Academic Medicine Podcast: Recent Episodes
Academic Medicine
Meet medical students and residents, clinicians and educators, health care thought leaders and researchers in this podcast from the journal Academic Medicine. Episodes chronicle the stories of these individuals as they experience the science and the art of medicine. Guests delve deeper into the issues shaping medical schools and teaching hospitals today. Subscribe to this podcast and listen as the conversation continues.
The journal Academic Medicine serves as an international forum to advance knowledge about the principles, policy, and practice of research, education, and patient care in academic settings.
Please note that the opinions expressed in this podcast are the guests’ alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the AAMC or its members.
As a caregiver myself, this experience brought recognition of my need to take the time to grieve. Acknowledging my sadness over the neurodegenerative illness which has won out again despite my valiant efforts to assist the person who has fallen victim to the disease, but also my loss of the relationships with family and caregivers who, by their strength, resilience, kindness, appreciation and humor, have had a meaningful impact on my evolution as a person as well as a physician.
Angela Scicutella reflects on the bond that forms between physicians and the family members and caregivers of their patients.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
While acknowledging her embarrassment, I encouraged her to hold fast to that part of her—the part that was so moved by the work she did to help a child heal that tears escaped. Those tears express our human experience, love for the patient, and deep appreciation for the healing process.
Cara E. Texler reflects on the importance of retaining humanism in medicine amidst the interruptions and tasks that inundate physicians' days.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
Celebrating Academic Medicine's 100th anniversary are past editors-in-chief Addeane Caelleigh, Steven Kanter, MD, and David Sklar, MD, and current editor-in-chief Laura Roberts, MD, MA. Together, they reflect on where the journal has been and what the future might hold. They discuss how they approached the role of editor, the journal's unique place in the community and achievements over the years, and the importance of peer review, publication ethics, and mentorship in building skills, advancing knowledge, and improving health.
Access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Whenever a patient or learner asked a question, instead of answering, I would look at the senior resident and WAIT for them to answer it. Turns out, in the vast majority of cases the resident handled it just fine on their own.
Matthew Soltys reflects on the power of silence to make space for learners to grow independently.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
Every patient is the protagonist in their own story. When we open our hearts to their narratives, we see ourselves reflected in them. We are invigorated to connect with the patients we are accompanying on their healing path, to bring forth our best selves. We heal, from our hearts to their hearts.
Emily S. Hagen and Sari Hart reflect on a patient who reminded them that human relationships are at the heart of the healing experience.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
Every shadow on a scan carries weight. And every patient deserves someone who knows how to read between the shadows—and then, to speak gently about what they see.
Sonal Kumar reflects on clinical observation, which is not just a skill, but a language that must be taught deliberately and with care.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
Medicine was not just about what we did for patients—it was about how we walked with them through life and death. A typical day for me might be a patient's most vulnerable and life-defining moment.
Leonard Kuan-Pei Wang reflects on participating in an honor walk, a solemn tradition where hospital staff, family, and friends gather to pay their respects to a patient donating their organs.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
The candles ignited my pants that evening. But the real culprit was my anxiety over making a good first impression: in an effort to avoid the approaching dean, I unwittingly backpedaled into an open flame.
Matthew R. Klein reflects on an embarrassing incident in medical school and the importance of sharing vulnerability with learners and patients.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2026 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at https://academic.oup.com/academicmedicine.
Discussing the unique role of the nocturnist, or the night shift clinician, in academic medicine, are Jessica Chambers, MD, MPH, Alex Rittenberg, MD, and John George, MD. They offer opportunities for pursuing scholarship related to night medicine and challenges to doing so as a nocturnist. And they emphasize the importance of collaborative, inclusive, and flexible professional development for building a successful academic career.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
We do not always rage against the dying of the light. Sometimes, we allow the light to fade gently, with grace, in the presence of love.
Nezienwa Ezenwa reflects on a patient who demonstrated that medicine is not just about defying death. It is about honoring life.
This essay placed first in the 2025 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Something shifted after that conversation. It wasn't a dramatic overnight change, but it was there—the slightest flicker of fight in him again. He started pushing himself a little more, engaging in physical therapy instead of just going through the motions. He cracked a joke with the nurses.
Roz Agheli reflects on a patient who was kept alive by medicine but kept fighting because of hope.
This essay placed first in the 2025 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Discussing Academic Medicine's and MedEdPORTAL's new policy guiding the use of AI tools in the peer review process are editors-in-chief Laura Roberts, MD, MA, and Lauren Maggio, PhD, MS(LIS), Academic Medicine associate editor Krisztina Fischer, MD, PhD, MMSc, and AAMC director of journals Mary Beth DeVilbiss. They provide an overview of the journals' new policy and use a series of common peer review scenarios to explore what's appropriate, what's not, and what you should think about before using AI as a reviewer.
Check out the resources discussed, including the journals' AI policies for reviewers and authors, and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Mrs. Jones didn't need a cure. She needed a witness to her grief—someone to sit with her in the silence, to validate the love she had for her husband and the life they built. She needed to be heard.
Christine Dianne Nepomuceno reflects on a patient who taught her that healing is not always about medicine. Sometimes it is about holding space for someone in their most vulnerable moments.
This essay placed second in the 2025 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Dora taught me that care is not just found in grand gestures or lifesaving procedures. It is in the quiet moments when someone chooses to listen, to sit beside another in their suffering, and to act when no one else will.
Maria Jose Gomez reflects on a patient who taught her that compassion does not require a title, a degree, or authority.
This essay placed second in the 2025 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In the fast-paced world of health care, it's easy to focus on numbers, treatments, and protocols. But humanism requires us to pause, to listen, to acknowledge the fears, hopes, and humanity of our patients.
Vonnie Cesar reflects on learning that listening is not just a skill—it is a form of healing.
This essay placed third in the 2025 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Discussing new research into how the physical and social context of the clinical learning environment shape power dynamics and influence equity in assessment for residents are author Hannah Kakara Anderson, PhD, MBA, Research in Medical Education Committee member Binbin Zheng, PhD, MEd, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Nicole Findlay, MD, MPH. Empowering clinician educators to actively address the forces of space, place, and pace, they argue, can help promote a more equitable learning and assessment environment.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Our stories make us human and shape the doctors we become. Yet, we rarely let our pasts show from beneath our white coats.
Sydney Katz reflects on how little trainees and attendings know about one another outside of the hospital.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Although discussions about language services like interpreters or translators, patient–provider concordance, and linguistic equity merit much greater consideration, I can offer one reflection: the human connection we all share is more important than the languages we do not.
Akila V. Muthukumar reflects on building a connection with patients when using phone interpreter services to communicate.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
When I am in the hospital, there is at least a semblance of humanity. In a room with a patient, there is the possibility of the unexpected. Alone with my computer, there is only the ruthless pursuit of the correct, and the colorful pie chart of my inadequacy.
Anna Dovre reflects on how studying for medical board exams feels like a process of denaturing.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As I brought the blade to the patient, I tried to infer the right depth, weight, and speed by matching to my pictured recollection of all the other incisions I had seen—an act, perhaps, akin to Ansel Adams's technique of photographic previsualization.
Benjamin A. Freeman reflects on how studying photography can be beneficial to medical education.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
My hope is that, by learning to recognize how physicians interface with injustice in systems early in their training, learners will be better prepared to navigate and, when necessary, defy these systems throughout their careers.
Juliana E. Morris reflects on the importance of talking openly with students and involving them in decision-making while volunteering at a medical student-run asylum clinic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In the years since this experience ... I have sought to encourage trainees and students to reorient their focus from patient outcomes as a referendum on their competency and to focus instead on the process-based thinking preceding them and to try to make space for the mystery between.
Benjamin W. Frush reflects on the perils of an outcome-focused culture in medicine.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Discussing a new study into how medical student parents navigate their dual identities as physicians-in-training and parents are author Emily Carroll, MD, MEHP, Research in Medical Education Committee member Gary Beck Dallaghan, PhD, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Kiani Gardner, PhD. They also explore how medical schools can foster an inclusive learning environment for these learners.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
I never saw Andrew after that night, but I think of him often. I hope that our interaction played a small part in getting him the care he needed.
Sujal Manohar reflects on the importance of digging deeper into a patient’s social history by expanding past the typical questions.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Discussing a new study that explores medical student learning during interprofessional interactions in clinical clerkships are author Kelsey Miller, MD, EdM, Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Bonny Dickinson, PhD, MS-HPEd, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Kelvin Pollard, MD. They explore the “lore” about working with other health professionals that medical students learn from their peers during clerkships and how interprofessional interactions shape students’ professional identity, autonomy and collaboration skills, and sense of their role on the health care team.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
For the first time, we began to understand not just their bodies and illnesses but their lives as joyful parents, enthusiastic musicians, expert race car mechanics, and loving spouses.
David Deshpande reflects on the Service of Gratitude and the lessons learned from anatomy donors and their families.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
We are taught to think about what needs to be done in order for our patient to go home when we are on the wards, yet there is no care meeting, discharge coordinator, or bed huddle in academic medicine.
Julia Meade reflects on the difficulty of knowing when to retire from academic medicine.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Throughout my medical training, I vow to make an effort to actively pursue each patient’s full story. To cleave only the fragments of their existence that anchor them to the hospital room leaves behind parts of our patients, invisible and abandoned.
Madeline Blatt reflects on the importance of imagining and investigating the version of the patient who lives outside of the hospital after being discharged.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Regardless of how difficult medicine is, each small step we take to listen, be compassionate, have patience, and advocate is meaningful, even if we must start over and do it again tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that.
Lisa Gong reflects on a patient who helped her to see the value in normalcy and routine.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Artists Rachel Mindrup, MFA, and Tuyet-Minh Tran, MD, discuss their artwork that was featured on the cover of Academic Medicine. They explore the inspiration and creative process behind their pieces and how medicine has influenced their art and how art has influenced how they experience medicine. They also reflect on the role of the arts and humanities in medicine and medical education and how art can foster reflection and perspective taking in physicians.
Check out the artwork discussed, read the artists’ accompanying essays, and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
I, like others in medical education, had the misconception that wellness could solely be achieved by separating work from “real life.” I thought I needed to find wellness and restoration outside of medicine to be able to then empty myself again and again into this career. Jessica proved me wrong.
L. Elizabeth Moreno reflects on a student who reignited her commitment as an educator.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I had not role modeled cynicism or pessimism. Rather, my student’s statement was a sign of learning and understanding what I had taught: processing and handling the reality of medical practice.
Beatrice T.B. Preti reflects on teaching students to be aware of the systems they work in (including limitations and flaws), which helps them to prepare for future practice.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Authors Joan Cangiarella, MD, and Catherine Coe, MD, and medical student Lily Ge discuss the goals, features, evolution, and outcomes to date of accelerated 3-year MD programs, focusing on the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina School of Medicine FIRST Program. They explore the experiences of accelerated program medical students and how these programs fit into broader efforts to improve medical education.
Read the articles discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Authors Eric Warm, MD, and David Hirsh, MD, and medical student Kate Jennings join host Toni Gallo to discuss the unintended consequences of the shift to pass/fail grading in undergraduate medical education and current challenges in the residency application and selection process. They explore the feedback culture and incentives for pursuing clinical excellence in medical school. They also present the complex adaptive system model as a framework to consider the dynamics at play and ways to improve the transition to residency. Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
As I reflect on my initial years of training, I am deeply moved by the kindness that surrounded me, especially during hands-on interactions with patients as an anxious new trainee. The warmth and guidance that were shown to me had a profound influence on my personal learning and growth.
Oscar Li and Yeonsoo Sara Lee reflects on their experience inserting a Foley catheter for the first time, and how crucial a supportive environment in medical education is.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In some ways, I walked a mile in the refugee doctors’ shoes. I learned about culture through my mistakes instead of being explicitly taught. Although mistakes aid learning, they also have the potential to erode relationships.
Samantha E. Smith reflects on her experience teaching refugee doctors and the importance of intercultural competence teaching for international medical graduates and the faculty who train them.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Lauren Maggio, PhD, MS(LIS), joins host Toni Gallo to discuss open science and innovations in education scholarship and scholarly publishing, including the role of AI. As the new editor-in-chief of MedEdPORTAL, Lauren also shares what makes the journal unique, her advice for authors, and her vision for the future. Read the articles discussed and access additional resources and the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Above all, the impact of this initial connection between us on his engagement in the care journey filled me with a profound sense of accomplishment. What would have become of Bernard without this connection? This experience confirmed for me the importance of an authentic connection with the patient.
Rémi Esclassan reflects on bonding with a patient over his tattoo, which illustrated the profound beauty and complex nature of health care.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I realize it’s my calling to hear heartache, but it’s also my calling to feel hope, see beauty, and experience life in its entirety.
Final-year Doctor of Nursing Practice Nurse Midwifery student Hailey Sommerfeld reflects on a shift that began with sadness and doubt but ended with reassurance and optimism.
This essay placed first in the 2024 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
There is an unspoken understanding that nursing is both an art and a science. Often, you will be called to use your critical-thinking skills and training to help save lives. Other days, you will need to show compassion and understanding to meet the needs of your patients. Most days involve a combination of both. And some days, it means breaking the rules to allow a cat in the ICU.
Doctor of nursing practice student Megan McDowell reflects on sneaking a pet into the ICU so a patient could say a final goodbye.
This essay placed second in the 2024 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Something special happens when you work in the field. It speaks to you. It calls on the bounty of your generosity. It coaxes you to the precipice of your creativity, and it demands that you become sharper, savvier, and more self-possessed. If you listen, then in return you find it affords you the greatest gift life can offer: the privilege of having touched someone’s heart.
Medical student Noor Ahmed reflects on the special year-long connection forged with a patient during her time in the field as a health outreach worker.
This essay placed second in the 2024 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Andrew Orr, MD, MSEd, and Dorene Balmer, PhD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss their study of a longitudinal arts and humanities curriculum for internal medicine interns, which is part of this year’s Research in Medical Education (RIME) collection. Also joining the conversation are RIME Committee member Pilar Ortega, MD, MGM, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Nicole Findlay-Richardson, MD, MPH. This episode is the final one in this year’s 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Check out last month’s episode on medical students’ experiences of failure and remediation. Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Lynnea Mills, MD, joins host Toni Gallo to discuss her new study of medical students’ experiences of failure and remediation in the United States and the Netherlands, which is part of this year’s Research in Medical Education (RIME) collection. Also joining the conversation are RIME Committee member Mike Ryan, MD, MEHP, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Anna-kay Thomas, EdD.
This episode is the second in this year’s RIME series. Check out last month’s episode on perceptions of disability inclusion in medical education among students with disabilities. And tune in next month for the final episode in the series on the transformative potential of the arts and humanities in residency training.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Whenever I pass that room, though, I will think of it as G.’s. A sacred sanctuary—where medicine, care plans, and labels like “incontinent” and “terminal” fall away and where priority is placed instead upon two human beings connecting at two different junctures of life, united in this powerful moment of G.’s creation and a shared love of chocolate. G.’s space. His quiet place.
Final-year nursing student Erin Bowdish reflects on the connection forged with a patient on comfort care during mealtime.
This essay placed third in the 2024 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Neera Jain, PhD, MS, and Erene Stergiopoulos, MD, MA, join host Toni Gallo to discuss their new study of the experiences of students with disabilities during the first 2 years of medical school, which is part of this year’s Research in Medical Education (RIME) collection. Also joining the conversation are RIME Committee member Andrea Leep Hunderfund, MD, MHPE, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Rosaysela Santos, PhD.
This episode is the first in this year’s RIME series. Check back next month for the next episode.
Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Theresa Papich, MD, Lisa Meeks, PhD, MA, and Timothy Gilbert, MD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss fostering an accessible and inclusive learning environment for medical students with disabilities and left-handed medical students during surgical training. They explore partnering with students, reducing bias and raising awareness about disability and inclusion, and addressing the hidden curriculum to create an inclusive learning environment where students feel welcome and can best learn throughout their medical education.
Read the articles discussed and access additional resources and the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Claim your free CME credit for listening to this podcast. Visit academicmedicineblog.org/cme, listen to the episodes listed, then follow the instructions to claim your credit.
The complicated positionality of a learner in medicine means that our fingerprints are always there, regardless of the role. And while it is never documented, our most profound contribution is how we accompany patients in need.
Daniel J. Olivieri reflects on his first death pronouncement and what he learned about communicating with patients and their families.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Claim your free CME credit for listening to this podcast. Visit academicmedicineblog.org/cme, listen to the episodes listed, then follow the instructions to claim your credit.
As I enter my final year of medical school reflecting on how I plan to care for patients, I will remember the importance of seeing the patient as a whole person just as my preceptor did that day. In doing so, I hope that my future relationships with patients can flourish because they are based on trust rather than transaction.
Jill Stachowski reflects on her experience praying with a patient and learning that faith and spirituality can be a meaningful part of the physician-patient relationship.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Claim your free CME credit for listening to this podcast. Visit academicmedicineblog.org/cme, listen to the episodes listed, then follow the instructions to claim your credit.
Kayla Marcotte, MS, Jose Negrete Manriquez, MD, MPP, Maya Hunt, MD, Max Spadafore, MD, and Dan Schumacher, MD, PhD, MEd, join host Toni Gallo to discuss the role of learners in building the future state of assessment; the importance of having a patient-focused, learner-centered, equity-based system of assessment; and the opportunities and challenges posed by new types of assessment data and AI tools.
Read the articles discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.
Claim your free CME credit for listening to this podcast. Visit academicmedicineblog.org/cme, listen to the episodes listed, then follow the instructions to claim your credit.
We must find the moments in medical education where we all can be models of thoughtful exposure, risking vulnerability and emphasizing our shared humanity—even with our clothes on.
Gretchen A. Case and Karly Pippitt reflect on a body painting session they led to teach medical students the value of vulnerability.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Katherine Chretien, MD, Grant Wilson, MD, and Michelle York, MD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss building meaningful relationships with patients, the small but impactful ways they show their patients they care, and the important role that learners play in connecting with patients and contributing to their care.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
For those who do excellent work, but quietly, and sometimes under the radar, the simple phrase, confidently stated—“You are in good hands”—can make all the difference. You got this.
Shailaja J. Hayden reflects on the importance of inspiring confidence in fellow members of the care team, which then inspires confidence in patients.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Rather than sheltering me from the rigors of doctoring, the museum has deepened my relationship to medicine by restoring its inherent mystery. It reminds me that the reality of our patients will always exceed our understanding of them.
Kain Kim reflects on how teaching the humanities can help normalize uncertainty in medical training.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Through all the time I had known him, and through all the rounds and presentations, many voices were heard: my own, my senior resident, my attending, the ICU team, the consult teams, the family. But the softest voice, often overcome by dysphonia, came from the bed at the center of the room, and it needed to be amplified the most.
Richard T. Tran reflects on a patient’s request for a vanilla Ensure and learning that sometimes the greatest comforts can come from the simplest of interventions.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Pilar Ortega, MD, MGM, Débora Silva, MD, MEd, and Bright Zhou, MD, MS, join host Toni Gallo to discuss strategies to address language-related health disparities and enhance language-appropriate training and assessment in medical education. They explore one specific language concordant education framework, Culturally Reflective Medicine, which recognizes and supports the lived experiences and expertise of multi-lingual learners and clinicians from minoritized communities.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
I started this letter with a question, but I pray not for an answer. I cannot accept one. Instead, please give me the strength to replace the wet mask soaked in my tears. Give me the power to continue the Sisyphean task of treating your ill and moving on to the next patient, especially on days like today.
Norman R. Greenberg writes a letter to God asking why patients must suffer and how those who treat them can continue on amidst their grief.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As medical students, we know of death. We study anatomy through cadaver lab, we memorize mortality rates of diseases, and we hear stories from our professors about their late patients. But most of us do not know death yet.
Carlin E. Zaprowski reflects on the difficulty of losing patients and encourages supervisors to discuss this difficulty with trainees.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I wonder what would change if students were taught that personal leadership was not about hiding their brokenness, but recognizing their wholeness. If we were not asked to sacrifice ourselves to serve our patients. What would be possible then? How would medicine be different?
Leighton Schreyer reflects on being a queer medical student and how things might change for the better in the future.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2024 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
What if I had not been at an academic institution, with a learner and a supervising teacher? Whose steadying hand would have been on my leg? I needed that hand.
Katherine C. Chretien reflects on undergoing a procedure that taught her that together, teachers and learners bring value to patient care encounters.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
When we really love it, we lend a little bit of ourselves, a little bit of our souls to the work that we do—to the art of nursing. If it is not us today, then it may be us tomorrow, and I hope that someone will be there to tell me what my view is like outside my window, too.
Doctor of nursing practice student Courtney Polimeni reflects on how the practice of nursing, including helping patients learn to cope with the tenuous nature of the human condition, is an art.
This essay placed first in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Psychiatry was going to require all of me... To see the human body as more than machine. Yes, the heart is a pump, and our neurons entangle one another in electrical circuits. Medicine, however, transcends the physiological being.
Third-year medical student Riley Plett reflects on a transformative encounter with an Indigenous patient and learning that medicine requires much more than scientific aptitude.
This essay placed second in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Christy Boscardin, PhD, Brian Gin, MD, PhD, Marc Triola, MD, and Academic Medicine assistant editor Gustavo Patino, MD, PhD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss the ways that artificial intelligence (AI) tools can help ease the workload burden on faculty and staff, with a focus on assessment and admissions. They explore the opportunities that AI tools afford as well as ethical, data privacy, bias, and other issues to consider with their use. They conclude by looking to the future and where medical education might go from here.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
As Mr. D. stood up and attempted a few steps, tears of joy went down his cheeks. He was now free from the claws that were making his life miserable. This was much more important to him than talking about labs, medications, or dietary changes.
Medical student Federico Erhart reflects on a patient encounter where he learned that providing empathetic and compassionate care for patients sometimes manifests in unexpected ways.
This essay placed first in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In our suffering, sadness, and silence, we shared a language of humanity and we exchanged compassion ... It is this vulnerability, this deep and genuine connection that allows us to communicate across cultures and to feel the exchange of humanity.
Master of Science in Nursing student Leah Rothchild reflects on a global health trip to Uganda, where she learned that caring about patients is vital in caring for patients.
This essay placed second in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As I traverse the many years of medical training ahead of me, I will undoubtedly remember my week in anesthesiology, and commit to passing on my knowledge to future students with the same patience and trust that was afforded to me by Dr. S.
Sumedha Attanti reflects on the preceptor who gave her an unexpectedly hands-on role in a surgery during the anesthesiology elective in her first year of medical school.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I tell my students that we are constellations of our peers, mentors, and patients. What we learn from each other in preclinical education—spanning not just facts and answers, but also how we treat each other—will shape the future of medicine.
Brian R. Smith reflects on creating a learning culture that is safe and empowering for students instead of humiliating.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Meghan O’Brien, MD, MBE, and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Tasha Wyatt, PhD, and Javeed Sukhera, MD, PhD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss new research into faculty perspectives on responding to microaggressions targeting medical students in the clinical learning environment. They explore several tensions that affected how faculty responded to the microaggressions in the study scenarios as well as some of the strategies the faculty used to respond effectively.
This is the final episode in this year’s 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Carrie Chen, MD, PhD, Terry Kind, MD, MPH, and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Cha-Chi Fung, PhD, and Daniele Ölveczky, MD, MS, join host Toni Gallo to discuss new research into faculty and student perceptions of unauthorized collaborations. They discuss several tensions in the preclinical learning environment that likely affect how faculty and students see unauthorized collaborations and the implications of those tensions for curriculum design and assessment.
This episode is the second in this year’s 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Check back next week for the next episode in this series.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Tammy Shaw, MD, MMed, and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Arianne Teherani, PhD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss new research into learner perspectives on the learner handover process. They discuss the role of trust in this process, the potential for bias, the purpose of handovers vs. how they're perceived by learners, and recommendations for making handovers safer and more effective.
This episode is the first in this year’s 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Check back next week for the next episode in this series.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
I am not sure whether she attended my graduation, but her words were with me then and have remained with me throughout my decade-long career. Each time I have wanted to quit nursing, I hear her voice and recall her words of encouragement.
Perioperative nurse and Master of Science in nursing student Nicole Diddi reflects on a deeply human exchange shared with a patient’s wife that reminded her to put humanity at the heart of her nursing practice.
This essay placed third in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
We come into medicine wanting to heal our patients, believing that we are here solely to help them. But I could not heal my patient. Instead, my patient healed me.
Fourth-year medical student Emily Otiso reflects on a patient who reminded her that connection is the soul of her work.
This essay placed third in the 2023 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
This episode is a companion to the August 2023 Ensuring Fairness in Medical Education Assessment supplement, which was sponsored by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation. The supplement focuses on creating an optimal, equitable system of learner assessment.
In this episode, Holly Humphrey, MD, president of the Macy Foundation, discusses the origins of the supplement and the recommendations shared by the authors for fostering equity in assessment. Then the authors of each of the included papers share a summary of their work, including their key findings and takeaways to guide thinking on promoting fairness in assessment. Finally, Dowin Boatright, MD, MBA, MHS, a member of the planning committee for the conference that led to this supplement, discusses where medical education should go from here.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
On a Thursday afternoon in clinic, in a situation made for learning, not grading, my learner taught me the essence of effective formative feedback. And for that lesson, I am forever grateful.
Belinda Fu reflects on a student who taught her that helpful feedback must have formative simplicity.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The next day, I knocked on the door of Room 412 armed with a bottle of baby blue nail polish. Not an elixir, but an oath—to face the unknown together, to sit with the uncomfortable silence, and to meet her in the middle, wherever that may be.
Meher Kalkat reflects on accepting the messiness of life and the not having all the answers.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
There will be a day when you are overlooked. You are not chosen. You will have worked hard, put in the time, been the next in line, and been ready, eager, and energetic to give it a whirl and still you are told no.
Molly Uhlenhake gives her daughters advice on moving forward and continuing on despite life’s disappointments.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Sam Clarke, MD, MAS, and Jon Ilgen, MD, PhD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss the importance of teaching adaptive expertise to prepare learners for the types of complex cases they will encounter in clinical practice. This conversation also covers what adaptive expertise is, how simulation can be used to foster this skill in learners, and the complementary relationship between performance-oriented cases and adaptive cases in health professions education.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Shifting eyes, quivering lips, and fidgeting fingers can tell a million stories, but only if we open our eyes to those who are silently asking for help.
Alexandra Cohen reflects on how making assumptions can harm the therapeutic relationship between practitioner and patient.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
This family taught me that it is exactly these patients—who are rightfully frustrated and afraid—who will push us and our institutions to improve. Instead of resisting that critique, we should support our patients in expressing it.
Rebecca F.P. Long reflects on accepting that providers will not always meet patients’ expectations, despite their best efforts, and what to do when it occurs.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Academic Medicine's editors–Colin West, MD, PhD, Yoon Soo Park, PhD, Jonathan Amiel, MD, and Gustavo Patino, MD, PhD–join host Toni Gallo to share practical guidance for designing and reporting quantitative research. They share tips for success and flaws to avoid around designing your study, using descriptive and inferential statistics, and analyzing and presenting your data. While the advice in this episode comes from the editors of Academic Medicine, much of it also applies to designing and reporting quantitative research for other journals and publications.
A transcript of this episode and additional resources are available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Small gestures, such as sparking a conversation when a student volunteers a personal detail, cultivate a welcoming and inclusive environment. Performing these gestures publicly changes the status quo of how others behave and treat those around them, slowly etching away at cultures and institutions that exclude others.
An anonymous resident reflects on the sometimes unwelcoming environments she experienced as a new mother who was completing surgical sub internships.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Academic Medicine's editors--Bridget O'Brien, PhD, Jonathan Amiel, MD, Megan Brown, MBBS(H), PhD, and Laura Hirshfield, PhD--join host Toni Gallo to share practical guidance for designing and reporting qualitative research. They make recommendations for getting started, choosing a methodology, and effectively using published guidelines. Then they dispel common myths around writing up and publishing qualitative research. While the advice in this episode comes from the editors of Academic Medicine, much of it also applies to designing and reporting qualitative research for other journals and publications.
A transcript of this episode and links to the resources mentioned are available at academicmedicineblog.org.
It is my hope that continuing to play with some dirt on my uniform will model to others that they can pick themselves up after they are knocked down and get ready for the next play.
Benjamin Vipler reflects on getting his confidence back and turning negative experiences into positive lessons.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The next time that I am unwell, I will take a real sick day—and I hope my colleagues, students, and resident physicians see it.
Kathryn Rampon reflects on the detrimental effects of physicians’ reluctance to take time off when ill.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As medical professionals, our patients are putting their trust in us at their most vulnerable moments. It is our responsibility to handle that trust with respect, understand what they need from us both medically and socially, and advocate for those needs. Medicine starts at the bedside with learning about the patient and from the patient.
Caroline F. Zhao reflects on the importance of taking the time to recognize the humanism of patients and seeing them for more than just their conditions.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Author Michael Gisondi, MD, provides an overview of this recently published qualitative study in which he and his coauthors examined key stakeholders’ opinions about several proposed reforms to the residency application process. Based on their findings, Gisondi and his coauthors identified important factors to guide future reforms. This article was published in the February 2023 issue of Academic Medicine and can be read at academicmedicine.org.
Since 2020, learning to treat patients with COVID-19 reminds me that we remain humble learners of medicine. All our resources have been stretched—rooms, staff, equipment, compassion—and yet our patients are plentiful and continue to provide us with ample learning opportunities.
Cara E. Harasaki recalls two patients, seen years apart, who taught her that physicians never stop learning.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As medical professionals, it is tempting to cultivate a razor-sharp focus on symptoms and diagnoses. Robby helped me realize our former approach was like a racehorse with blinders: fast, but risking missing something important.
Brian R. Smith recalls an encounter with a special patient that made him think about restructuring visits to better identify patients’ crucial personal life events.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Faith is relevant to the clinical interaction when it gives patients and clinicians a shared ground upon which to stand in the midst of chaos, and my experience … showed me that spirituality can effect healing when all else fails.
Troy B. Amen reflects on how sharing a faith with patients can sometimes provide comfort and support when they need it most.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
When we form enriched relationships, we allow ourselves to feel grief for the patients we lose, and likewise, joy for the patients who leave healthier than when they arrived.
Zarin I. Rahman reflects on forming connections with patients over commonalities such as faith, language, or favorite sandwiches, and appreciating knowing them for even a short time.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Courtney Newman and Jaclyn Albin, MD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss culinary medicine and its role in teaching nutrition, nutrition counseling, and hands-on cooking skills to medical students. The conversation also covers how culinary medicine programs build connections and community and improve the well-being of students, faculty, and patients.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Read the article discussed in this episode: Newman C, Yan J, Messiah S, Albin J. Culinary medicine as innovative nutrition education for medical students: A scoping review. Acad Med. 2023;98:274-286.
Every now and then, a patient will bring me new insights and knowledge, such as lessons on rare diseases that I would not have learned if I had not seen them in person. These rare patients … instilled in me the ability to be hyper-observant and detail oriented.
Nadia Falah reflects on a patient with a rare genetic condition and how learning to become a physician entails far more than simply passing an exam.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Medical students … need to build out reality-based curricula that equip future physicians to provide trauma-informed, harm-reductionist care. Patients need to be addressed in their context. Perhaps to do so, we need to take off our white coats and get our boots a little muddy.
Rebecca Bromley-Dulfano reflects on street medicine and learning to care for patients who may be without basic resources outside the clinic setting.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
On this remarkable day, however, it was clear. This woman knew who I was, months later and from only the sound of my voice, proving to me for the first time how our small actions can have a large impact.
Umer Farooq, a resident physician in the Department of Internal Medicine at Loyola Medicine/MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, Illinois, reflects on the unexpected, yet gratifying relationships formed between physicians and patients’ family members during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As faculty, we are called to instruct and mentor students. And yet ... B, my colleagues, and friends of color have taught me lessons of far greater importance.
Sara B. Police, assistant professor and director of nutritional sciences education in the Department of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington, Kentucky, reflects on her meaningful journey from awareness to education to involvement in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2023 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
My experience that night in the ICU was the wake-up call I needed. It was a reminder to shift my priorities back to the patient. It was a reminder that my job was more than check boxes and administrative tasks.
Nicholas R. Lenze, a first-year resident in otolaryngology/head and neck surgery at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, reflects on the delicate balance between being an efficient resident and a doctor.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
She is a strong woman. The strongest woman I’ve probably ever met. Her strength is in her joyful spirit and the kindness she exudes to everyone she meets…. She is my mother, and she has been quite the model of unconditional love, service, kindness, and sacrifice.
Nurse practitioner Danielle Blackwell reflects on the person who inspired her to become a nurse.
This essay placed third in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
When I think back on my career thus far, I do not remember the shifts that I left early or the days when everything went perfectly. But when Willie Nelson comes on over the radio, I can close my eyes and picture the vibrant colors of a woman’s last sunset.
Graduate nursing student Jessica Pierce reflects on what brings meaning to her job—discovering the person inside each patient and letting them see her compassion in return.
This essay placed first in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The editors of Academic Medicine share their advice for authors submitting their scholarship for publication and describe what they look for when they’re reviewing submissions. Also included are resources to help authors write successfully and publish their work. This episode is meant for new authors and authors new to medical education and, while the advice comes from the editors of Academic Medicine, much of it also applies to other types of medical education scholarship, to scholarly publishing in other disciplines, and to submissions to other journals and publications.
A transcript of this episode and links to the resources mentioned are available at academicmedicineblog.org.
What I do know is in the desert of the Middle East I learned that the right decision isn’t always the easiest or most appealing. Our patients don’t need our judgment; they need our help.
Medical student Mason Blacker reflects on treating patients while stationed in Iraq and what is truly right and important in life.
This essay placed first in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
There is growth in speaking up for myself and others in my position, but I do not want to have to sacrifice inner serenity as the price of advocacy.
Rewan Abdelwahab, a third-year medical student at Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, reflects on the difficulties faced by trainees and staff from underrepresented groups when resources promoting inclusivity, like religious coverings, are not provided.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
This one, brief moment opened me up to the greatest sense of appreciation; regardless of the treatment arm, role, or results, it is the journey we embark on together, side by side with our participants, teams, and peers, that will contribute to our greater collective knowledge, advances in care, and a better future.
Vanita R. Aroda, director of diabetes clinical research at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, reflects on how acting as a clinical trial investigator has changed her approach to life.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guest Heeyoung Han, PhD, joins hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Javeed Sukhera, MD, PhD, and Andres Fernandez, MD, MEd, to discuss new research into the different methodologies used in health professions education research and how rigorous, or not, the descriptions of these methodologies are in published studies. Also covered is advice for researchers who want to more creatively and rigorously conduct and write up their work.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Read the article discussed in this episode:
- Han H, Youm J, Tucker C, et al. Research methodologies in health professions education publications: Breadth and rigor. Acad Med. 2022;97:S54-S62.
Read the complete collection of articles included in the 2022 RIME supplement.
Medical practitioners of all specialties may lack Cassandra’s divinely inspired prophetic powers, but our training, research, and deep consideration for our patients’ wellbeing inform our prognostication. We hope that in this way, we are able to serve as guideposts along their ultimate paths.
Judy H. Ch’ang, medical director of the Neurointensive Care Unit and assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Clinical and Translational Neuroscience Unit at the Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York, New York, reflects on how difficult it is for physicians to explain the intricacies of prognostication to patients’ family members.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Maybe this letter is more a letter to myself, a reminder … that mentorship is the key to training good, competent, humane surgeons. That this extra effort is what will create change, sustainability, and at the end of the pathway, is what will be remembered. That this is the type of person and surgeon I want to be.
Adam Goldstein, director of the Trauma Surgery Unit at The Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel, writes a letter to Dr. William Schwab thanking him for his outstanding example of mentorship.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The medical record from the day before includes a note from the chaplain who wrote that you smiled. I resolve to end more notes this way. The patient smiled.
Medical student Molly Fessler reflects on the profound experience of caring for a patient during their final days.
This essay placed second in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The medical record from the day before includes a note from the chaplain who wrote that you smiled. I resolve to end more notes this way. The patient smiled.
Medical student Molly Fessler reflects on the profound experience of caring for a patient during their final days.
This essay placed second in the 2022 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Luca Petrey and Laura Weingartner, PhD, MS, join hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Arianne Teherani, PhD, and Daniele Olveczky, MD, to discuss a new scoping review of the literature on the inclusion of standardized patient characters and actors with diverse gender identities in simulation cases.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Read the articles discussed in this episode:
- Petrey LN, Noonan EJ, Weingartner LA. Gender diverse representation in patient simulation: A scoping review [published online ahead of print August 09, 2022]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004926.
- Weingartner L, Noonan EJ, Bohnert C, Potter J, Shaw MA, Holthouser A. Gender-affirming care with transgender and genderqueer patients: A standardized patient case. MedEdPORTAL. 2022;18:11249.
Read the complete collection of articles included in the 2022 RIME supplement at academicmedicine.org.
It is more likely emotional overload rather than apathy or insensitivity that prompts these contradictory expressions of emotion. An involuntary attempt to achieve a type of emotional homeostasis.
Sadaf Qureshi, a hematologist/oncologist at Summit Health in Florham Park, New Jersey, reflects on “appropriate” responses to misfortune.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
So often, we get caught up in studying and updating the medical chart. When we get to know our patients as human beings, however, we realize that providing care goes beyond triple-checking medication dosages. A human being is the product of every person, every success, and every misfortune he or she has encountered.
Theodora Lananh Swenson, a fourth-year resident physician in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, reflects on the importance of understanding the social context in which each patient lives.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I was glad that I was too tired to speak at the close of the day, because by listening, I learned a lesson in humility. Madam A’s family was more knowledgeable about her than we were, treating her as a person who had hopes just like the rest of us, despite being bedbound.
Norshima Nashi, a consultant in the Division of Advanced Internal Medicine in the Department of Medicine at the National University Health System in Singapore, reflects on the importance of preserving hope for patients, no matter how serious the situation is.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I was glad that I was too tired to speak at the close of the day, because by listening, I learned a lesson in humility. Madam A’s family was more knowledgeable about her than we were, treating her as a person who had hopes just like the rest of us, despite being bedbound.
Norshima Nashi, a consultant in the Division of Advanced Internal Medicine in the Department of Medicine at the National University Health System in Singapore, reflects on the importance of preserving hope for patients, no matter how serious the situation is.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Addie McClintock, MD, and Joshua Jauregui, MD, join hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Andrea Leep, MD, and Paolo Martin, PhD, MS CHPR, MEd, to discuss clinical teachers’ behaviors and how they support or harm students’ sense of psychological safety in the clinical learning environment.
This is the first episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
Read the article discussed in this episode:
McClintock AH, Fainstad TL, Jauregui J. Clinician teacher as leader: Creating psychological safety in the clinical learning environment for medical students [published online ahead of print August 9, 2022]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004913.
Read the complete collection of articles included in the 2022 RIME supplement at academicmedicine.org.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Guests Addie McClintock, MD, and Joshua Jauregui, MD, join hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee members Andrea Leep, MD, and Paolo Martin, PhD, MS CHPR, MEd, to discuss clinical teachers’ behaviors and how they support or harm students’ sense of psychological safety in the clinical learning environment.
This is the first episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
Read the article discussed in this episode:
McClintock AH, Fainstad TL, Jauregui J. Clinician teacher as leader: Creating psychological safety in the clinical learning environment for medical students [published online ahead of print August 9, 2022]. Acad Med. doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004913.
Read the complete collection of articles included in the 2022 RIME supplement at academicmedicine.org.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
As I progress through my training, I see more clearly how I benefited from my intern year; my comfort with ventilator settings and ability to navigate goals-of-care discussions are a direct result of my pandemic cases. However, when I am asked how my residency has been, I am haunted by the memories of those who can no longer answer.
Michelle I. Suh, a second-year resident in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, reflects on how her intern year was shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As I progress through my training, I see more clearly how I benefited from my intern year; my comfort with ventilator settings and ability to navigate goals-of-care discussions are a direct result of my pandemic cases. However, when I am asked how my residency has been, I am haunted by the memories of those who can no longer answer.
Michelle I. Suh, a second-year resident in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, reflects on how her intern year was shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Remembering my own medical experiences is an insistent reminder that disease is not mundane, no matter how desensitized we may grow to it.
Tom Fouché, a fourth-year medical student at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois, reflects on his dual identities of provider and patient and how not keeping them separated makes him a better physician.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Katherine Hoops, MD, MPH, Andra Blomkalns, MD, MBA, and Allison Augustus-Wallace, PhD, MS, MNS, join host Toni Gallo to talk about firearm safety and injury prevention education. They discuss the role of physicians in engaging patients and communities in firearm injury risk reduction, the current state of firearm injury prevention education, and where the academic medicine community needs to go from here.
Read the articles discussed in this episode:
- Hoops K, Fahimi J, Khoeur L, et al. Consensus-driven priorities for firearm injury education among medical professionals. Acad Med. 2022;97:93-104.
- Mueller KL, Blomkalns AL, Ranney ML. Taking aim at the injury prevention curriculum: Educating residents on talking to patients about firearm injury [published online ahead of print April 19, 2022]. Acad Med.
Read the complete collection of articles on firearm injury prevention published in Academic Medicine.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
When faculty members open themselves up to the idea that the work we do in seemingly different realms can actually enhance our practice, we arguably do our greatest service to the development of others’ gardens.
Sarah-Ann Keyes, assistant professor in the School of Health Professions at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, reflects on how difficult it can be for faculty members in academic medicine to balance clinical, educational, and scholarly work.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
After this patient encounter, I came to realize that my greatest strength, my finest therapeutic tool, was me—all of me.
Omar Sahak, a first-year fellow in the Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and Child Development in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine in Stanford, California reflects on how sometimes the best way to help a patient is to be vulnerable with them.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Next time a patient thanks me, I will not let self-conscious worries diminish their words. True thankfulness reflects deep humanistic connection and is unburdened by the hierarchies of medicine.
Paulina M. Devlin, a first-year obstetrics and gynecology resident at the University of Utah Health in Salt Lake City, Utah, reflects on the expression of gratitude between patients and providers.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Chirag Bhat, MD, and Warren Cheung, MD, MMEd, join hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Teresa Chan, MD, MHPE, to discuss their research into nurses’ perspectives about giving feedback on residents’ clinical performance. They share their findings regarding the unique perspective nurses can offer, the barriers nurses face in providing feedback, and some possible ways to overcome these barriers.
Read the article discussed in this episode: Bhat C, LaDonna K, Dewhirst S, et al. Unobserved observers: Nurses’ perspectives about sharing feedback on the performance of resident physicians. Acad Med. 2022;97:271-277.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Despite the emotional challenges that my anatomy course presented, I feel reaffirmed in my desire to pursue medicine and now understand the beautiful complexity of the human body in a way I never could have before.
Keldon K. Lin, a second-year medical student at the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Scottsdale, Arizona, reflects on the common humanity that all patients, both living and dead, share with one another.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
As tears seeped from the corners of her eyes and stained her cheeks, I felt powerless. I reached for her hand, wishing I could offer my bare human hand instead of an impersonal blue latex glove. Holding her hand was the only thing I could do in the moment; I hoped it made her feel less alone.
Natalie C. Spach, a fourth-year medical student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, reflects on the importance of physicians demonstrating compassion and empathy towards patients when they are at their most vulnerable.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The resident came into my room with one question and he got it answered. The rest was not his problem. But it was my problem.
Arthur Garson Jr, clinical professor of health systems and population health sciences in the College of Medicine at the University of Houston in Houston, Texas, reflects on the importance of two-way communication between patients and physicians.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Our patients should not be our blind spots. Even with the most thorough routines, I may not catch important clues—be it some subtle discomfort or altered affect—without keen observation, clues that may drastically change a patient’s story and care.
Alan Z. Yang, a second-year medical student at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, discusses the importance of observing and truly seeing a patient during a visit rather than focusing solely on standard interview questions and physical exam.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Lala Forrest and Joe Geraghty join host Toni Gallo to discuss the journal’s Trainee Letters to the Editor feature. They highlight selected letters submitted in response to last year’s call for submissions about the role of trainees as agents of change and discuss how institutions can empower trainees to be leaders and how trainees can get started leading change efforts. Lala and Joe also introduce this year’s call about transformative moments in a trainee’s professional journey and describe what the editors are looking for in successful submissions.
Available at academicmedicineblog.org are a transcript of this episode and links to the 2021 and 2022 calls for trainee letters to the editor and to the articles discussed in this episode.
Our words and actions may strike others, or strike back at us, in unexpected ways. We must therefore always be ready to show our most human sides: to absorb surprising responses, lean into awkward moments, and apologize when we have erred.
Aldis H. Petriceks, a third-year medical student at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts, discusses the importance of setting aside the structure of the patient interview and embracing the patient as an authentic, living personality.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In the following months, I started noticing a subtle change in the way my patients and the community saw me. I went from being called the doctor to our doctor.
Sharon Reece, assistant professor in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine in the College of Medicine at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Northwest in Fayetteville, Arkansas, reflects on what she learned during her immersion in rural generalism in northern Alberta, Canada.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
These golden minutes were not only setting a realtime example of intersecting roles and responsibilities but opening a window into a version of mentorship unique to virtual platforms, a kind of role-modeling that revealed granular moments of sacrifice, struggle, and negotiation.
Yoshiko Iwai, a second-year medical student at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, North Carolina reflects on Zoom mentorship and the art of juggling medical practice, research, teaching, and family.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In the ensuing weeks, I continued with my work, behaving as if the incident had no impact on me while clamping down the embarrassment of being called a racial slur in front of my team. When others asked how I was doing, I said that I was fine in an attempt to make it go away.
Takesha Valentine Cooper, program director of the Psychiatry Residency Training Program and chair of medical school admissions, equity advisor, and vice chair for education in the Department of Psychiatry and Neurosciences at the University of California Riverside School of Medicine in Riverside, California discusses the importance of supporting historically marginalized medical students and residents who have faced discrimination.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Will Bynum, MD, and Joe Jackson, MD, join host Toni Gallo to discuss new research into the nature of shame experiences in medical students and emerging work on the implications of premedical students' shame experiences for their professional development. They offer advice for educators and learners for naming, normalizing, and addressing the effects of shame and provide suggestions for fostering a safe, inclusive learning environment and a holistic admissions process that support learners and minimize opportunities for shame triggering experiences.
Read the article discussed in this episode:
Bynum WE IV, Teunissen PW, Varpio L. In the “shadow of shame”: A phenomenological exploration of the nature of shame experiences in medical students. Acad Med. 2021;96:S23-S30.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblorg.org.
This episode was originally released in August 2019.
Guests Will Bynum, MD, Lara Varpio, PhD, and Ashley Adams, MD, join Toni Gallo and former Academic Medicine editor-in-chief David Sklar, MD, to discuss shame in medicine and medical education, what it is and isn't, how it can be studied, and their research and other work in this area.
Read the articles discussed in this episode:
Bynum WE IV, Adams AV, Edelman CE, Uijtdehaage S, Artino AR Jr, Fox JW. Addressing the elephant in the room: A shame resilience seminar for medical students. Acad Med. 2019;94:1132-1136.
Bynum WE IV, Artino AR Jr, Uijtdehaage S, Webb AMB, Varpio L. Sentinel emotional events: The nature, triggers, and effects of shame experiences in medical residents. Acad Med. 2019;94:85-93.
Sklar DP. Recognizing and eliminating shame culture in health professions education. Acad Med. 2019;94:1061-1063.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this episode are the authors’ own and do not necessarily represent those of the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Government, or its agencies.
Ultimately, whether it is through language, a shared interest, or another shared commonality, finding ways to connect with our patients is an invaluable skill that can transform medicine from a science into an art.
Avani M. Kolla, a fourth-year medical student at New York University Grossman School of Medicine in New York, New York, reflects on how language can act as a stepping stone to forming relationships between patients and providers.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I realized I never processed what I witnessed, experienced, and lived through. I put it all in a box so I could keep going to work. I sealed the box so that nothing could escape and distract me from the mission at hand: caring for critically ill patients.
Amanda S. Xi, a critical care anesthesiologist in the Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, discusses how institutions can help trainees who experienced trauma while caring for patients during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2022 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
I choose to view this not as a story of bias against me, but instead of my attending’s patience and perseverance. His uncompromising kindness made the patient blind to his own preconceived notions. I try to be a role model for my own residents the way that he was for me.
Deepa Danan, assistant professor and medical student clerkship director in the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, reflects on remaining compassionate when caring for patients, even when they make misjudgments about their providers.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The formative experience I had long sought emerged outside the context of feedback itself. I had spent my rotation in search of people who would change me, but I had not expected to find them dressed in johnnies rather than long white coats.
Grace Ferri, a fourth-year medical student at Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts, reflects on the patient who helped her remember where she came from, and—most importantly—where she belonged, during a stressful day on the wards.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
With the mask muffling my voice and the omnipresent sound of monitor alarms, words too, were strained. I grew irate at the situation. The inability to talk. The inability to connect. The inability to touch.
Graduate nursing student Hunter Marshall reflects on isolation and connection during the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This essay placed first in the 2021 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Even in the age of medical miracles, there is still no intervention more powerful than a genuine human connection. There is no lab, no scan, no test, no drug, no surgery, that can replace it. For the soul heals not by human medicine, but human kindness.
Medical student Ross Perry reflects on the most important lesson he learned while caring for a very special patient during his third year of medical school.
This essay placed first in the 2021 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Dementia does not rob the ears of joy.
Recent nursing school graduate Anna Swartzlander remembers a patient with dementia who shared with her his love of music.
This essay placed second in the 2021 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Why do I find it so much easier to deal with death after the fact than I do watching its slow, looming approach, like the shadow of a cloud creeping over my face? I think of cupping water between my hands, the spaces between fingers that I cannot hold tight.
Medical student Davy Ran reflects on how their perspective on death has changed since they began medical school.
This essay placed second in the 2021 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“My time, energy, and focus are finite; one clear, properly motivated action will come at the cost of another. It is easy to think this means I will miss out on important moments, or that I may disappoint some for the benefit of others. But the antidote is to recognize that each experience is special.”
Fourth-year medical student Fletcher Bell reflects on doctors’ overlapping duties to their patients and family.
This essay placed third in the 2021 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guest Deena Hamza, PhD, joins hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member and assistant editor Dan Schumacher, MD, PhD, MEd, to discuss a new framework for evaluating innovations, including why and how this model was developed and the ways it can be used in medical education.
This is the third episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Find the complete 2021 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, at academicmedicine.org.
Read the article discussed in this episode: Eco-Normalization: Evaluating the Longevity of an Innovation in Context.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
It is often minute details such as the lack of internet, transportation, or a signature that can prevent people from completing an application for food stamps or the medication they need. By acknowledging patient experiences and reflecting on what we have heard, we can more effectively tailor the support we give to find patient-centered solutions.
Katherine M. Kutzer, a recent graduate of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, reflects on her experience calling patients of a community health center at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and how she came to understand the significance of listening to—and truly hearing—patients when they speak.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Just like technical expertise, expert caring can be taught and deliberately practiced. As educators, we must study it, measure it, and build consensus on an ideal framework. And above all, we must value it, not only in medical students and doctors, but in everyone.
Bonnie M. Miller, professor of medical education and administration at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee and senior director of scholarly communications at the Kern National Network for Caring and Character in Medicine in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, reflects on the significance of caring, and how it is just as important to doctoring as procedural knowledge and skills.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guest Richard Baron, MD, joins hosts Toni Gallo and deputy editor Colin West, MD, PhD, to discuss the importance of trust in patient-physician relationships and ways physicians can build trust and overcome mistrust with patients and communities, including in conversations about COVID-19.
Read the article discussed in this episode: A Trust Initiative in Health Care: Why and Why Now?
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
“The importance of fostering trust with families cannot be overstated, and effective communication techniques make up just one part of the complex puzzle. Body language is often considered to be the most important part of communication, but in extraordinary times, we had to rely on other tools such as tone of voice and content of speech.”
Edwin Wei Sheng Thong, a senior resident in the Department of Haematology-Oncology at the National University Health System in Singapore, discusses the importance of effective communication and the intricacies required while treating a patient in the intensive care unit during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“Using my body to tell these cultural stories not only allowed for emotional mutability, but it also cultivated a sense of pride, identity, and autonomy. In dance, I was reminded that the body was not a victim of medical circumstance but an instrument rewriting the story in her own language through dance and music.”
Shilpa Darivemula, a fourth-year obstetrics and gynecology resident at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, reflects on the importance of cultural arts as a medium for self-expression and the processing of bodily trauma for women of color while treating a patient who undergoes an unexpected cesarean delivery.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Joining hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Javeed Sukhera, MD, PhD, to discuss their research on the experiences of trainees and physicians from minoritized communities in the United States and Canada are Taryn Taylor, MD, MEd, Nicole Rockich-Winston, MS, PharmD, EdD, Tim Mickleborough, PhD, and Tina Martimianakis, PhD. They address creating safe and brave spaces to discuss bias and discrimination, how professional norms may be harmful to those from minoritized communities, and fostering inclusive learning and practice environments.
This is the second episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Find the complete 2021 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, at academicmedicine.org.
Read the articles discussed in this episode:
- “When No One Sees You as Black”: The Effect of Racial Violence on Black Trainees and Physicians
- (Re)producing “Whiteness” in Health Care: A Spatial Analysis of the Critical Literature on the Integration of Internationally-Educated Health Care Professionals in the Canadian Workforce
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
“I have learned that no matter how much I study and practice, there will come a time when I cannot help—or, even worse, when my help is not wanted. While such moments do create the potential for moral distress, they also offer space for renewed motivation.”
Pallavi Juneja is a first-year neurology resident at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York. She reflects on how her time at home as a fourth-year medical student during the pandemic made her more aware of her limitations and gave her a new appreciation for helping patients.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guest Jesse Burk-Rafel, MD, MRes, joins hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Mahan Kulasegaram, PhD, to discuss the development of a decision support tool that incorporates machine learning and the use of that tool in residency applicant screening. They also talk about the residency application process and potential ways that artificial or augmented intelligence (AI) might mitigate current challenges.
This is the first episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field. Find the complete 2021 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, at academicmedicine.org.
Read the article discussed in this episode: Development and Validation of a Machine-Learning-Based Decision Support Tool for Residency Applicant Screening and Review.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
"Holding his hand, we had been alone in a room fighting a virus with no cure. Though he lay prone and I stood standing, we were equals in our fear in facing overwhelming unknowns. Neither of us knew what would happen over the next few hours or days."
Eric Kutscher, a resident physician in the Department of Internal Medicine at NYU Langone Health in New York, learned how to maintain dignity in vulnerability from a special patient while working in the intensive care unit at the height of the pandemic.
The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
This episode was originally released in August 2018.
Guest Carl Stevens, MD, MPH, joins hosts Toni Gallo and former editor-in-chief David Sklar, MD, to discuss the peer review process. Carl is a 10-time winner of the journal’s Excellence in Reviewing Award. He shares his reasons for serving as a peer reviewer and his process for evaluating submissions, including practical advice about the logistics of completing a review and what he looks for in a submission. This episode is meant to be a resource for new and seasoned reviewers who want to improve their reviewing skills.
Other resources for reviewers are available on AM Rounds and academicmedicine.org.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
"Our patients and their families are living that one-in-a-thousand life. Even if focusing on rarity helps us cope with the unpredictability of our own pregnancies and of the world in pandemic, rarity cannot protect us from the truth that the terrible is possible."
Katharine Callahan is a neonatology fellow, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and an ELSI genomics fellow, Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, University of Pennsylvania. Elizabeth Salazar is a neonatology fellow, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. As two neonatologists, both navigating pregnancies in a landscape of uncertainty, Katharine and Elizabeth find strength and inspiration in the families they serve and support.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“So, when I step back and think about the most important lesson I have learned in medical school, it is to have the courage to speak up when I am struggling.”
Fourth-year medical student, Michelle M. Ikoma, describes how honoring vulnerability over shame allows her to speak up for her true feelings and get the help she needs to maneuver challenging times.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Catherine Lucey, MD, and Aaron Saguil, MD, MPH, join hosts Toni Gallo and assistant editor Paula (Ross) Thompson, PhD, MA, to discuss the consequences of structural racism on MCAT scores and medical school admissions. They also talk about the role of the MCAT exam in holistic admissions and how to mitigate the effects of structural racism to improve the diversity of the physician workforce.
Read the article discussed in this episode at academicmedicine.org:
The Consequences of Structural Racism on MCAT Scores and Medical School Admissions: The Past Is Prologue
For one example of the persistent impact of 20th century discriminatory housing policies on 21st century educational opportunities, as described in this episode, see Supplemental Digital Appendix 1 from the article above.
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
"People are not born racists; these are learned behaviors. Over time and generations, these learned behaviors have manifested in institutional and systemic racism, teaching our medical learners and demonstrating to our patients that the commission of racism is acceptable."
Robert Sapien is a distinguished professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics, associate dean for admissions, director of the Combined BA/MD Degree Program, and principal investigator of the Child Ready Program and New Mexico Emergency Medical Services Program at the University of Mexico School of Medicine. He reflects on a lifetime of being on the receiving end of systemic and institutional racism, and how even institutions with strong social missions can misstep by overlooking how these learned behaviors manifest - in ways subtle or not.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“This was not a case report in a medical textbook but a real-life situation, and my adrenaline and training had pushed me to fight and not freeze. My attendance at many prior deliveries had never presented me with quite the same challenges, yet they strengthened me for this moment.”
Pediatric chief resident, Dr. Sarah Justvig, emphasizes the positive impact of rigorous clinical training and acknowledges how the supportive teaching of her teachers and mentors has strengthened her readiness for real-life challenges.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Guests Pamela Chen, MD, Jyothi Marbin, MD, and Leanna Lewis, MSW, join hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Monica Lypson, MD, MHPE, to discuss their novel approaches to addressing gender bias and structural racism in medicine, by painting honor wall portraits of women physicians and using travel to the American South to explore structural racism and health disparities, respectively. They also talk about the role of storytelling and getting proximate in overcoming bias.
Read the articles discussed in this episode at academicmedicine.org:
The Women Before Me: My Journey Painting Honor Wall Portraits of Women Physicians
The Power of Place: Travel to Explore Structural Racism and Health Disparities
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
"To my future patients I say this: When you give me the gift of your feelings, I may still freeze up for a moment, wondering how to best show that I care. But I will take this lesson that a global pandemic taught me and give space and significance to your emotion—and we will look at it, together."
Baila Elkin is a third-year medical student at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Reflecting on the experience of making contact-tracing calls, Baila shares how learning to listen to and acknowledge the emotions living behind words can deepen the personal connection with patients.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“In the single minute I spent listening to the patient’s story and auscultating her sternum, she went from feeling frustrated and unheard to respected and thoroughly cared for.”
Fourth-year medical student, Abigail M. Schmucker, describes how she gains insight into the positive impact of patient-centered care through an unusual window: peach auscultation.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Setbacks and failures are inherent to play, yet there is little space for setbacks and failures as adults, making play risky. In a competitive work environment, play feels dangerous."
Ashwini Bapat is a palliative care physician, founder of EpioneMD, and cofounder of Hippocratic Adventures. In a letter to a former mentor, she reflects upon the isolation experienced when the ability to play is usurped by the drive to succeed.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“The physical contrast of the light fingers dancing around the dark, as well as the fault lines where the machine had met his hand, made me think harder and feel more than before about a topic we are taught in medical school—socioeconomic factors.”
Fourth-year medical student, Kate E. Lee, describes how a surgery shadowing experience leaves her with lingering thoughts, not about the clinical aspect of the case, but about the vivid display of the socioeconomic determinants of health she encounters in the surgical room that day.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Many aspects of medical school and residency are akin to patients’ lack of control as they navigate their diagnoses. It is this parallel display of grit that students and physicians can reflect upon when counseling a patient who is struggling to cope."
Jaclyn Mauch, fourth-year medical student at the Perelman School of Medicine at The University of Pennsylvania, describes a life changing event that redefined the grit of her courage, character and resilience, and helped her to better empathize with patients and colleagues.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Speaking from both a clinical and a personal perspective, I know the importance of accepting outside help, especially when battling a mental illness. ... Learning that conditions like mine remain stigmatized is crushing because I know the importance of fighting these illnesses in groups rather than in isolation."
A surgical research fellow describes their personal mental health journey and the importance of destigmatizing mental illness and seeking treatment.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“Now, in the unavoidable silence, I was forced to consider Mr. L, his mind and world. I was forced to move beyond myself, and in that movement, understand that a medical education meant far more than the acquisition and demonstration of clinical knowledge.”
For Aldis H. Petriceks, second-year medical student at Harvard Medical School, silence unexpectedly becomes a valuable tool in his patient assessment toolkit as he learns how to truly listen to his patient needs and struggles.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"The core competencies required for providing quality medical care did not lie only in medicine itself, but in the interpersonal interactions and relationships built between provider and patient."
Samuel Zverev, fourth-year Human Biology, Health, and Society student at Cornell University, describes an interaction as a patient experience intern that revealed how teachers and teaching moments can appear anywhere.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
This episode addresses mental health, burnout, depression, and suicide. If you or a loved one is in distress, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides free and confidential support online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org or over the phone at 1-800-273-8255.
Hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Dr. John Coverdale and guests Drs. Christopher Veal and Richard Page discuss medical student mental health, the barriers to students and physicians seeking treatment and disclosing their distress, and how medical schools can better support students to preserve their mental health. Dr. Veal starts the conversation by telling the story of his mental health journey as a medical student.
Read the article discussed in this episode at academicmedicine.org:
We Burn Out, We Break, We Die: Medical Schools Must Change Their Culture to Preserve Medical Student Mental Health
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
“Homes do not fall apart by themselves. They fall apart because of incidental neglect stemming from the amalgamation of burdens and stressors that prevent the owners from maintaining their homes.”
Benjamin Rees, a third-year student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, reflects on health inequities and his experience working in affordable housing and construction.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and editor-in-chief Dr. Laura Roberts and guest Dr. Arno Kumagai, the journal's new assistant editor for medicine and the arts, discuss the role of the arts and humanities in medicine and medical education, Dr. Kumagai's vision for his new role, and the special features in the journal that incorporate the arts and humanities.
Read the special features discussed in this episode in every issue of the journal at academicmedicine.org.
Call for Cover Art
Call for Letters to the Editor From Trainees: Trainees as Agents of Change in Academic Medicine and the Health Professions
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
"I was his sin-eater. In this moment of vulnerability, I was attempting to take his ills away, alleviate his pain, and internalize his grief. I had hope for his healing, but I knew his fate."
Gillian Naro, first-year resident of internal medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, draws comparison between a medieval Welsh tradition and modern-day physician burnout.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In honor of Earth Day, host Toni Gallo and guests Drs. Kari Nadeau and Ari Bernstein discuss climate change and its effects on human health. Drs. Nadeau and Bernstein describe their efforts and the work of others to teach the science and health effects of climate change to medical students and residents, and they argue for the importance of this work for caring for patients.
Read the articles discussed in this episode at academicmedicine.org:
Addressing Climate Change and Its Effects on Human Health: A Call to Action for Medical Schools
Climate Change and the Practice of Medicine: Essentials for Resident Education
A transcript of this episode is available at academicmedicineblog.org.
“Running, we agreed, was like an invisible bridge between the mind and the body. Just as doctoring connects the pathophysiological and human elements of illness, running marries the physical and mental components of health.”
Fourth-year medical student, Nicholas Lenze, examines the connection between running and practicing medicine as he continues his journey of becoming a doctor.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Sure, she wanted the catheter out, but the most dramatic thing I removed that day was fear and confusion. Suddenly, she had become part of her own care."
Jonathan Steinmetz, senior resident of internal medicine at UConn Health, recalls an interaction where communication was key to empowering a patient's sense of purpose in managing her own health care and quality of life.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“As a resident who at times lived in a place of physical and mental exhaustion, I often failed to appreciate these differences and the lessons I was being offered.”
Assistant Professor, Dr. Catherine Callister, tells the tale of how some of the most profound lessons camouflage their way into her years of training as a resident.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“I study, because when I return to that hospital without doctors, deep in the West African bush, I want to be better. I teach, because I am but one, and it is the many which make the most difference.”
Having to face the death of his patients, resident medical officer, Dr. Aidan Tan, reflects on his lessons learned regarding a doctor's responsibility.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“It made me wonder what else we could have done. But I wish I had heard the news in person, with my team there to help me process what happened.”
Digital applications can deliver timely, functional, and convenient solutions to complex matters, but what happens when digital applications become an obsession? Fourth-year medical student, Arifeen S. Rahman, reflects on the pivotal moment which leads to the decision to curb her digital obsession.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and assistant editor for trainee engagement Lala Forrest (@Lala_Forrest) and guests Drs. Maija Holsti and Sam Hawkins discuss the Native American Research Internship program (@NARI_UofU) at the University of Utah, which is open to Native college students across the United States who are interested in pursuing biomedical careers. They describe the components of the NARI program, including its integration with the local Native elders and tribal nations, and share advice for other institutions looking to support the Native students in their communities.
Read the article discussed in this episode, “Lessons From the First Decade of the Native American Summer Research Internship at the University of Utah,” at academicmedicine.org.
"As future medical professionals, we are taught about the importance of mental health. Many of us will talk to our patients about their struggles, yet we cannot talk to each other about our own."
Heather Stewart, fourth-year medical student at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, recounts her first therapy session and questions why the stigma around asking for help still exists.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"In certain cases, it is the odors that emanate in a patient’s room that have proven to be as important in making a diagnosis as their renal function or the opacity on their chest X-ray."
Patrick Twohig, a fellow with the University of Nebraska Medical Center, shares how performing a thorough physical examination draws on a variety of tests and tools - even one's olfactory sensibility.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I looked at my own white coat and wondered. What obligation do we, as medical students, physicians, and educators, have to people like the Dreamers, whose health, well-being, and livelihoods are affected by policies and decisions which are, technically, nonmedical?"
Aldis Petriceks, Harvard Medical School second-year medical student, explores how caring for the well-being of all people is inextricably woven into the fabric of social medicine and advocacy.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and assistant editor Dr. Will Bynum (@WillBynumMD) and guests Drs. Mike Kemp, Samantha Rivard (@rivardsj), and Joceline Vu (@jocelinevu) discuss the clinical learning environment and resident well-being during COVID-19. They describe efforts by the University of Michigan Department of Surgery to support trainee wellness during COVID and how their work will continue beyond the pandemic.
Read the article discussed in this episode, “Trainee Wellness and Safety in the Context of COVID-19: The Experience of One Institution,” at academicmedicine.org.
"When our demanding days, pressured pace, and weighty emotions leave us tired and weary, could 'pressing pause' lessen the burnout we feel?"
MD-PhD student Caroline Jansen reflects on how the current coronavirus pandemic created a variety of challenges and anxieties, yet also presented an opportunity to begin intentionally claiming moments to slow down and check in with one's self.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"So now I am faced with dual dilemmas; not only with what to do for this patient, but also with how to display (or obscure) this gap in my medical knowledge to Mike."
Third-year internal medicine and pediatrics resident physician, Dr. Ben Frush, acknowledges the power of mutual humility, especially among medical trainees, as he reflects on his first "I don't know" moment as a supervising resident.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"As a teacher, I can do better. If learners find it tedious to explore patient histories, I must strive to effectively clarify the connection between rigorous patient history-taking and the clinical impact that these findings can have."
Physician and educator, Dr. Joey Fisher, recognizes the importance of fostering compassion and flexibility in her teaching approach as she reflects on how technology-driven medicine might have impacted the learning mentality exhibited in the newer generation of physicians-in-training.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"We are challenged to understand both the reason for a person’s suffering and that she was much more than a suffering person."
Resident physician in anatomic and clinical pathology, Dr. William Humphrey, recalls a unique autopsy inquiry that challenges his perspective of life and of the special role a physician plays in guiding their patients through different stages of life.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"We are left to think outside the box, seek answers in places we didn’t look before; doing so challenges us to become better physicians."
Third-year psychiatry resident, Dr. Monique Mun, describes the challenge of upholding patient care quality with limited resources amid the COVID-19 pandemic and reflects on how adaptability is key to successfully navigate and grow in a time of crisis.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2021 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“The ability to meet patients where they are, to give them what they need to rise again—perhaps even stronger than before—is ultimately to me what it means to be a doctor.”
Second-year neurology resident, Dr. Nara Michaelson, offers a fresh look at the basic acts of healing as its life-sustaining impact unfolds during one of Nara’s inpatient encounters.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"The hands that conducted the neurological exam were not hands that could cure this affliction. However, they did heal. The hands sewed a seam between the patient and themselves, filling the gaping hole with support and compassion."
Second-year medical student Mahima Sukumar explores how, in the exam room, finding shared experiences can transform mistrust into promise and faith.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"A wise professor of mine compelled us on our first day of training to know our superpower. She advised it may be the only thing to get you through the darkest of days."
Nurse practitioner student Emily Friedman dedicates her essay to the patient who, in one of his darkest days, shed light on her superpower.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"You are here. Be with her. You are good enough."
Nursing doctoral candidate Lisa Cross recounts the story of a hospice patient and her visiting son, reminding us we are each good enough to be present for what the moment requires.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Taking a few extra minutes to get to know our patients on a deeper and more human level can help unearth forgotten passions that were once dear to them. This reminder of their unique experiences can empower them to continue to find meaning in their lives, no matter what circumstances they may face."
Medical student Grace Ro describes one experience that reminded her every patient has a story that shapes their hopes, fears, and dreams. Learning these stories can help to humanize and better understand the doctor-patient experience.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the November 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Healing comes from genuine interpersonal connection, and I will take this lesson to heart as I enter my career as a nurse."
Recent nursing graduate Sonia Max reflects on an interaction with a pediatric patient and how the nurse-patient divide was bridged by looking beyond the technical aspects of nursing to connect with the human being before her.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I fear that assessment and instruction on bedside manner may dissociate the people skills from the person. Bedside manner should be streetside manner and couchside manner and barside manner and grocery storeside manner without geographic dependence."
Medical student Grace Ferri reflects on how life experiences outside the medical environment are integral to developing and shaping the empathy necessary when working with patients.
This essay placed in the 2020 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the October 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“We all left the room with an understanding of how our differences were not bigger than our similarities. That day, I learned from my students more than I had previously in my career as a health professions educator.”
Dr. Leonor Corsino reflects on an unexpected conversation about inclusion with her students and offers her thoughts on how educators can better support their diverse group of learners.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“Beliefs that we are chemically different from one another can fuel bigotry. Despite what we know, we still use race as a static, unidirectional proxy for health and disease.”
Dr. Alex Sims recalls the race-based microaggression she experienced at the dentist and describes how it offers “a small window into the danger of race-based medicine.”
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
“In this encounter, Mrs. S and I became 2 people sharing a connection in joy and in sorrow. Particularly when curative treatments are limited, the humanity in medicine shines the brightest.”
Medical student Martine Madill reflects on the importance of listening to patients and letting them write their own stories.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee chair Dr. Zareen Zaidi (@zareenmd) talk to guests Drs. Justin Bullock (@jbullockruns) and Joseph Mpalirwa (@mpalirwaj) about their research on the experiences of underrepresented medical students and physicians in the United States and Canada. This is the final episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
Read the articles discussed in this episode, “They Don’t See a Lot of People My Color: A Mixed Methods Study of Racial/Ethnic Stereotype Threat Among Medical Students on Core Clerkships” and “Patients, Pride, and Prejudice: Exploring Black Ontarian Physicians’ Experiences of Racism and Discrimination," and find the complete 2020 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Dr. Daniel Schumacher (@DrDanSchumacher) talk to guests Drs. Hanin Rashid, Kristen Coppola, and Robert Lebeau about their scoping review of the literature related to the USMLE Step exams and what their findings could mean for medical students, the medical school curricula, and the resident selection process. This is the second episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
Read the article discussed in this episode, “Three Decades Later: A Scoping Review of the Literature Related to the United States Medical Licensing Examination” at academicmedicine.org. Find the complete 2020 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, also at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Dr. Justin Sewell (@GIMedEd) and guest Dr. Jonathan Ilgen (@Jon_Ilgen) discuss how physicians navigate uncertain clinical situations and their comfort with that process. This is the first episode in a 3-part series of discussions with RIME authors about their medical education research and its implications for the field.
Read the article discussed in this episode, “'I Was Worried About the Patient, But I Wasn’t Feeling Worried': How Physicians Judge Their Comfort in Settings of Uncertainty” at academicmedicine.org. Find the complete 2020 RIME supplement, which is free to read and download, also at academicmedicine.org.
"Although it took a long time to adapt my lesson plans in a way that would better suit the needs and skills of my students, this experience gave me valuable perspective on the disparity between students’ motivations and what we educators imagine them to be, and ultimately, I’ve developed into a better teacher."
Dr. Halil Tekiner (@haliltekiner) reflects on teaching a medicine in literature course for the first time to less than enthusiastic medical students.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I decided to include in my daily prerounding a video call with the family. ... I was finally able to see Mr. X, and to hear the love of his family, the words of encouragement, the tears of his children. For a moment, I allowed myself to be part of this, and not isolate myself from their suffering and longing to be there with him."
Dr. Estefania Oliveros (@EstefaniaOS) reflects on caring for and connecting with patients during COVID-19.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
The October issue includes a collection of articles on women in medicine, including one with advice from Dr. Cathy DeAngelis derived from her 5 decades in academic medicine.
In this episode, women members of Academic Medicine’s editorial team share their own advice for supporting and advancing women in the field today.
Read the article that inspired this episode, “A Long, Adventurous Journey: Reflecting on 50 Years as a Woman in Academic Medicine,” at academicmedicine.org.
"When I later expressed my surprise at the depth of that encounter compared with the prior 12-minute skin cancer appointment, my attending simply reminded me that we were there to treat the patients and not their diseases....While this patient’s disease was objectively improving, her health was not, and it was our duty to fix that."
Medical student Anokhi Saklecha reflects on what she learned about treating patients holistically and addressing more than just their chief concern, from an encounter with a patient with vitiligo.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Dr. S and the parteras taught me what it means to be a learner. They showed me that no matter how expert we are or how time-tested our techniques, we can always seek to mesh our way of understanding the world with new information."
Medical student Phoebe Draper reflects on what she learned about the importance of being open and curious as a physician, from teaching a neonatal resuscitation course for midwives in Oaxaca, Mexico.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"American medicine has always been riven by internal rivalries. … The result is a culture that does not always prioritize kindness in interactions between health care providers. This has thankfully not been my experience during my reassignment … The COVID-19 outbreak will prove to be a seminal moment in the development of an entire generation of physicians-in-training. I hope that the bonds we form at the frontlines prove to be permanent."
Resident Kunal Sindhu (@sindhu_kunal) reflects on his redeployment to an internal medicine ward during the COVID-19 pandemic and the kindness and consideration he was shown by his new colleagues.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and assistant editor Dr. Dorene Balmer (@dorenebalmer) and guests medical students Bri Christophers (@BriChristophers) and Naomi Nkinsi (@NNkinsi) discuss how race is portrayed in medical education and what individuals and institutions should do to address racism in the curriculum and learning environment.
Read the article discussed in this episode, “Changing How Race Is Portrayed in Medical Education: Recommendations From Medical Students,” at academicmedicine.org.
Read other articles curated with the intent to help readers engage in necessary conversations about race and to inform strategies to eliminate structural racism in institutions in a free-to-read collection.
"The COVID-19 curriculum has also taught me that being a doctor isn’t only about giving a perfect presentation, choosing the right antibiotic, or making the right diagnosis. It is about using your knowledge to identify a need in humanity and taking action to fill it."
Medical student Kate Rosen (@KateKateRosen) reflects on how her education has accelerated during COVID-19 in ways she didn't expect.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Failure is an intense experience for health care professionals. Even in most cases when the patient experiences no lasting harm, the professional who failed will suffer. There is no getting used to this pain. We cannot prepare for it, and often we feel alone in working through it."
Dr. Jennifer Klasen reflects on using failure as an opportunity for growth and for forging more authentic connections with colleagues and patients.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
In 2017, for the first time, more than half of medical school matriculants in the U.S. were women. And in 2019, nearly half of new faculty hires across academic medicine were women. At the same time, some specialties have a much higher or lower proportion of women faculty and residents.
Hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Dr. John Coverdale and guests Drs. Elaine Pelley (@ElainePelley) and Molly Carnes (@Molly_Carnes) discuss gender segregation by specialty in medicine, what it looks like, how it came about, and the implications for women and the field of medicine.
Read the article discussed in this episode--“When a Specialty Becomes 'Women’s Work': Trends in and Implications of Specialty Gender Segregation in Medicine”-- at https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Abstract/9000/When_a_Specialty_Becomes__Women_s_Work___Trends_in.97144.aspx. Check back for the complete women in medicine collection of articles in the October issue of Academic Medicine.
"I would never have learned that this SP was as nervous as me had I not taken his pulse. ... As imaging technology and electronic records pull us away from the bedside, perhaps the unique privilege of performing something as intimate as the physical exam will help us keep the patient at the center of our care."
Medical student Michael Wang reflects on a standardized patient encounter that reminded him about the genuine connection between patients and physicians that can come from the physical exam.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the August 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"But the boys were uninterested in the degrees and accolades I possessed. They paid far closer attention to how I interacted with them. ... I learned I could be fully invested in each interaction, even if it lasted only 5 minutes."
Medical student Victor Hsiao describes what he learned about being fully present for his patients from mentoring a group of at-risk youths in Taiwan.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the July 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and editor-in-chief Dr. Laura Roberts (@_Roberts_Laura) and guest Caurice Wynter (@md_wynter) discuss COVID-19. Caurice, a fourth-year medical student, shares her COVID-19 story, the health inequities she and her family faced try to get care, and the insight she gained from navigating the health care system as a patient, a family member, and a medical student.
Read the complete collection of COVID-19 articles published in Academic Medicine at https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/pages/collectiondetails.aspx?TopicalCollectionId=68. New content is added every week, and all articles are free to read.
"I found myself in uncharted territory, grappling with an unpredictable future that was far removed from what I had always envisioned. Just like that, I went from medical student to patient."
Medical student Ilana Goldberg describes how her time as a patient and the health care team that cared for her taught her about being there for patients through hard times and protecting their vulnerabilities.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I turned around to perform a different kind of survey—one that had no checklist because it was never really complete. ... For the first time, I appreciated his life, not his illness or the data we tracked along with it."
Dr. Spencer Keil remembers a mentor who reminded him that caring for patients is about more than checking boxes. It's about getting to know a patient as a person outside a diagnosis.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the June 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Dr. Colin West (@ColinWestMDPhD) and guest Dr. Jonathan Ripp discuss the state of clinician well-being during COVID-19 and how it's similar or different to what we’ve seen before. Dr. Ripp talks about what he and his colleagues at Mount Sinai are doing to identify and mitigate stressors for clinicians and support their workforce. And the group looks to the future and what well-being issues we might see as a result of this pandemic.
Read Dr. Ripp’s article discussed in this episode, as well as the complete collection of COVID-19 articles published in Academic Medicine, at https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/pages/collectiondetails.aspx?TopicalCollectionId=68. New content is added every week, and all articles are free to read.
"Every clinician can remember his or her first real code as a singular event, but often unspoken is how these experiences chip away at the body, mind, and soul of even the most steadfast of people. Piece by piece, the mosaic of a fledgling medical student builds, cracks, and rebuilds with the ever-present risk of shattering altogether in the crucible."
Medical student Damond Ng describes his first code and what he learned about the beautiful burden that physicians bear trying to keep harm at bay.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the May 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and assistant editor for trainee engagement Dr. Jesse Burk Rafel (@jbrafel) and guest Dr. Lotte Dyrbye (@dyrbye) discuss burnout in medical students and residents, including new recommendations from the National Academies about systems-level changes to foster well-being in learners.
Read Dr. Dyrbye's commentary, “Redesigning the Learning Environment to Promote Learner Well-Being and Professional Development,” discussed in this episode at academicmedicine.org.
"In the classroom, if I had a question, I would ask it. 'There are no dumb questions,' we were told. On the wards, I felt as if that standard no longer applied. I was fearful both that my questions would slow or inhibit patient care and that I would be considered ignorant for my curiosity."
Dr. Nathan Kong describes the importance of fostering curiosity in medical students, especially as they adapt to practicing clinical care.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and editor-in-chief Dr. Laura Roberts (@_Roberts_Laura) and guest Dr. Alison Whelan (@AlisonWhelanMD) discuss discuss how academic medicine is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact the crisis has had on the many mission areas of the field. They also discuss how the pandemic is affecting health professionals at all levels as well as the lasting changes to medicine and medical education that we might see, including how society views and values health professionals.
Read the articles discussed in this episode, including the complete collection of COVID-19 articles published in Academic Medicine, at https://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/pages/collectiondetails.aspx?TopicalCollectionId=68. New content will be added to the collection every week, and all articles are free to read.
"Sick versus not sick. Discerning this is a skill I first heard about long ago as a third-year medical student, then honed during my acting internship, residency, and 2 decades as an attending. ... And still, in this moment, I questioned whether I was making the right decision. Impostor syndrome reared its head."
Dr. Terry Kind describes the useful purpose self-doubt can play throughout a physician's career. It helped her to think critically and make better decisions in caring for a 2-day old infant.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the April 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Hosts Toni Gallo and associate editor Dr. Bridget O’Brien (@bobrien_15) and guests Drs. Lara Varpio (@LaraVarpio) and Anna MacLeod (@ammacleod) discuss the recently published Philosophy of Science series. This collection of articles has something for everyone. It includes primers on 7 different paradigms (or collections of ideas about how we see the world) to help readers think about their HPE work in new ways.
Read the articles discussed in this episode, including the complete Philosophy of Science series, at academicmedicine.org.
Lara Varpio's Disclaimer: The views expressed in this episode are solely those of the guests and do not necessarily reflect those of the Uniformed Services University of the Unites States Department of Defense.
"I know I’m not the only one who feels that I can’t step away. Studies of physicians’ health and wellness are at the forefront of research these days. As physicians, our vow and purpose embolden our drive to keep going, to do more, and, at times, to neglect our own health. "
Dr. Michaela Gaffley describes how her own cancer diagnosis forced her to realize that she had to prioritize her own health and practice self-compassion to better care for her patients.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Compassionate care of a dying person with cancer isn’t a cinematic moment of calm, confident oration of the perfect speech and a ceremoniously grave exit. I didn’t hide my emotions behind aequanimitas virtuosity, but instead practiced transparency, allowing the patient and her family to witness my own emotional vulnerability."
Dr. Michael Bonner Foote remembers the patient who reminded him that leaning into discomfort and sharing his emotions openly can benefit both his patients and himself.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the March 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Receiving the gift of compassion from my preceptor that day reminded me, and will continue to remind me, of how to give to and care for those around me, whether they be my patients or my colleagues."
Medical student Victor Hsiao remembers a preceptor who gave him not only her time but also her empathy, grace, and encouragement. He describes how he will carry forward that experience in his own practice of medicine.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I look away from the microscope. I close my eyes, escaping the objective truth of these ever-present blasts and settling into the memory of butterflies set free into blue August skies at Adam’s funeral. For a moment, I find relief within the comfort of darkness, a brief respite from bright light."
Resident Trisha Paul (@trishakpaul2) describes learning about a young patient Adam both from the patient himself earlier in her education and through a microscope from his blood work some time later.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the February 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"My genuine commitment to students is deeply rooted in the care others had for me. ... I want to pay the transformative power of teaching and learning forward to my students for years to come."
Nathan Vanderford (@nlvanderford) describes how he tries to have a transformative influence on his students’ careers and life trajectories, just like his teachers and mentors had on him as a young man.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Maybe the beauty of medicine and being a physician isn’t being able to solve every problem and prevent every tragic outcome ... but being there and supporting the people who need us, every step of the way."
Pre-med student Marin Langlieb (@mlanglieb) recounts 2 experiences, the loss of her childhood pediatrician and mentor and the openness of the people at a community support group, that taught her about the true role of a physician, as she embarks on a career in medicine.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the January 2020 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
Assuming the role of editor-in-chief of Academic Medicine, Laura Roberts (@_Roberts_Laura) sits down with past editor David Sklar and staff editor Toni Gallo in this episode to discuss the journal and the state of scholarship in medical education. Dr. Sklar recaps his time at Academic Medicine and the changes he saw during his 7 years as editor, and Dr. Roberts introduces herself to listeners and shares her vision for the future.
"A physician once told me, 'You will not be able to cure or save every patient in your career. However, you do have the opportunity to heal every patient.' I did not truly understand what this meant until my experience with my dad."
Medical student April Butler recounts how watching her father’s illness and death made her determined to offer her patients the same level of care, respect, and healing that he received.
This essay placed first in the 2019 Hope Babette Tang Humanism in Healthcare Essay Contest and was published in the December 2019 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Like the medical jargon and the physical exam, learning how to witness death is both a rite of passage and a skill to be learned. Teaching medical trainees how to cope with death requires slowing down. When attendings or residents pause to remember what a first code feels like and debrief the experience or offer guidance on how to cope, it is impactful to trainees."
Contrasting her own first experience with death and a classmate's, medical student Sarah Smith (@SarahSm25869963) describes how important it is for attendings and residents to teach trainees how to witness and cope with a patient's death.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2019 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"Jaime taught me that missed visits are important data points, rather than the lack thereof. They suggest that a patient could be struggling to contend with poverty, housing insecurity, immigration status concerns, domestic violence, immobility, untreated mental illness, or prior experiences facing racism when seeking care. While these forces may not be visible through the electronic medical record, they pose powerful threats to good health. Their effects warrant prompt diagnosis and an effective assessment and plan."
Resident Cameron Nutt (@cameronnutt) discovers through a lucky Uber ride that when patients miss follow-up appointments, it could be a sign that other issues are at play, issues that require follow up.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2019 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.
"I never sought to transform John’s political views—my role as a future doctor is to heal people like John, to judge his heart by its physicality and not its prejudice. However, I hope that because of our time together as people with different backgrounds and worldviews, John acquired a more compassionate understanding of Mexican people than what our president publicizes. I hope that we remember each other."
Medical student Salem Harry-Hernandez describes what it’s like as a Mexican American caring for patients who freely share their political views on controversial topics.
This essay was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2019 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.