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Kelowna  

Doctor turns years of comedy into joke book fundraiser for KGH Foundation

Doctor spreads laughter

Rob Gibson

Did you hear the one about the joke-telling surgical assistant? That would be Kelowna family doctor David Goldberg.

“What’s the difference between a hippo and a zippo?"

"One is really heavy and the other is a little lighter.”

Dr. David Goldberg has his own family practice and he provides surgical assistance for orthopedic surgeries at Kelowna General Hospital.

"I do get stopped in the hallway and asked to tell a joke," he said.

For years now, Dr. Goldberg has been known for his quick wit and penchant for telling jokes. Now he's taken it upon himself to write those jokes down so they can be published in a book that will be used as a new fundraiser for the KGH Foundation.

"Because KGH is where this whole joke-telling journey began. I think it's a good full circle opportunity to have KGH foundation and the community in general, to have some of the benefits of this new skill that I've developed," says Dr. Goldberg.

Jokes You'll Love to Tell is Dr. Goldebrg's first effort at publishing a book. He wrote down jokes that he has used over the years and put them all in a 167-page book full of jokes that he has used throughout his career.

"I'd like to make it clear that joke-telling only occurs when there's nothing else that can be done."

Dr. Goldberg subscribes to the theory that laughter is the best medicine. So after a bit of peer pressure, and some practice, he started cracking wise and it turned out he was pretty good at it.

"I was asked to entertain the room during downtime in an operation. One of the tasks offered to me was to tell jokes. Initially, it was not my go-to, but when you practice it enough times, I think you get a little bit of the timing. Every now and again and one can hit home pretty well."

Dr. Goldberg stopped by the Castanet newsroom and had us in stitches so we can attest to his comedic skills.

"I think the potential benefit to patients in the hospital is quite high because they're oftentimes in pain. Maybe they're stressed, they're worried and laughter really is the best medicine and giving a joke book to a person in a hospital seems to me a no brainer," says Dr. Goldberg.

The book is available at Mosaic Books in Kelowna the KGH Gift shop and online at Amazon.



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