing a fellowship in paediatric critical care. Dr Saggers always dreamed of becoming a paediatrician and he shares with us his journey from junior doctor to consultant, and what it is like actually working as a neonatologist.

Thank you to our partners on this week's episode:

AESTHETIKOS - Aesthetikos portrait studio is a photography studio based in Sandton, Johannesburg. In keeping with today’s theme, Aesthetikos offers Newborn and Baby photo sessions that are baby-led, non-posed and result in beautiful portraits of your baby. They also do professional portraits and headshots, so if you’re looking for an upgrade for your professional medical practice, LinkedIn profile or social platforms, check out their website https://www.aesthetikos.art or find them on Instagram with the username @aesthetikos.studio

DIRE WOLF - Dire Wolf is all about protecting the practice, and providing tech-driven financial services to medical professionals. Dire Wolf have given listeners of the Dr Coffee podcast free access to their helpful online curriculum of courses. The courses are HPCSA accredited and will provide you with up to 16 CPD points for completion! All you need to do is register for the courses using the provided DireWolf voucher codes, which you can receive by visiting www.direwolf.co.za/drcoffee

If you know of a consultant or senior registrar in a specialty that you would like featured on the Dr Coffee Podcast, please get in touch. The podcast’s email address is [email protected]. We’re also on Instagram and Youtube, with the username “@Dr Coffee ZA”. If you’ve got anything else on your mind, such as a request for additional topics, further information on how to engage with our guests, feedback on the show, or anything else, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

Please consider sharing this episode with fellow junior doctors and medical students in your world who you think would benefit from the content and enjoy it. Thank you so much for your support!