Thank you, Rochester

By Sten Westgard, MS

We got a big dose of "Minnesota Nice" during our workshop in Rochester, Minnesota. The participants were very helpful - some of them showed up earlier than we did and helped set up the table arrangements for the room! There really is a different culture in the midwest, a spirit of kindness and cooperation that you don't always find in states that lack prolonged sub-zero winters.

When you think of Rochester, Minnesota, your first thought might be the Mayo Clinic. While we were very happy to have many Mayo Clinic attendees, the workshop was actually hosted by the Olmsted Clinic. That's the other hospital in Rochester:

There's a pretty good reason why we picked Olmsted as the host. Take a look at the picture below, where the Medical Director of Olmsted is posing with us:

I realize the picture is small, but I'm guessing you can see a family resemblance. That's right, the Medical Director of Olmsted Clinic is Dr. David Westgard, the brother of Dr. James Westgard. So the day was filled with an excess of Westgards. Dr. David Westgard introduced Dr. James Westgard, and Sten Westgard also presented a few of the topics. In addition to an education on method validation, the audience got an introduction to the Westgard family dynamics. Statistics and North Dakota jokes actually work well together

Thanks again to Olmsted for hosting this workshop and providing us with an excellent opportunity for a mini-family reunion. -----