Dr. Drew - Author/Radio/Television
By: Dominick A. Miserandino
Dr. Drew discusses why he does what he does and how he's a doctor first, media spokesman second. He's never stopped practicing medicine and he tells us why.
DM) When you came out with the book [Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again], to me it was clear that your goal was to get out some important medical information. But, you also have celebrity and notoriety on your side, where people know you from the radio and television. Does that celebrity or characterization take the focus away from the serious medical issues that you're discussing?
DD) I work every day of my life as a doctor and very few people think of me that way or even know of me in that light. And when they are hospital-referred and looking at me through their delirium, sometimes I identify that, they just say, "Whatever, just help me." And once I start to help them, they identify me as their doctor and they lose that very quickly.
DM) Would you ever stop working as a doctor?
DD) I don't think so. My whole goal is to try and use what I know as a clinician to give people information. If you don't practice every day, it changes so fast, you don't know what you're talking about.
DM) It sounds like two separate worlds in a way.
DD) It is, but understand, think of how many attorneys live in both worlds and yet nobody scrutinizes them. The fact is, that my profession is the last one to learn to utilize the media and to stamp it with our understanding of the human experience. If you're going to be a part of it, you're going to have to be a part of creating experiences and creating entertainment, or people won't listen at all. That's the conundrum, trying to find a vehicle that creates an experience for people that also transmits information.
DM) It sounds like you're doing this to get out the message more than anything else.
DD) I'm doing this because it's my profession. I never had any designs on this stuff. I did the radio for ten years for free, thinking that I was doing community service. Just a young guy thinking that he found another way to ply his craft. Over time it found a life of its own. They had to schedule the TV around my clinical schedule, I was not to be disturbed by this. It was about two years into the television show that I thought this might be something I was meant to do. So over the past five years I've been trying to find other ways of using the media as a vehicle to get out this message.
DM) So at one point was the media second place to your profession?
DD) It wasn't second place, it's something that I didn't have as a second thought. It wasn't even on the radar screen. I was working twelve as a physician for years, and the media had to roll into that schedule. I got a great life that I'm living. I work with interesting people and do interesting things with one goal, to do good.
DM) Do you feel that you've accomplished that goal?
DD) I've done some stuff that I think was not good and some stuff that I think was good. I'm happy so far. I don't know where this is going. I don't have a blueprint, but it's been quite an adventure. As long as I have my eye on the goal, which is when the day is done, as long as I've done something good, I'm happy.
DM) It sounds like at one point you basically went along for the ride and didn't expect for this or that to happen.
DD) I didn't expect anything. This is one huge surprise after another. It's been an interesting adventure, as far as I'm concerned. People keep advising me to do things. I've had to learn the difference between good and bad television to do what's best to get my message out. I also learned that you have to do stuff, to do stuff. Like when I went on that Big Brother show, I went from being a guy who went from cable to network. That's the way media is. You're not allowed to do things until you've done them. Now I'm doing things that I really wanted to do and things are good.
DM) And on the forefront of your mind is getting the message out?
DD) I pity those people who are in the media for the sake of being in the media, for themselves. I have a job to do. I'm trying to do something.
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