THE MONDAY MESSAGE: In a matter of days, ye olde Augusta Medical Examiner will reach the ripe old age of six. Yeah, ME! It has been so much more enjoyable than I had expected: being the publisher of MCG’s campus newspaper for 16 years previously, I had every article and photograph handed to me on a disk, ranked in order no less. These three articles go on page one, this story should take up the center spread, etc, etc. Back then, my capable layout artist, Lisa Ackerman (now McArdle), would whip the pages into shape.
The Medical Examiner was quite a departure from that model. I would be responsible for all the content. No one would so much as hand me an idea, let alone a fully mapped complete issue. Of course, over time, the highly talented stable of columnists you now read in every issue emerged. That is a tremendous improvement: no one wants to read the same author for an entire newspaper, let alone issue after issue. Fresh voices make for fresh reading. Sincere gratitude goes out to Helen Blocker-Adams, Cindy Elia, Bad Billy Laveau, Naomi D. Williams, Sandy Turner, Chris and Lee Davidson, Bill Cleveland, Marcia Ribble, and the three student authors of The Short White Coat who have graced these pages: Raul Gonzalez, Hevil Shah, and Ashita Gelhot. They are all masterful writers. Hats off also to the excellent guest columnists who have appeared in the Medical Examiner: the late Tom Campbell, Dr. W.G. “Curly” Watson, Dr. William Bloodworth, Dr. Paul Fischer, Dr. Pam Salazar, Mr. Dennis Skelley, and Dr. Rob Lamberts, among others.
The Medical Examiner’s reader base is a tremendous group of people, the vast majority of whom are total strangers. But rarely do many days go by without an e-mail, a card or a letter, or even a phone call from someone I’ve never met, letting me know how much they enjoy the Medical Examiner. That kind of feedback is a real treat. In sixteen years, it never happened. Now it happens all the time, and it’s greatly appreciated. Delivering papers twice a month may not sound like typical management duty, but it provides a lot of invaluable face-to-face feedback. Thanks to all of you who make thoughtful, positive comments about the Medical Examiner.
Last but certainly not least, thanks to our advertisers. Without them, this newspaper would simply not be possible. Their loyal support is greatly appreciated. Thanks to our newest advertiser – MedEx Associates – and to our charter advertisers who have been there since even before the first issue: Dr. Jan Scholer and Wild Wing Cafe, and Pat and Sue Leeking of the Daniel Village Barber Shop. Thanks to International Uniforms and Scrubs of Evans for their long-term support, as well as to Georgia Dermatology & Skin Cancer Center, United Hospice, Walton Rehabilitation Health System, Windsor Jewelers, Wilkinson & Magruder, LLP, Jury Pest Control, Summerville Pharmacy, Health Center Credit Union, Top-Notch Carwash, H+D Photo, Ambient Healthcare (formerly Genesis), and the advertisers in our Medical Services Directory. Thanks also to T2D (Thomas and Thomas Design) for help with our website, and to Peach Mac. The Medical Examiner is built on a Mac, a PeachMac Mac at that. Always has been, always will be.
Finally, about that puzzle. We have never quite figured out why the big players in Augusta’s medical community – a group we’ll define as University, GHSU, Trinity, and Doctors hospitals – give us no advertising support. These folks advertise, it sometimes seems, in every publication in town except the one publication devoted exclusively to health, wellness and medicine. They pay for SuperSaver Coupons and full-page ads in the Metro Spirit; they’re on billboards and in the Chronicle and Augusta Family and Augusta Magazine and Columbia County Magazine. Is there anything wrong with advertising in any of those places? Not even a little. Somehow we would expect to be in the mix too, but despite our invitations (which are becoming more and more infrequent), we aren’t. It’s puzzling, to say the least. But to them all: the Red Carpet remains rolled out in your direction. Your support would be most welcomed, and in return you could be assured that every person who sees your messages, at least in the Medical Examiner, is someone interested in wellness and better health. No other CSRA publication can make that offer.