By mcgillmedmindfulness
The podcast currently has 22 episodes available.
Dr. Kaffash will begin his career in July 2024 as a rural family physician in the James Bay territory. He recently completed his residency in family medicine at McGill University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science from Concordia University and a medical degree from McGill University’s class of 2022. Outside of medicine, Dr. Kaffash is interested in fitness, martial arts, and podcasts (lucky us!)
In this podcast we discuss:
2:50 - Arshi’s path to rural family medicine
4:56 - Arshi explains the ease and sense of community in the rural environment
6:27 - Arshi recounts a day in the life as a medical learner in James Bay
9:15 - Some downsides of a rural practice: seclusion and distance from loved ones
11:04 - The clinical challenges of working in a remote indigenous community
12:30 - The unique sense of support between healthcare staff in James Bay
15:25 - Weaving together western medicine and culturally sensitive care
19:00 - Arshi describes the continuous state of learning in rural medicine
20:40 - Palliative care in rural medicine
21:48 - Goosebreak, a Cree holiday for going out on the land to hunt, and other cultural practices
24:08 - Arshi shares some of his favorite formal mindfulness practices
28:54 - How rural family medicine incorporates informal mindfulness principles into practice, and the power of walking to work
31:23 - Advice for medical students - do a rural rotation!
Dr. Phoebe Friesen is a philosopher and medical ethicist working within the Department of Equity, Ethics and Policy in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at McGill University. We talk about her research and thoughts within the realms of the placebo effect and female pelvic examinations under anesthesia.
In this podcast we discuss:
0:40 – Introducing Dr. Friesen.
1:35 – How she reached the career landscape she is in now.
2:49 – Defining social studies of medicine and medical ethics.
4:29 – Overlap between mindfulness and social studies of medicine.
10:49 – The placebo effect in medical school curriculums.
16:00 – Describing the open label placebo.
19:35 – Discussing the meaning response.
22:36 – Discussing Dr. Friesen’s research in female pelvic examinations under anesthesia.
25:39 – Canadian guidelines on the practice.
27:35 – The practice within medical education.
41:57 – Closing thoughts.
In this episode we are joined by Dr. Preetha Krishnamoorthy, a staff in the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology at the Montreal Children’s Hospital since 2003. Dr. Krishnamoorthy is heavily involved in medical education at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She is also the Director of Pediatric Undergraduate Education at McGill. We talk about her strategies in finding a professional relationship with patients and their families as well as how she exemplifies and discusses healthy life habits with them.
1:03 – Introducing Dr. Krishnamoorthy by exploring her interests.
2:00 – How her relationship with physical activity has changed over the years.
4:30 – Accountability with physical activity.
5:38 – Balancing commitments in resident and attending life.
7:18 – Dr. Krishnamoorthy’s involvement with physical activity and how it relates to her role as a pediatric endocrinologist.
9:20 – Exemplifying and discussing healthy life habits with patients.
12:35 – Nutrition and body image within patient care.
14:32 – Strategies on approaching conversation around making lifestyle changes with pediatric patients.
16:22 – Reflecting on the parallels between her role with patients and with medical learners.
17:32 – Relationships with patients and parents of patients and setting boundaries.
24:35 – Managing challenges within these relationships.
26:45 – Incorporating medical teaching into her career.
32:35 – Dr. Krishnamoorthy’s future goals.
35:48 – Strategies in managing her many roles and closing thoughts.
Dr. Asli Buyukkurt is a fourth year resident in Neurology at McGill. Dr. Buyukkurt completed a B.Sc. in neuroscience and went on to pursue her medical training at McGill University. She has a profound interest in medical education. In addition to acting as the co-chief resident in Adult Neurology, Dr. Buyukkurt lectures and leads group discussions in the Faculty of Medicine. She has also been involved in the CaRMS selection process, and discusses her experiences, both as an applicant and as a reviewer in this episode of our podcast. Beyond medicine, Dr. Buyukkurt is a tap, jazz, and hip-hop dancer and a paint-by-number enthusiast.
Dr. Singh-Saluja is an Emergency Physician at the McGill University Health Centre. He completed his undergraduate medical training at McGill and went on to complete his residency in Family Medicine with additional training in Emergency Medicine at McGill. To date, his work has varied from time in the Intensive Care Unit, practicing Northern Medicine in Puvirnituq and work in sports medicine. As a former chief of Emergency Medicine, he continues to be heavily involved in residency training at McGill.
More recently, Dr. Singh has become involved in administration of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID), forming the basis of our conversation in this podcast. Outside of medicine, Dr. Singh-Saluja is a lover of sports including soccer, football and kayaking, an avid gym goer and passionate about spending time with his family.
Madison Le Gallee is a first year Family Medicine resident at McGill and practices at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Montreal, QC. Madison completed her undergraduate medical degree at McGill. She has a soft spot for matcha lattes and fall hikes, and enjoys folding origami and finishing novels after hours. Madison also has a special interest in mental wellness initiatives and skin health. Gray Meckling is a second year psychiatry resident at the University of Ottawa. He completed his undergraduate medical degree at the University of Toronto after completing a Bachelor of Science at the University of British Columbia. He is passionate about mental health and meditation.
Dr. Sanders is a Family Doctor and the chair of Palliative Medicine at McGill University. In this episode of the podcast we discuss the various decision points in his life and how they have influenced his career and outlook today. We talk about challenges and failures, and how these can be viewed constructively. Dr. Sanders shares advice he has received during his career and we talk about promoting a culture of wellness in medicine.
In this episode, we take a deep dive into the compatibility of spiritual practice and striving professionally and the role of work in one's life (and when it can become pathological). We also explore mindfulness and deep meditative states that can be achieved on retreat. Dr. Soham Rej invites us to critically reflect on the role of physicians as healers, and whether our modern understanding of the profession is compatible with its original intention. Tune in to hear more of this fascinating conversation with Dr. Soham Rej.
Dr. Soham Rej is a Geriatric Psychiatrist and Assistant Professor at the Jewish General Hospital/Lady Davis Institute at McGill University. He completed medical school and his residency training at McGill, and then went on to do a geriatric psychiatry clinical and research fellowship at the University of Toronto. He currently runs a lab doing research in three areas including the use of AI, mind body interventions (like mindfulness and yoga) and psychedelic assisted therapy for improving mood, anxiety and cognitive disorders in older adults.
Dr. Sabina Freiman is a Vancouver-based Internal Medicine resident who originally completed her medical education at the University of Toronto. She has experience in the mentorship and guidance of medical students and currently co-chairs the residency wellness committee at UBC. In this podcast we discuss common challenges during training and some useful strategies to overcome them.
Juliana Mahood is Montreal-based McGill University-affiliated family physician who originally completed her medical education at McGill. She is extensively engaged in the mentorship and guidance of medical students at McGill university, particularly through her role as an Osler fellow, where she mentors 5 medical students throughout the students’ 4 years of training.
We discuss:
0:12 – Introduction
00:38 – What Dr. Mahood does at McGill University and Saint Mary’s Hospital
1:05 – What led Dr. Mahood to pursue medicine and to be where she is today
3:40 – How Dr. Mahood chose Family Medicine as a specific career path
5:04 – The inspiration for mentoring medical students
8:25 – An important moment of failure in medical school, and its key lessons
15:20 – Strategies for staying well mentally and physically, as a medical professional
20:16 – The role of mindfulness in medicine
25:02 – Developing mindfulness in everyday life outside of the medical environment
30:16 – The role of hobbies and extracurricular interests in having a healthylifestyle
34:34 – Concluding remarks
The podcast currently has 22 episodes available.