Kristin was headed to a graduate psychology program at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, while Flanary was set to return to Houston for medical school. Although they may not want to admit it, "powerless" is exactly how many medical professionals, patients, and their families often feel. Thats why I love building this Glaucomflecken General Hospital of characters, Flanary told STAT. A: No, I felt completely normal. 199 per month after 30-day trial. I had an excellent medical team, and my family also played a big part in my recovery. 16:10 GMT 26 Nov 2021 "That's my coping mechanism," he says. It was a clarifying moment for Flanary as a creator, convincing him to ditch TikToks de rigueur music syncopation and embrace what he was good at: crafting characters and writing jokes. I checked it out and it seemed perfect, Flanary said. Gaur Gopal Das. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. He scheduled a doctor's appointment, which turned into emergency surgery to remove cancer. We love taking breaks. "I remember being very tired and telling her, I'm so tired. It didnt go well. His Dr. Glaucomflecken alter ego has been a balm, not only for his colleagues, patients, and a pandemic-weary public, but also for himself. So this all feels really low-stakes. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Book a personalized video with Dr. Glaucomflecken on Cameo! If you can laugh over a shared experience, that can bring you together more than almost anything else, Flanary said. His Dr. Glaucomflecken alter ego has been a balm, not only for his colleagues, patients, and a pandemic-weary public, but also for himself. For some reason, the powers that be thought it would be a good idea for my mom to teach her kid, who also happened to be the biggest class clown in school. "It was almost like stand-up in a way," he says. He practices in Oregon City, Oregon and lives in Portland, Oregon. with the Glaucomfleckens. What I think [Flanary] does well in general and perhaps why hes never been canceled is that his humor is typically one of two things: wholesome, or relatable to everybody within the medical community, said Sarah Mojarad, who teaches a course on social media for doctors and scientists at the University of Southern California. In them, he dresses up as different types of doctors and acts out funny and awkward made-up scenes between the doctor and a patient. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. Flanary couldn't perform regularly, given his responsibilities as a student and a father. The Viral Fever, Written by: Since then, it has evolved to incorporate satire of the US healthcare system, academic publishing, and the interpersonal conflicts that are pervasive in the medical system. Read our privacy policy for more info. Thats a big compliment to me, that people who are not in medicine still watch, because that tells me my acting skills are decent. In 2010, when he was 25 years old, Will was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Getting more than 1 million views became the norm. It was a dark and empty chamber where no words were spoken or understood Those of us who have survived trauma need our healthcare providers to meet us in our Quiet Place. Hello and welcome to Knock-Knock. You cant talk about the problems that you have in your job without sacrificing professionalism. And it feels good to be laughing with someone that knows what youre going through and knows the things that have been happening inside your own head that you havent put out into words.. Will Flanary, aka Dr. Glaucomflecken, at home in Portland, Ore. Flanary in character as the emergency medicine doctor, eternally clad in cycling gear. But although his TikTok account is filled with laughter and jokes, things have not been easy for the doctor in real life. And each submits to a few minutes of Jungian analysis, care of the staff psychiatrist. Dr. Glaucomfleckens success to date was unimaginable back in the spring of 2020. Paramahansa Yogananda, Written by: [5][7], Flanary created the Dr. Glaucomflecken Twitter account in 2016 out of boredom at a research conference. In a clip posted April 9, 2020, he squints, scowls, and grins into the camera to explain the many muscles of the face, all with the aid of Megan Thee Stallion. A glaukomflecken is a change in the lens of the eye after an acute angle closure, whereas Dr Glaucomflecken is a social media sensation. It was the spring of 2020, and the nascent Covid-19 pandemic had shuttered businesses around the country, including Flanarys private practice. What humor does is it allows you to take that thing and you just break it apart. It does highlight how wonderful family medicine doctors are though. I may be yelling at kids to get off my front lawn. Will Flanary, 36, who is anophthalmologist from Oregon City, Oregon, has not let his health problems bring him down. Flanarys best material balances the specificity of an expert with the nose for hypocrisy that typically comes from an incisive observer, said Heidi Tworek, a University of British Columbia history professor who studies health communication. Cancel anytime. Once a month, just check yourself.'. Theres the warm but disconcertingly studious pediatrician, the charmingly alarmist dermatologist, the meatheaded orthopedic surgeon, and Jonathan, the loyal medical scribe whose dedication borders on sociopathy. Interns get handicap parking, attendings catch the shuttle from the commuter lot. As graduation approached, the couple seemed to be going in different directions literally. Q&A with William A. Flanary, MD, aka Dr. Glaucomflecken, provides a glimpse into his experience surviving cardiac arrest. This resonates with a lot of people.. Now, he is telling his story so that other men know what to look for and can catch the disease early on. As an Audible member, your subscription includes: Amazon Prime members can take a free 30-day trial and receive 2 credits that can be used on any 2 titles from of their choice. Theyre also put to use in Flanarys tried-and-true format, dating back to the insurance video: pithy clips in which a reasonable person encounters a preposterous system, and comedy ensues. A short format, very easy to edit and shoot, and it would work on my schedule. A: Thats a good example of one that surprised me. Fumitake Koga, Written by: We dont like to work for long periods of time. Honestly, it's surreal. For more news, follow Medscape on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, andYouTube. Morning Forecast Access to the Plus Cataloguethousands of Audible Originals, audiobooks and podcasts, including exclusive series. Im really good at finding my own testicular cancer! He laughed. At first, Will wasn't sure what to do, since losing both of his testicles meant he would no longer be able to have children or make enough testosterone, which affects his ability to have sex. Since then, it has evolved to incorporate satire of the US healthcare system, academic publishing, and the interpersonal conflicts that are pervasive in the medical system. Daniel Kahneman. Is Homeostasis a Joke to You Shirt. Since then, it has evolved to incorporate satire of the US healthcare system, academic publishing, and the interpersonal conflicts that are pervasive in the medical system. Since 2016 he has become well known for making and uploading medical satire skits on Twitter, TikTok and YouTube. He then had surgery to remove the testicle that had the tumor on it. I called it the Quiet Place. "What delights me to no end is people who think my actual name is Dr Glaucomflecken," Flanary says. Titles added to your Library with a credit are yours to keep, even if you cancel. After surgery to remove the cancer, they were ready to move forward. One of his most popular recent videos, which pokes fun at the latest CDC guidelines recommending shorter isolation periods for asymptomatic COVID-19 cases, has already garnered 6.4 million views on TikTok after the guidelines were widely criticized. There, they had their second child. Will was in cardiac arrest. But she explained that she needed him to listen to it because she needed someone to live in that space with her. After the trial period, membership is 199/month for 1 credit per month. I like knowing theres an end to my day when you get to go home. Even as my pursuit of a medical career took me to the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth in New Hampshire, I continued to do stand-up comedy when I wasnt learning the Krebs cycle or other things that med students learn that I dont really remember. Who are these people?" So he found an open mic near Dartmouth's campus, prepared a 10-minute set, and performed for an enthusiastic crowd of 50-60 people. Your membership will automatically continue for 199/month after the first 30 days, and you can cancel anytime. He's an ophthalmologist in Portland, Oregon and, on the side, a comedian. If you trust your content, if you trust the message, then youve got to just go with it and accept that. DEALING WITH CANCER AND A HEART ATTACK. In his first video to get more than 1 million views, posted that July, Flanary plays two roles: the flabbergasted patient saddled with a massive bill, and the unnervingly calm customer service representative explaining that if he had simply chosen an in-network doctor while he was unconscious, all of this could have been avoided. Thank God she did because, you know, I dont know where wed be at this point.. I continued making content through the pandemic, a sudden cardiac arrest, and dozens of reports of people sleeping in their contact lenses with disastrous consequences. iconic take on the EM residency interview. But thank goodness for adrenaline. Flanary, 36, has been on both sides of the stethoscope. Flanarys short videos poking fun at medical specialists, the U.S. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the absurdities of the U.S. health-care system, and debunking medical myths have racked up more than more than 47 million views on TikTok alone. On the other hand, some physicians attempts at white-coat comedy have veered into questionable jokes at patients expense. Together and individually, we use our social media presence, impactful writing, creative endeavors, and multimedia keynote speaking to promote humanity, and a healthy sense of humor, in healthcare. The more hours you work per week, the closer you get to park to the hospital. So Dr. Glaucomflecken is an ophthalmologist and he hilariously makes fun of all other specialties. ", Flanary's frequent contributions to the site taught him how to home in on the idiosyncrasies of various specialties. Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. "We did, like, eight cases in a day. And it does help you put a different perspective on things.. Related videos. Better known as Dr. Glaucomflecken to the rest of the world, his humour has been a bright spot for his 1.3 million TikTok and 472.9K Twitter followers looking for a bit of levity amid the. It took the first responders five shocks, three rounds of epinephrine, and a dose of amiodarone to get Flanary's heartbeat back. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Here are some of our top picks to get you started. Damian Garde covers biotech, is a co-writer of The Readout newsletter, and a co-host of "The Readout LOUD" podcast. Glaucomflecken is a result of lens epithelial cell necrosis from the elevated IOP. I feel like I can just try these things and see where it takes me.. The audience was rapt as they listened to her 911 phone call. In 2014, after a transitional year in Chicago, the young family moved to Iowa City, where Flanary began his residency at the University of Iowa. Get TikTok App . Brianna Wiest, Written by: "Comedy is a way to assert some sort of power over a situation in which you feel powerless," Flanary says. Theres the lackadaisical emergency medicine doctor, eternally clad in cycling gear. Ultimately, performing comedy live became too challenging to keep up as my medical career progressed, so I turned to social media. "I feel so heard.". 2023 Glaucomflecken | Web design by Edge One Media | Privacy Policy. Over the ensuing months, hed set his sights on the idiosyncrasies of medical education, academic journals, and all of health cares many instances of institutions preying on people who are less powerful than them, he said. Yelling at kids to get Flanary 's frequent contributions to the site taught him how home! Your Library with a credit are dr glaucomflecken heart attack to keep, even if you trust message..., has been on both sides of the Readout newsletter, and you can laugh over a shared experience that. Bring you together more than 1 million views became the norm that had the tumor on.... Has been on both sides of the staff psychiatrist good example of that. Million views became the norm elevated IOP `` it was the spring of 2020 and... 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