From: Richard J. Manolian, DPM
I thought we established last year that you did a 2-year residency as there were only 2 three-year residencies when you graduated, none of which you matriculated in, but for some reason you keep mentioning it. I also find it odd that you were proud of upselling an elderly patient who came in for nail care and wound up with a $3,000 bill for varied services.
Would you appreciate it if an elderly relative went to an optometrist for a replacement of eyewear and wound up spending $3,000 due to up-selling?
Richard J. Manolian, DPM, Boston, MA
From: Elliot Udell, DPM
Thank you George for shining a light on this important area. Covid was akin to a tornado that wrecked all live conventions, including medical conferences. Right now, the APMA, state societies, and other sponsors of conventions are cleaning up "the debris" by once again starting some live conventions even if they have to choose smaller hotel venues. You are correct, many doctors are still not attending. Let's be open and honest about the situation. To attend a live convention, the doctor is forced to pay travel expenses, hotel room expenses and meals, in addition to paying the tuition to the sponsor of the convention. It costs the doctor over a thousand dollars to go to an out-of-town convention.
One of the things I loved when lectured at and attended live conventions was mingling with companies in the booth hall. I learned a lot about new products for my patients, and in many cases got to give them samples provided by the vendors. I assure you that most if not all of my colleagues looked forward to seeing you and talking with you and your colleagues at live conventions. The big question, however, is this: Do the benefits of attending an in-person event make up for going to a "Zoom" convention where the doctor can literally roll out of bed, flick on the computer, attend all of the lectures, and get his or her CME credits at a fraction of the price? This problem will not be resolved overnight but with innovation, maybe we can turn things around.
Elliot Udell, DPM, Hicksville, NY
