"Speed-hacking", Lord Owen and Dinner

Yesterday I took part in "speed-hacking". A special type of speed dating which doesn't involve flirting, finding a date or taking care to wear the right shade of lipstick. 

In actual fact it was a new type of session with the Medical Journalist Association for lonely or aspiring medical writers to meet the right experienced medical writers/editors to talk to.

Ashley McKimm organised the session and founded JuniorDr magazine and was one of the medical editors I spoke to.

We had 7 minutes to chat to each expert and ask them key questions about the trade, before moving onto the next person or having a break to prepare for later. 

I think "Speed-hacking" is an art in itself. With the first expert I spoke to I had prepared a long list of well thought out questions to ask. I sat down, introduced myself, he introduced himself, I responded and then the bell went. It was over in a flash.

So trying to learn from mistakes, I tried to keep my introduction to a quick sentence the next time round. 

Across the Spectrum

It was good opportunity to talk to a broad range of editors and writers, because even the specific speciality of medical journalism has diversity within itself.  

For example, I spoke two completely different editors, Olivia Timbs, who is the Pharmaceutical Journal editor and Lee Rodwell, who is the health editor of Take a Break magazine.

Lord Owen

The "Speed-hack" was followed by a speech by Lord Owen, who talked about famous world leaders and their attached illnesses. He mentioned "hubris syndrome" as one of them, a semi invented jokey problem which he said leaders and their egos often face.

Just as an observation, Lord Owen is obviously a very intelligent man as he appeared to hold thoughts in his head for very long periods of time and came back to them much later on, combining them all, meaning he was able to speak in very long sentences.

Interesting People

The evening finished with a dinner and everyone could speak to anyone for as long as thought polite, which in my case was determined by who I was sat next to. I was sitting next to a consultant surgeon who had just written a book on addictions. 

He believed that everyone should relax on the subject of drugs, smoking and alcohol. The law being there or not, people have always, still do and always will getting addicted to various substances. 

The cheese and biscuits appeared at the end of the table for him to go pick up, before I was able to hear the rest of his conclusions. Maybe I should read his book.

I also spoke to a young medical student, who had come out of her gap year traveling in Ghana. She told me of some shocking stories where she had witnessed an appendix being removed, when the patient woke up during the operation.

Talking of frightening stories, by the end of the evening, it was a bit later than expected so I didn't move onto a friend's Halloween party. However I felt very privileged to have been to such an event. It was an experience.