ABOUT ME

Thank you for visiting Real Common Sense Medicine, and thank you for taking the time to find out about the author. 

I hate having to talk about myself, but if I am going to ask you to read my blogs and share my thoughts, you really do have a right to know who I am, where I am coming from, and why I care about the things I write about.

First off, my name is Richard Morgan, and I have been blessed to have been able to practice medicine for over four decades in several specialties in six different states, with a large group of amazing colleagues. When I say amazing, please understand that most were amazingly good, supportive professionals.  Others were, well, just amazing in other ways.  I have always believed we can learn from everyone.  Some people show us things we should do.  Others show us things to be avoided.  The latter lessons are probably the more important ones.

The result has been exposure to a wide variety of experiences and problems, which I believe has helped me gain insights that I might have missed if my background had not been so broad. For the past five years, almost as a “second career,” I have been the Responsible Physician in a prepaid primary care and wellness center.   We treat the spectrum of health problems seen by a Family Practitioner or an Internist, including diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, thyroid disease, arthritis, anxiety, depression, and all the other chronic conditions of an adult population in America.  We also deal with all of our peoples’ minor problems, the colds, sprains, rashes, and the like. In the course of this, nutritional guidance and advice on healthy living is a large part of our mission.  It also turns out to be one of many people’s favorite topics.

The questions raised by these people will form the core of my posts and discussions.

Before this transition, the bulk of my career was spent in a totally different world.  I was a Cardiothoracic and Vascular surgeon.  This is a pretentious way of saying that I operated on hearts, lungs, and blood vessels, with all of the intensive care and hospital care this entails. 

After earning my medical degree from Harvard Medical School, I completed a residency in Surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital and then a residency in Thoracic Surgery at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.  I went on to become a member of the faculty at Medical College of Ohio for four years, teaching medical students and surgical residents.   Later, I went into private practice and I was involved with founding two separate open-heart surgery programs. During this time, I served at various times as Chief of Surgery and President of the Medical Staff.  This meant that I had to deal with hospital administrators, accrediting organizations, regulatory agencies, and the whole panoply of bureaucrats who never give care to anyone, but who are convinced they are essential to allowing someone else to care for the patients.  This experience taught me more than I ever wanted to know about the workings and frequent failings of our corporate healthcare system.    

On the personal side, I live in Florida with my wonderful wife of 35 years. I always treasure the love and support she gives me.  We have two sons, each of whom has recently married, and two cocker spaniels. 

I am excited to have the opportunity to interact with you through this blog.  Please feel free to comment on the posts, and please let me know if there is any topic you would like me to discuss. 

If you wish, I will send you notifications of new posts.  Just leave your e-mail address in the space at the bottom of this page.   Because of my work schedule, I will not be able to post daily, but will aim for at least one each week.

I know that I will learn more from you than you will from me. Let’s have fun together with this.