Scottsdale, AZ- worst weather city on the planet!

THE Mayo Clinic (Scottsdale, AZ)

When SAR member Cooky Menias invited me to speak at Mayo Scottsdale this fall, it was hard to resist. 1) They have a great Abdomen Section; 2) It’s the epicenter for our Society’s journal, Abdominal Imaging, which former SGR president and current Mayo Chair Dan Johnson (2011-2012) runs; 3) It’s a beautiful facility teeming with SAR members and some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet; and 4) It should have been the perfect place to watch the October 8^th total lunar eclipse. In fact, the chance of having bad weather in Phoenix/Scottsdale in October is somewhere between the chance that monkeys will fly out of my butt (slightly more likely) and the likelihood that Fox News will endorse Hillary Clinton for president (much less likely). After all, October in Scottsdale normally boasts 88% sunshine and about 0” of rain. In reality, however, Phoenix turned out to the worst place in the entire country from which to watch the lunar eclipse. I might as well have been at an ARC meeting in Kauai. Phoenix took a direct hit from the remnants of tropical storm/hurricane Simon, bringing 3 days of clouds and rain that perfectly spanned the duration of my visit. As a result, the 30 pounds of camera equipment I hauled with me laid unused in my backpack, and I had to warn my gastroenterologist to expect flying monkeys when he does my screening colonoscopy next month (my insurance won’t pay for a screening CTC, and if you see flying monkeys on a CTC, you can’t remove them).

The satellite image around the time of the eclipse looked like this.

Weather aside, it was a great visit. From the meticulously groomed cactus garden near the entrance to the orchestral music filling the lobby, Mayo Scottsdale exudes class. And speaking of class, they just spawned their first class of radiology residents, both of whom I treated to a morning conference on CT of abdominal pain. I didn't mind the small audience, as Mayo provided enough fruit and breakfast muffins for 30 people. Eventually, the Scottsdale residency will host 4 residents per year, after carefully culling the top of the applicant pool and sending the scraps to the other Mayo programs.* After a brief photo shoot (the halls of the radiology department are graced with the visages of many SAR member speakers), I presented my talk on renal cell carcinoma to a larger audience of residents, fellows, and faculty.

The future of Mayo Scottsdale radiology: Kristen (left) and Courtney (right)

I spent the evening before my talks in the company of members of the SAR and Mayo’s Abdominal Imaging section, including Cooky Menias, Amy Hara, Fred Chen (section Chief), Al Silva, and Scott Kriegshauser. I learned more about the Mayo way of doing things, including their unique system of rotating leadership (section heads and chairs are rotated on a regular basis, although the rumor is that Dan Johnson plans to declare himself “Dictator for Life” as the first stage of his ultimate stratagem to unify the entire Mayo system under his banner*). I expected to learn that the Mayo system was fully IT-integrated, so I was surprised to hear that, like so many other large healthcare entities, parts of their EMR were not consistent across the enterprise. I was also surprised to hear that Mayo Rochester’s only purpose is to serve as a “farm team” to provide a steady stream of top talent to Mayo Scottsdale. According to their Scottsdale colleagues, those who don’t make the cut are “condemned to live out their remaining days in a frozen wasteland somewhere in Minnesota”. I asked them about Mayo Jacksonville, but they were unfamiliar with that particular entity.*

The totally hip members of the Abdominal Imaging Section at Mayo Scottsdale

Cooky was an amazing host, and watching her work, it became clear how fortunate Mayo was to have enticed her away from her beloved Mallinckrodt (Don’t worry Mallinckrodt, she still has a huge soft spot for you). As expected, the case mix at the hospital was diverse and challenging, but the Mayo group was more than equipped to handle it. I was also impressed by the sense of comradery among the abdominal imagers, a hugely important factor in job satisfaction.

Cooky waits with me at the Scottsdale Space Port (airports are so yesterday)

The bottom line… Mayo Scottsdale really is an awesome place with great people, but I hereby declare Phoenix/Scottsdale the worst weather city on the planet!

*The preceding statements are for entertainment value only, are possibly fabricated, and are not necessarily reflective of the opinions or values of Mayo Clinic or its employees.