My brother Greg and I are passionate about healthcare. Greg is a board-certified pathologist who is currently at Harvard on a dermatopathology fellowship. As a pathologist, he is an expert on health. He knows quite a lot about disease–what causes it, what cures it, and the latest research developments. In fact, he spent three years studying cancer and is especially interested in stroke and memory recovery.
I am the CEO of Osmond Marketing and specialize in healthcare marketing. My doctorate is in communication, which means that I draw from the areas of psychology, sociology, and the humanities to understand the emotional and spiritual side of health. Where Greg excels in health, my focus is on wellness. Together, we work to uncover the many, many factors that help a person stay healthy, live longer, and have a better quality of life.
Why are we so interested in health and wellness? As with most things, our motivation comes from personal experience. When I was 16 and Greg was 12, our dad, Wayne Osmond, was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He had long suspected that he had a tumor–but it wasn’t until MRI imaging made important advances that doctors were able to see it and operate. They flew him immediately to Duke University, where they removed two types of tumors in two 12-hour surgeries. He came close to death a number of times but was able to pull through and become a cancer survivor!
During the next fifteen years, Dad had to be monitored carefully–an MRI every three months, then every six months, then every year. After ten years, he was diagnosed “cancer free.” But then he began having other problems. He began to lose his balance. He began to lose some of his short-term memory. And he lost nearly all of his hearing. His life had been extended, but his quality of life was slipping away. Finally, after a major stroke, it was revealed that he had been having mini-strokes for many years–possibly since the time he received his brain surgery.
Wayne Osmond is a fighter, and he once again rose to the challenge. He recovered from the strokes, but there are some residual effects, such as hearing loss, that he is still struggling to overcome. While he is bravely fighting for his health and quality of life, Greg and I are motivated to find out everything we can about health and wellness to improve Dad’s life. If there is information we can share to improve others’ lives in the process, we hope to provide it.