'Indianapolis 500 on

Memorial Day Weekend!'

The Indianapolis 500, known as the Indy 500, is a race that has captured the hearts of millions. It blends speed, skill, and tradition into one of the most thrilling spectacles in the world of sports. Imagine cars zooming at breakneck speeds, a sea of fans cheering, and a tradition that dates back over a century. Welcome to the Indianapolis 500, folks!

This isn’t just any race. It’s a slice of American history on wheels, celebrated every year on the last weekend of May, often landing on Memorial Day weekend. It’s not just about the thrill of racing; it’s a cultural festival where speed meets tradition under the Indiana sky​​​​.

Why all the fuss, you may wonder? Well, the Indy 500 isn’t just a test of speed; it’s a marathon of endurance, skill, and sheer nerve.

Drivers whirl around the track for 500 miles—that’s 200 laps, folks! This spectacle draws around 300,000 spectators, making it one of the largest single-day sporting events in the world. And it’s not just about the race. It’s a month-long celebration with practice runs, qualifying rounds, and a vibe that’s electric​​.

But here’s the kicker: winning the Indy 500 isn’t just about bragging rights or the hefty purse. It’s about drinking milk in victory lane, a quirky tradition dating back to the 1930s.

And let’s not forget about the Borg-Warner Trophy, a stunning piece of art that immortalizes the winner’s face.

This race is a testament to innovation, with safety and technology advancing with each year. From rear-view mirrors to aerodynamic tweaks, the Indy 500 pushes the envelope, making every lap, every turn, a brush with history​​.

So, why celebrate the Indy 500? It’s more than a race; it’s a legacy. This is the place where legends are born and traditions are cherished. It’s a reminder of the human spirit’s drive to push the boundaries, strive for excellence, and honor the past while racing toward the future.



Read more here. . . .



Every year Phoenix Magazine publishes a guide featuring over 685 of the Valley’s best physicians. The doctors are selected through a peer-review survey. The theory is that medical professionals are the best qualified to judge medical professionals.

The survey asks the doctors to nominate those doctors who, in their judgement, are the best in their fields.

Once again, Dr. Lakin has been chosen as a TOP DOC among his peers.

Now standing at 22 years!

(2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2003, 2001)

Please join us in congratulating him!

May 26, 2024

COVID REMAINS LOW, BUT WE STILL SEE A FEW PEOPLE WITH COVID EVERY WEEK.

ALL DOING WELL.  BE PROACTIVE TO PREVENT NEED FOR HOSPITALIZATION.

• IF YOU DON’T WANT COVID FROM TRAVEL…. WEAR A MASK IN THE AIRPORT CROWDS AND ON THE AIRPLANE (UNTIL 10,000 FEET) …. THIS IS NOT AS ESSENTIAL AS IT WAS WHEN COVID WAS MORE PREVALENT…BUT IF YOU WANT TO AVOID INFECTIONS IN GENERAL DURING TRAVEL...IT’S A CONSIDERATION.

• EVEN SELECTIVE MASK USE WORKS WELL… SUCH AS ONLY IN CROWDED SPACES IN THE AIRPORT, AND DURING TRAVEL ‘TO’ YOUR DESTINATION, SO THAT YOU ARE NOT ILL DURING YOU VACATION/TRAVEL TIME.  LESS IMPORTANT WHEN YOU RETURN FROM VACATION.

• GET BOOSTED IF YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO…PARTICULARLY OVER AGE 65 WITH HEALTH ISSUES OR OVER 75 WITHOUT HEALTH ISSUES.   EVERY 6 MONTHS IS THE RECOMMENDATION FOR THIS GROUP. 

• IF YOU WERE BOOSTED IN SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER AND OVER AGE 65, ANOTHER BOOST IS WORTHWHILE THIS SPRING.  THAT SAID...IF YOU HAVE HAD COVID IN THE PAST 6 MONTHS YOU CAN HOLD ON BOOSTING.

• FLU SEASON IS OVER… NO MORE FLU SHOTS THIS SEASON

• VERY LITTLE RSV IN THE VALLEY.

IF YOU THINK YOU HAVE A COLD OR RESPIRATORY INFECTION RIGHT NOW…. YOU MAY WELL HAVE COVID. PLEASE DO A COVID TEST TO CHECK AT HOME.  

ALMOST ALL DOING WELL, BUT WE ARE SEEING A FEW PEOPLE NEED THE HOSPITAL TO RECOVER. 

THE CURRENT COVID VACCINE IS AVAILABLE.

  IT IS KEEPING PEOPLE FROM HAVING A MORE DIFFICULT TIME WITH INFECTION AND KEEPING PEOPLE OUT OF THE HOSPITAL.

I RECOMMEND THE COVID BOOSTER GENERALLY FOR THOSE OVER 65. BUT……

• I HIGHLY RECOMMEND A BOOSTER FOR THOSE 80 & OLDER.

• I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THE BOOSTER FOR THOSE OVER 65 WITH HEART FAILURE, SIGNIFICANT LUNG CONDITIONS, AND DIABETES.

CONSIDER BOOSTING WITH THE NEW COVID VACCINE TO REDUCE RISK OF COVID AND TO REDUCE COVID SYMPTOM SEVERITY

WEST NILE SEASON IS COMING:

WEST NILE SEASON IS COMING.  PREPARE TO USE PROTECTION.

IF WE HEAR OF NEW CASES…WILL REPORT TO YOU.

NO WEST NILE REPORTED…. BUT PREPARE NOW BY GETTING YOUR MOSQUITO REPELLENT.

PLEASE USE MOSQUITO REPELLENT

WHEN IN HIGH EXPOSURE SITUATIONS.

ARIZONA IS THE PRIME USA LOCATION FOR WEST NILE DUE TO HIGH WEST NILE VIRUS LEVELS IN RAPTOR BIRDS WHO ARE IMMUNE TO WEST NILE ILLNESS, BUT NOT IMMUNE TO CARRYING THE VIRUS. THIS CAN RESULT IN ARIZONA MOSQUITOS WITH PARTICULARLY HIGH VIRUS LEVELS WHEN THEY BITE.

H5N1 INFLUENZA

THERE IS A LOT OF NEWS ABOUT THE ‘BIRD FLU’….H5N1, AS IT HAS BEEN FOUND IN LARGE QUANTITIES IN COWS MILK IN THE USA.  THIS IS NOT INFECTIOUS IN MILK, BUT IT DEMONSTRATES THAT THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF THIS SUB-TYPE IN THE COUNTRY.

IT IS NOT A WORRY, BUT IS SOMETHING THAT IS TO BE MONITORED, AS WIDESPREAD INFECTION IN HUMANS WOULD CAUSE A VERY LARGE INFLUENZA OUTBREAK OR ANOTHER PANDEMIC…THIS TIME OF INFLUENZA.

THAT SAID, THE RISK REMAINS PRESENT BUT LOW.  WE SHOULD NOT BE WORRIED ABOUT THIS IN OUR DAY TO DAY LIVES, BUT WE WILL KEEP MONITORING AND KEEP YOU AWARE.

H5N1 IS A SUB-TYPE THAT IS DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT FROM THE NORMALLY CIRCULATING FLU AND ALTHOUGH THERE WILL BE AN IMMUNIZATION FOR THIS IF IT BECOMES WIDESPREAD IN HUMANS, THERE IS LITTLE NATURAL IMMUNITY TO THIS FORM OF FLU AND IT IS FELT THAT H5N1 HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR PANDEMIC EFFECTS.

TOP PODCAST DONE WEEKLY

BY DR. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM

(UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA)  

He is a world-renowned epidemiologist who was credited with first elucidating TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME in the 1980’s.

He provides comprehensive and understandable/actionable ideas related to COVID.

Dr. Osterholm Update: COVID-19 Podcast

May 16, 2024

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/episode-157-lungs-udders

(Same as last week's.... New podcast next week!)

'Lungs & Udders'

In "Lungs & Udders," Dr. Osterholm provides updates on H5N1 influenza, COVID-19, and mpox. He also shares his thoughts on a recent WHO report about airborne transmission and a study on the use of a diabetes drug to treat COVID-19.

According to Dr. Osterholm……

• GET YOUR LATEST AVAILABLE BOOSTER IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD COVID OR IT’S BEEN LONGER THAN 4 MONTHS SINCE YOU HAD COVID YOURSELF
• A GOOD MASK, N95 OF KN95, DOES HELP REDUCE TRANSMISSION…. USE IT AT HIGH-RISK LOCATIONS
• GOOD VENTILATION IN ROOMS/HOME/BUSINESSES IS A GREAT WAY TO PREVENT TRANSMISSION
• VACCINE, VACCINE, VACCINE…THIS IS OUR PROTECTION.  ALL VACCINES ARE EFFECTIVE AND WITH TIME WE ARE SEEING THAT THE J&J VACCINE IS PICKING UP STEAM AND GIVES SOLID LONG-TERM PROTECTION.
• BOOST, BOOST, BOOST…THIS WILL BE NECESSARY TO PREVENT RECURRING SURGE AND TO RAISE ANTIBODY LEVELS IN THOSE ALREADY SET WITH THE PRIMARY COVID VACCINE SERIES.
• ANTIGEN TESTING IS USEFUL, BUT OF LIMITED VALUE. DON’T DEPEND ON IT…BUT USE IT.

Know that unvaccinated remain a source of potential infection.  Avoiding unvaccinated persons will reduce your risk of COVID.

A second person in the U.S. has been infected with bird flu linked to dairy cows, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services reported Wednesday.

The person, a farmworker who had regular exposure to infected livestock, had mild symptoms and has recovered, the health department said.

“The current health risk to the general public remains low," Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan's chief medical executive, said in a news release. "We have not seen signs of sustained human-to-human transmission at this point. This is exactly how public health is meant to work, in early detection and monitoring of new and emerging illnesses.”

The person was being monitored for symptoms following exposure to infected dairy cows, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement. The person developed conjunctivitis, or pinkeye, and a sample taken from the eye tested positive for the virus. A sample taken from the person's nasal passages was negative.

At a news briefing Wednesday, Dr. Nirav Shah, the CDC’s principal deputy director, said the negative nasal sample is reassuring, in a sense.

"It reduces the likelihood — it does not eliminate, but it reduces the likelihood — of a respiratory route of transmission," Shah said.

Read more here. . . .

After you received your COVID or any other vaccination outside our office, please let us know!

We would like to document this information into your chart.



What we need:

1. Your name
2. Name & date of vaccination received
3. Brand name
4. Lot number if available
5. Which dose you have received

**Email your vaccine info HERE

There is a new coronavirus variant in town. KP.2, a member of the so-called FliRT variants, nicknamed after their mutations, has become the dominant coronavirus strain in the United States, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These FliRT variants have certain mutations in common but are still part of the Omicron family of the coronavirus.

For the period from April 28 to May 11, nearly 30% of new cases were caused by KP.2, up from less than 16% in the two-week period before that.

What should people know about this new variant? What are the symptoms of infection? Do vaccines still work against the new strain? Is a home test still reliable? How long should people isolate if they contract KP.2? Who should take antiviral treatments if they contract this type of Covid-19? And what is the guidance for immunocompromised individuals — should they start masking again?

To guide us through these questions, I spoke with CNN wellness expert Dr. Leana Wen. Wen is an emergency physician and clinical associate professor at the George Washington University. She previously served as Baltimore’s health commissioner.



Read more here. . . .

We Are Here to Take Care of Your Healthcare Needs.

We Are Here to Serve!

Our office is using all techniques to reduce exposure to a minimum during your visit. These include: 

·       Temperature checks of all patients and staff.

·       Masks for all people in the office.

·       Cleansing of hands and surfaces repeatedly.

·       Multiple Super-HEPA filters to filter out potential virus and particles in the office.

·       High Level UV light air cleansing in the office to eliminate bacteria and viruses in the air.

OUR OFFICE SCHEDULE

DOORS OPEN     

7AM - 4PM Monday through Thursday

7AM - 11AM Friday

IN OFFICE

APPOINTMENTS: MONDAY – THURSDAY

7AM – 11:15AM & 1PM – 3:30PM

APPOINTMENTS: FRIDAY

7AM – 10:30 AM

DR. LAKIN WILL CONTINUE ‘TELEHEALTH’ VISITS WITH FaceTime, WhatsApp or ZOOM WHEN NEEDED.

SUMMARY OF A COVID KIT & CHECK LIST:

This is what you should have at home to prepare for possible COVID, to monitor yourself if you were to get infected:

DIGITAL ORAL THERMOMETER: MANY BRANDS ARE FINE…HERE IS ONE EXAMPLE:

https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Thermometer-Reading-Waterproof-Indicator/dp/B087T3S4TR/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=THERMOMETER&qid=1597159324&sr=8-6

PULSE OXIMETER:  TO CHECK OXYGEN LEVELS. MANY BRANDS ARE FINE...HERE IS ONE EXAMPLE:

https://www.amazon.com/Innovo-Fingertip-Oximeter-Plethysmograph-Perfusion/dp/B07YVGZPRZ/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&keywords=PULSE+OXI&qid=1597159388&sr=8-20

OTHER ITEMS FROM THE HOME MEDICAL KIT:

·       TYLENOL, ADVIL, OR ALEVE

·       Sudafed 30mg tablets

·       Chlorpheniramine 4mg tablets

·       Robitussin DM syrup

·       Imodium AD

'12 Movies to Watch this Memorial Day'

Memorial Day is an American holiday meant to honor the memories of those who have died in service to our country. And while Hollywood does have a tendency to take all that is sacred and capitalize on it at the expense of authenticity, watching war movies about real life events remains a very common way to celebrate the day.

If you are wondering which films to watch though, fear not! FairlyCritical has you covered with a curated list of 12 movies to get you through the weekend.

Enjoy your Memorial Day! Just please be sure to remember the fallen who gave you the ability to do so, and their families whom they left behind.

Stay Safe!