Tag Archives: Pavlok

Reversing Pavlok, and What You Can Learn From Your Bike Wreck.

Share
pavlov photo
Photo by EliPongo

After listening to our recent show that featured a review of a wrist-worn device that you can shock yourself with to punish you for engaging in bad habits, listener Paulius drops us a line to ask what Amy Young, Corbin Weaver, Aline Sandouk, and John Pienta do to reward themselves when they do the right things.  Like watching YouTube videos of people doing things well.  Or turning your life into a video game. Next, Amy attempts to learn some sort of lesson about clinical medicine as a result of her recent nasty bike wreck, aside from, “Being in a nasty bike wreck isn’t at all a good idea.” And Dave’s fear of someday ending up on YouTube video recorded while he recovers from anesthesia leads to a discussion on online privacy.
Continue reading Reversing Pavlok, and What You Can Learn From Your Bike Wreck.

Shocking the Habits Away

Share
electrocution photo
Photo by zigazou76

This week, Dave volunteers to wear a device that’s received a lot of buzz lately, Pavlok.  It’s creator says that through classical conditioning it will help eliminate bad habits–nail biting, unhealthy eating, procrastination, for instance.  It’s ubiquity on Dave’s social media feeds this past summer got Dave thinking about how much of human disease is based in behavior, bad habits. So Dave asked the company to send it’s crowdfunded, wrist-mounted electrical shocker for evaluation, and they inexplicably said yes.  Aline Sandouk, Lisa Wehr, and Nick Sparr all had a crack at it, and share their experience. Along with Rachel Schenkel, they attempt to use it to teach Dave  not to say “Uh.” Is it effective and worth the $169 price tag?  Are its integrations with the Internet of Things or its Chrome plugin a help for those looking to kick their bad habits?  Are there better, cheaper alternatives?

Also, the Affordable Care Act has begun withholding Medicaid reimbursements to hospitals  based on patient satisfaction surveys, and giving bonuses to those which do well on those surveys.  We explore medical education’s trade-offs in a game of what if. Hint: it turns out that our little group members are a bit mercenary.
Continue reading Shocking the Habits Away