Radio host Andrew Schorr, right, hosted Rabbi James Mirel and his wife Julie Mirel on �Patient Power� in August. (courtesy andrew schorr)

Andrew Schorr � creator, producer and host of the call-in radio program �Patient Power� � packs a tremendous amount of energy and optimism into everything he says. Shuttling children to and from end-of-summer activities and speaking from his car, this Mercer Island resident, father of three, entrepreneur and talk-radio host, is enthusiastically discussing his latest venture in the health communications field.Schorr�s �Patient Power,� a one-hour, weekly presentation began airing in February. Schorr�s involvement in health communications began almost two decades ago, however, when he produced patient education videos, at a time when such productions were a relatively new phenomenon. Schorr and his wife Esther moved from Los Angeles to the Seattle area in 1989 and continued producing health-related videos into the early 1990s. Schorr explored a different format beginning in 1993, when he initiated a sort of �talk show� over the phone. Schorr describes these productions as �a conference call bridge to people who had no connection to each other, other than they had a diagnosis [in common].�
Schorr first produced conference calls for people with multiple sclerosis and than branched out to asthma, cancer and headaches. Each topic included medical experts and a chance for those with shared diagnoses to connect.
�Then in 1996, the Internet came along. It became clear that it would be a lot cheaper � and you could give visuals to these talk shows,� Schorr says, detailing his company�s adoption of technology and the creation of Health Talk at www.healthtalk.com.
Schorr moved to Web-based production, launching with multiple sclerosis once again.
Notable for more than just Internet innovation, 1996 was also the year that, through a routine blood test, Schorr was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
�I thought I was dead. My wife and I thought our life was over,� Schorr remembers, �So I took my own medicine. I connected with other patients on the Internet. I sought out other people with this not particularly common condition.�
Schorr�s networking led him to Dr. Michael Keating at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Tex. Keating�s strong recommendation was that Schorr forgo immediate treatment. Since the danger was not imminent, Keating saw advantages for Schorr in receiving future, leading-edge treatment as part of a clinical trial. Schorr took Keating�s advice, though, he says, �it felt like walking around with a bomb.�
Keating encouraged Schorr to go on with his life � and even for his wife to have the third child they had been considering. The couple had that baby � �now a Dennis-the-Menace eight year-old,� Schorr wryly notes � while he awaited treatment. In 2000, Schorr entered a clinical trial in Houston and Seattle. Subsequent to treatment, Schorr became one of the first patients to live a normal life in what he called molecular remission.
�Patient Power� sprang from Schorr�s professional and personal experiences. He was compelled to reach a broader audience than even the one he could reach on the Web. Over the years, Health Talk had garnered venture capital financing, and this year, merged with another company,
So Schorr returned to his entrepreneurial roots to self-produce �Patient Power� as an independent venture.
�I used my retirement money to buy a year�s worth of time at KVI,� he explains. With just months of programming under his belt, Schorr has secured sponsorships from the area�s medical centers and retains the freedom to present topics that are compelling to him.
The Internet continues to provide enormous recourses to patients, but the glut of information can be overhwelming. Schorr�s clear vision of �Patient Power�s� role in the onslaught �is helping train people in how to develop a perspective� to approach their diagnoses.
The August 28 edition of �Patient Power� gave Schorr the opportunity to discuss the �role of faith in serious illness � when you�re faced with that for yourself or someone you care about.�
Schorr invited his own rabbi, James Mirel of Temple B�nai Torah and the rabbi�s wife Julie on the air, to discuss their relationship to faith and illness. Schorr was well aware that his friend Julie had been battling breast cancer since 2003. During the show, Schorr invited Rabbi Mirel to share �his perspective both as a chaplain, and as support to his own wife with a serious illness.�
Schorr found common ground with Julie Mirel as they discussed the Misheberach, the prayer for healing.
�What an experience it is when somebody says your name,� says Schorr, �The last thing you want is to be that person because it means you are dealing with something serious. But, there�s tremendous support to feel that energy that people are calling upon for you.�
Though he refers to energy, Schorr is equally comfortable referring to God. When he reflects upon his CCL diagnosis, Schorr says, �It was like God tapping you on the shoulder.�
Schorr readily connects illness, work and the Divine as he describes his current undertaking. �If you go back to the work I do, why am I passionate about it � as a business or income? No, it�s a mission! I mean, I have to support myself, but it�s a mission. I do believe in God�s will.�

Andrew Schorr�s Patient Power can be heard on Sundays at 8 a.m. on KVI-AM 570, Seattle and online at www.kvi.com.