SHANDS ARTS IN MEDICINE STAFF PERSON DON LUTZ

This is a page in the Web site entitled Mainstreaming Arts in Medicine.

  1. Arts in medicine (AIM) is a new movement that is gaining popularity around the world. As it is practiced at the University of Florida's Shands Hospital and other hospitals it includes volunteers and staff that interact at bedside with patients employing a broad spectrum of art forms to effect healing. These include visual art, music, dance, story telling, acting, among many others. It also goes by various other names including arts in healthcare and arts in healing.

  2. One of the functions of this site is to discuss various people within the Shands Arts in Medicine program as they relate to Shands, medicine, and the AIM program, in order to more accurately understand the program.

  3. This page discusses Don Lutz who performs many functions within AIM, including writing for various organizational purposes, preparing schedules, coordinating projects, etc. He has been in the organization for perhaps a year and a half.

  4. Like Shands Arts in Medicine program founder, Dr. John Graham-Pole, he has strong reservations about the efficacy and course of established medicine. One of his beliefs, for instance, is that virtually all immunology is ineffective.

  5. He is also symptomatic of cancer. He has discussed it with a number of people around the hospital, and thus it is commonly known, that he is symptomatic of a form of slowly developing (but fatal) cancer but does not seek diagnostics (blood test, physical exam), because he would not follow up with treatment anyway, placing his faith in his vegan diet. I would assume that the success rate for treatment of this type of cancer is better than 90% if it is diagnosed soon enough.

  6. As a May 10, 1999, update, he has mentioned to me that he is now only symptomatic when under stress.

  7. The problem here is that within the context of AIM and its hospital setting, this medical condition has the potential to seriously discredit AIM as well as embarrass the hospital while at the same time establishing or proving absolutely nothing from the standpoint of medicine (regardless of whether he completely recovers or dies from the cancer) because no diagnostics were done and more importantly, his illness is a single event.

  8. Thus, what is the press or public going to think of AIM's healing efforts and abilities if an AIM staff member dies unnecessarily, as a result of his own faulty advice, guiding himself away from well proven mainstream medical treatment? And what are they going to think of the hospital where it happened?

  9. As a consequence, we are faced with a host of issues concerning mainstream medicine, alternative or holistic medicine, the validity of the scientific method, moral obligation, educational requirements, individual rights, AIM's reputation, the hospital's reputation, etc., due to the fact that AIM, unique to the health care world, seeks people with an anti-mainstream medicine bias. For, I would assume it would be virtually unheard of for a health care professional otherwise to refuse at least the minimum of a diagnostic evaluation, the same as they would expect their patients to do.

  10. Doing a search on his name, one finds a Web site entitled The Weaning of America on dairy products. I have also placed a paper on a Web page entitled Cultural Myths Created and/or sustained by Corporate Media that was a handout at a talk given by him at the Gainesville Civic Media Center that I attended. He also has a Web site on marijuana which doesn't come up on a name search. These writings reveal an anti-science, anti-mainstream-medicine perspective.

  11. As a May 22, 1999, update, Don Lutz today sent me an e-mail requesting me to remove him from my site. However, everything that is on my site about him has been made freely public by him in furtherance of his various interests, and I don't see that it is private or confidential in nature. Further, as I have discussed, there are clear interests of AIM and the hospital in this particular situation that deserve consideration. Thus I don't see that examining the situation is out of line. (There are as well, things about Don supporting the site that are a matter of public record which I haven't mentioned, and which I have omitted purely so as not to embarrass him.)

  12. Don states in his email that I say he is dying of cancer, which is not the case. This site does state however that he is symptomatic of a kind of cancer that kills. And of course a person that is symptomatic may or may not have the disease; and if they have the disease it is not necessarily terminal.

  13. According to a very recent article in the Gainesville Sun, the cancer in question is described as the leading malignancy among men, trailing only lung cancer as a cancer killer; and this year doctors will diagnose about 180,000 cases. In this particular form of cancer, early diagnosis can easily mean the difference between life and death. For once the disease becomes metastatic, the chances of survival are low.

  14. A few days ago I pointed out a person to Don who's Father had recently died a very agonizing death because he hadn't taken this same form of cancer seriously. I'm sure this person would have been glad to talk to Don about it, but Don pointedly showed no interest.

  15. When in Rome. The thesis of this site is of course mainstreaming AIM. I think we in AIM need people who are willing to orient themselves around, and support Shand's health program and perspectives as would be expected of any other department/group in the hospital. Indeed, being recent on the scene and somewhat controversial in nature it is a virtual necessity to do so if we want credibility. Once we have established credibility, then is the time to take issue with aspects of mainstream medicine when there are solid grounds for doing so.

  16. I will retain the material about Don in support of the purposes of this site and am placing his complete e-mail to me containing his objections below:

    1. Bob,

    2. I reviewed your website for the second time this morning. I am very disheartened. I tried to ignore your childish, reactionary criticism of all the people in AIM and CAHRE, hoping you would realize that all you are accomplishing is making life more difficult for some of us. Your unfair, uneducated assessment of the AIM program, and me personally is very hurtful. Your claim to know that I am dying of cancer is ridiculous. Had I known how vindictive and egoistic you are, I would never had confided in you in any way regarding my work or my personal life. Your thoughtless comments about me are clearly intended to do damage, and if I DO have any health problems, you have certainly contributed by adding more stress to my life.

    3. You accuse AIM members (other than me) of refusing to read your material, and this is a legitimate complaint. But you clearly exhibit your own problem with "projection" ( a scientific, psychology term) when it becomes obvious that you have not read the material available on the history of Shands Arts in Medicine. It always surprised and disturbed me that you that you had no interest in reading articles and books that I suggested might add to your knowledge of subjects that you talk and write about. Apparently your ego is in the way. Your knowledge of medicine and healing is very limited; you are in no way qualified to judge me or anyone else who has studied health and healing in a serious way. Your thoughtless, ill-informed comments about AIM members have done a real disservice to those of us who have attempted to befriend you. Specifically, your comments about me are largely untrue, and clearly come from someone not only uneducated in, but disrespectful of holistic healing. I am not against all "mainstream" medicine, nor am I against all immunization. Your lack of knowledge and belief in the importance of diet is apparent, as is your clear lack of respect for any views that differ from the narrow-focused tunnelvision "education" that you experienced forty years ago.

    4. You claim to have attended "many" seminars on holistic healing, including my lectures. My view of this claim is that more often than not you fall asleep during these presentations, or leave part way through. Your "education" in health and related topics is very limited when compared to many of the members of AIM. Your description of me and others, especially John, is unfair, biased and clearly intended to hurt us and the program. You claim to have been treated with disrespect at rounds meetings, and I would concur, but then your reactionary response is to do the same to ALL of us in AIM.

    5. I have been defending you and your opinions for almost a year now. Apparently I have thus played the fool. I thought your intentions were positive, and I gave you the benefit of the doubt when your motives were unclear. My reward has been a nasty, hurtful portrayal of me on the Internet. If your intention has been to strike back at AIM people and make us suffer, you may be succeeding. If your intent is to make a positive contribution, you have clearly gone WAY OFF on the wrong track.

    6. When I first read your comments about me and others, I was hurt. But upon the suggestion of others you have targeted, I said very little, hoping that your website was just a childish temper tantrum, and you would rethink and revise. But this has not happened. Your description of me, my activities, and especially the complete lack of mention of my education and experience, presents a picture of me that is inaccurate and damaging. Your mention of my second website, which I told you did not include my name (for obvious reasons), was also very thoughtless.

    7. Apparently, your negative life experiences, coupled with a huge ego, have left you very sour, very inconsiderate, and not terribly trustworthy. I am asking you to reconsider your views on me and AIM people, and to PLEASE TAKE MY NAME AND COMMENTS ABOUT ME OFF YOUR EMBARASSING WEBSITE. When I say embarassing, I mean embarassing to you as well. An educated, mature, and compassionate person would not have lashed out as you have. You have told me the sad story about how you were treated unfairly by the media in Fort Myers, but now you are doing virtually the same thing to me and others. If your intent is to make my life more difficult than has been, you are succeeding. The stress you are adding to my experience is much more of a health risk than my "choice" not to see a doctor that meets YOUR questionable standards.

    8. Many of us in AIM have sincerely tried to be your friend. If you are happier without friends, that is your choice, and you may be on the right track if that is your goal.

    9. --Don

  17. August 23, 1999, update. I think a few additional points about Don will shed further light on the Arts in Medicine program. Most of the following things were told to me by Don himself, without any promise from me of secrecy, and they are common knowledge among many AIMers and others; and many of them are a matter of public record:

    1. If you read his Web sites, it is apparent Don considers himself to be somewhat of a teacher and moralist. At the same time he has a history of behavior that doesn't support what most mainstream people would view as making the best teacher or moralist.

    2. He obtains welfare in the form of food stamps and public housing. For those who need it of course welfare is justified and necessary. However Don is basically healthy with no dependents and could manage without it. He is also a marajuana user which is expensive. (Some years ago, he was a dealer in crack cocaine and convicted of it.)

    3. Due to his vegan diet, he will eat almost none of the food that is available for indigents such as two day old bread, etc.; which of course is of no cost to either taxpayers or society.

    4. He also, for instance, pays $20/mo. for each one of his two Web sites ($480/yr. for both), one promoting veganism and related issues as set forth above, and the other promoting marajuana. (He could also obtain his Web sites free, as most people of modest means do, if he cared to.)

    5. In essence, the taxpayers through welfare, are paying for his marajuana use, vegan diet, and his Web sites promoting both.

    6. At the same time, AIM's mission is not of course to promote either vaganism or marajuana. Don is also paid through the Arts in Medicine program from taxpayer, grant, or other hospital sources and there are of course many worthy students struggling to get an education that could use the employment and income as well. These facts were current as of January, 1999, and of course its possible some of them might have changed.

    This is a page in the Web site entitled Mainstreaming Arts in Medicine .

    Copyright © 1999, Robert Allston. All rights reserved.