Medicus

In September 2018 our local chapter of Physicians for Human Rights hosted an event where guest speaker Amal Kassir gave a talk called “The Syrian Refugee Crisis and Islamophobia.” A few members of the Medicus team were at this event and we thought her message was worth sharing, so we’ve decided to play the audio from this event on the podcast. She delivers her message with a mixture of poetry and storytelling about her experience growing up as a Muslim-American, her extended family living through Syrian Civil War, and the importance of empathy.

Amal Kassir is a Muslim Woman, born and raised in Denver, CO to a German-Iowan Mother and a Syrian Father. She is an international spoken word poet, having performed in 10 countries and over 45 cities. She has conducted workshops, given lectures, and recited her poetry in venues ranging from youth prisons, to orphanages to refugee camps to universities to churches to community spaces for the public. She designed her own undergraduate degree called 'Community Programming in Social Psychology' and she is a major proponent in education and building individual agency in particularly underserved and vulnerable populations, especially through writing. She hopes to take part in the global effort for literacy in war-struck areas and refugee camps, Insha'Allah. 

You can see Amal's TEDx talk here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIAm1g_Vgn0

Amal Kassir's Social Media Links:

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/activistamalkassir

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/amalthepoet

Twitter https://twitter.com/amalthepoet

Website http://www.amalkassir.com/

For the introduction to this episode we are joined by Abdallah, the president of a local chapter of Physicians for Human Rights, an organization that “works at the intersection of medicine, science, and law to secure justice and universal human rights for all.” You can find out more information about them at https://www.phr.org

Outro Music: Chillin Hard - Kevin Mcleod 

Episode produced by: Nate Burstedt

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In this 4th year medical student (MS4) specialty episode, we investigate the field of Internal Medicine. Our specialty series with 4th year medical students consists of three parts. Part I is a discussion about the field. Here, we will learn about the reasons why our guests have decided to a pursue a career in this specialty, likes/dislikes about the field, and common stereotypes surrounding the field. Part II explores what it takes to match into the field. Our discussions in this section include ways in which medical students can become a competitive applicant for this specialty, tips for rotations in this specialty, advice on structuring your curriculum, and ways to evaluate which residency programs to apply to. Part III is the general advice section. Here, our 4th year students will reveal the secrets to success for each year of medical school, as well as advice for pre-med students, gap year students, excelling on board exams, and more.

Our guests in this episode, Dipan Karmali and Dhruv Kumar, are completing their medical education at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

Episode Produced by: Alek Druck

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Listen as current medical student Blake Murphy coaches us on how to get educated about healthcare policy and become involved in advocacy. Serving as this year's Government Relations Advocacy Fellow (GRAF) for the American Medical Association (AMA), she has been learning how policy is informed and enacted at the national level. Our discussion will leave you eager to become involved with issues impacting healthcare delivery and patients across the US!

Stay up to date on healthcare and policy news with these resources recommended by Blake-

Axios Vitals Newsletter: https://signup.axios.com/2019/am.html?utm_source=Search&utm_medium=CPA&utm_campaign=brandterms&utm_content=new

AMA Morning Rounds: https://www.ama-assn.org/ama-member-benefits/individual-member-benefits/email-newsletter-publications 

Politico Pulse: https://www.politico.com/politicopulse/ 

Episode produced by Alek Druck and Mara Peterson.

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If you ask most medical students why they decided to go to medical school, there’s a good chance that they will say it was, at least in part, to help an underserved population.   While every patient population has its own unique features and challenges, one demographic that is often overlooked is prison inmates.    In this episode, we sat down with Dr. Chad Zawitz (Assistant Professor at Rush University Medical Center, and Director of Infectious Diseases at Cook County Jail) to discuss the fascinating world of correctional medicine.  He shares his insights from his 15 years of experience working at Cook County Jail, which happens to be the largest single-site jail in the US, housing approximately 6500 detainees at one time.  In this interview, Dr. Zawitz explains how healthcare in the prison system works, the differences in how he approaches medicine in the jail setting (including many of the challenges that he faces), and the barriers his patients face after rehabilitation. 

Throughout our interview, Dr. Zawitz shares impactful stories where he recalls some of his most formative patient encounters.  Some of the stories you will hear are graphic, yet educational. For a humbling learning experience, take a listen to this correctional medicine episode!

Many physicians will tell you that there will come a time where you are so fatigued mentally, physically and emotionally that you begin to lose sight of why you pursued a career in medicine in the first place.  These moments are extremely challenging and can leave you feeling isolated, disengaged from your work, and full of more questions than answers. 

In this episode we sat down with Dr. Greg Ozark, the Vice President/Assistant Dean of Graduate Medical Education at Loyola Stritch School of Medicine.  In our discussion, he shares his strategies and insights on how to remain grounded through the highs and lows of this high-stress occupation.   

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review!  If you have learned something from this podcast then be sure to share Medicus with a friend!  We would love to hear your ideas and suggestions. Comment below or feel free to contact us here:

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Every medical student knows of that one hurdle that can make or break their aspirations of getting into the specialty or program of their choice. It’s the bane of existence for every medical student in their first two years of medical school. That hurdle is the USMLE Step 1.

The United States Medical Licensure Exam - Step 1, is a standardized exam that is administered by the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) and the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB). It was created to assess the ability of medical students to apply basic science fundamental concepts to the practice of medicine. The entire exam is divided into three steps, but in this episode we will be primarily be focusing on Step 1, which is typically taken after the second year of medical school. 

On this episode of Medicus, Dr. Josh Hopps joins Nate and Neal to talk about the history and philosophy behind the exam, the controversies surrounding it, its place in medical education, and the changes that it might be undergoing in the years to come.

Sound effect is "DunDunDunnn.wav" by copyc4t - available at https://freesound.org/people/copyc4t/sounds/146434/

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Part of being a physician is establishing a balance between personal life and work life. On this episode of Medicus, Dr. Bernadette Aulivola joins us to discuss how she is able to manage her roles as a mother and wife, while also being a physician in the demanding field of vascular surgery. Dr. Aulivola also dives into a variety of other topics such as her clinical area of interest, which is to save legs from requiring amputation with techniques to improve blood flow, as well as the progression of women representation in surgical specialties. Did we also mention that Dr. Aulivola practices transcendental meditation?

Tune in to Medicus to learn more about how this amazing multitasker does it all!

Follow Dr. Aulivola on twitter @baulivola

Follow Loyola Vascular Surgery @loyolavascular

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There are many different types of hospitals in the United States, most of which fall under the broad categories of for-profit, not-for-profit, and government-owned (Department of Veterans Affairs "VA"). Although only a select demographic can utilize government-owned hospitals, our VA hospitals are a major component of the US healthcare system. From the US Department of Veteran Affairs website, “The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,243 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,062 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program.” 

We brought in Dr. Haralampopoulos, an internist at the Edward Hines Jr. VA hospital in Illinois for over a decade, to shed light on the VA system. She shares how medicine is practiced at the VA, discusses working with the VA’s patient population, and reasons why one should pursue a career at the VA.

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Welcome to Part 2 of our Valentine’s Day Special!  Here we explore what it’s like to be a parent while attending medical school and residency. For insight into this topic, we have brought in two “physicians in training” who have a three year old daughter and another baby on the way. We sure learned a lot from our incredibly talented and dedicated guests, and know you will too!

In the Part 1 of our Valentine’s Day Special, we learn about managing relationships and getting married while in medical school. We discuss the obstacles, thought processes, and joys of planning a wedding from the perspective of two amazing (and hilarious) guests. From doing long-distance, transitioning to new jobs and cities, and having their perfect wedding, they've done it all.

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