400th Episode Celebration: Ask Us Anything, Hot Ones-style

400th Episode Celebration: Ask Us Anything, Hot Ones-style

Author: Alex Smith, Eric Widera April 16, 2026 Duration: 1:00:57

Lynn Flint and Anne Kelly join as hosts in a reprise of last year's ask us anything format.  Thank you for sending in your terrific questions!  Lynn and Anne condensed them to about 20, and we ran through them rather rapid fire.  Also on fire? Our mouths.  As with our 300th episode, we did this Hot Ones-style. Every few questions, we had to eat a chicken wing slathered in hot sauce.  The hot sauces got progressively hotter, though as we discovered, the ordering may have been a littttttle bit off.  Still, by the time we hit the really hot ones, our mouths were on fire, we were blowing our noses, gulping down milk, and terrified of what the next hot wing would bring…

We covered so much in this podcast, including:

  • Coffee or tea? What jokes do you make with patients?

  • Where do we see ageism?

  • Why are we still advocating for advance care planning?

  • Concerns about expansion of medical aid in dying

  • Should doctors reveal that they're using AI in clinical care (thanks for the question mom!)

  • The future of geriatrics and palliative care

  • What we'd do differently about the podcast if we could start over, or what we could do that is new going forward. Surprises in terms of who is listening, our audience.

  • Ideas for others to build community as we do at GeriPal

  • Influence of our own spirituality and religion on our clinical practice

  • Lasting practice changes from prior podcasts, or from Covid experience

  • Why PC in the ED hasn't taken off

  • And more!

 

Looking back on 10 years and 400 podcasts, Eric and I are filled with gratitude for you, dear listeners.  You sustain us.  You keep us going.  Please stay involved, send us messages about show ideas, and introduce yourself to us at national meetings.

Thank you!

-Alex Smith

 


Hosted by UCSF physicians Alex Smith and Eric Widera, GeriPal-A Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Podcast creates a vital space for conversation at the intersection of aging and serious illness care. This isn't a dry lecture series; it's a dynamic dialogue where Eric and Alex bring on leading experts to unpack the complexities of geriatric and palliative medicine. They delve into the latest research that should change practice, tackle the ethical dilemmas that provoke debate, and explore the nuanced clinical challenges that professionals face daily. The tone is engaging and often surprisingly lighthearted, with moments of humor and even the occasional song, making profound topics more accessible. Whether you're a clinician, nurse, social worker, or any professional dedicated to this field, this podcast offers a blend of evidence-based insights and practical wisdom you can use. It’s a resource that acknowledges the weight of the work while fostering connection and continued learning. For those seeking formal education credits, AMA PRA Category 1 CME and MOC credit are also available through the show. Tune in to join a community committed to improving care for older adults and those with serious illness.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

GeriPal - A Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Implementing Palliative Care in Nursing Homes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:06
The need for better palliative care in nursing homes is significant. Consider this: the majority of the 1.4 million adults residing in U.S. nursing homes grapple with serious illnesses, and roughly half experience dement…
Lucid Episodes: Andrea Gilmore-Bykovskyi & Andrew Peterson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:55
Have any of you watched the movie "The Notebook"? At the end, one of the characters, who has dementia, experiences an episode of lucidity. When I watched it, between tears (I'm a complete softie) I remember thinking, "Oh…
Music as Medicine: Jenny Chen, Tyler Jorgensen, & Theresa Allison [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:03
As you know, dear listeners, I love music. We start each podcast with a song in part to shift the frame, taking people out of their academic selves and into a more informal conversation. Well, today's guests love music a…
HIV, Aging, and Palliative Care: Peter Selwyn and Meredith Greene [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:59
Peter Selwyn, one of today's guests, has been caring for people living with HIV for over 40 years. In that time, care of people with HIV has changed dramatically. Initially, there was no treatment, then treatments with m…
Loss of DEI Hurts Everyone: Farah Stockman, Ali Thomas, Ken Covinsky [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:18
I read Farah Stockman's article in the NYT on why attacks on DEI will cost us all, and thought, "Yes, and 'everyone' includes harm to our healthcare workforce, our patients, and their families." So we're delighted that F…
RCT of PC in ED: Corita Grudzen, Fernanda Bellolio, & Tammie Quest [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:34
Early in my research career, I was fascinated by the (then) frontier area of palliative care in the emergency department. I asked emergency medicine clinicians what they thought when a patient who is seriously ill and DN…