It has been used by both Oprah and Dr. Phil to refer to cases in which celebrities become symbols for important social issues such as teen pregnancy and domestic violence. The nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court was called a teachable moment for Type I diabetics. Most recently the phrase has even been used by President Obama in referring to the Gates-Crowley incident as an opportunity to more openly discuss the issue of race in American society.
At Celebrity Diagnosis, our mission is both a journalistic and educational one: by reporting on “common diseases affecting uncommon people” we are creating a series of Teachable Moments in Medicine(TM) to increase health awareness and health knowledge and to encourage healthy behaviors and disease and injury prevention. And if you do get sick or hurt, we hope that the information you’ll find on this site, and our companion site Resounding Health, will be helpful to you in discussing these conditions with your doctor or other healthcare provider.
You can now follow us as CelebDx on Twitter. We would love to hear about your experiences using information from our site. You can post these as (moderated) comments or email us directly at [email protected]
Sincerely,
Drs.B
Mark Boguski, M.D., Ph.D. is on the faculty of Harvard Medical School and is a member of the Society for Participatory Medicine, "a movement in which networked patients shift from being mere passengers to responsible drivers of their health" and in which professional health care providers encourage "empowered patients" and value them as full partners in managing their health and wellness.
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