"Older adults have this special clarity about who they are and what they want, which is incredibly inspiring," says Dr. Julia Hiner, explaining, in part, why she loves her work as a geriatrician in Houston, Texas. She also enjoys the challenge of the medical complexity these patients present and the opportunity it creates to see the patient as a whole person. In fact, as you’ll hear in this upbeat conversation with Raise the Line host Lindsey Smith, there’s almost nothing about geriatrics that Dr. Hiner does not enjoy, which explains her passion for teaching the subject at McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and trying to convince more students to pursue it as their specialty.  The need is great, given that there are only 8,000 geriatricians in the US despite a rapidly growing senior population. Tune in to learn why Dr. Hiner thinks clinicians avoid the field and the steps that can be taken to improve the situation, including requiring courses in geriatrics. You’ll also learn about the importance of capacity assessments, the troubling, and under-reported, problem of elder mistreatment, ageism among health professionals and much more in this super informative episode. 

Mentioned in this episode:

University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston McGovern Medical School 

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"It was pretty apparent to me that something was going on with him," says Kristi Levine, describing the realization that, based on her experience as a Montessori teacher, her infant son, Trey, was missing developmental milestones. Unfortunately, Kristi’s hunch turned out to be correct and Trey was later diagnosed with a rare genetic mutation called CACNA1A which is impacting his motor skills, balance, coordination and speech. Kristi and her husband, Eric, join host Michael Carrese on this installment in our Year of the Zebraseries to help us understand the disorder and its implications for Trey and their family, which includes Trey’s older sister Stella.  “There's a lot of guilt involved in being a parent of a child who has a disability because you never feel like you're doing enough,” shares Eric, even though they both work full time and have becoming experts at juggling work, caregiving, advocating, and volunteering with the CACNA1A Foundation. In this candid interview, Eric and Kristi discuss the challenges of parenting a child with complex medical needs, the importance of community support, the ongoing search for treatment options, and share some advice for clinicians caring for patients and families living with rare disorders. “We just want medical professionals to respect and understand what we're dealing with on a day-to-day basis and to see our kids holistically, and not just try to fix the problem medically. Understand that for us, the biggest thing that we want for our kids is just their quality of life.”

Mentioned in this episode:
CACNA1A Foundation

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We have a special guest on today's episode whose voice will be familiar to regular listeners. Last year at this time, Dr. Raven Baxter occupied the Raise the Line host chair for a special ten-part series we produced in collaboration with the Cohen Center for Recovery from Complex Chronic Illness (CoRe) at Mount Sinai in New York City, where she serves as the Director of Science Communication. The series explored the latest understandings of post-acute infection syndromes -- such as Chronic Lyme and Long COVID -- with an array of experts from the Center and other researchers and providers. In this episode, we check-in with Dr. Baxter to get an update on the work of the Cohen Center, especially with regard to its mission to educate providers. “We're building programs so that clinicians can earn credit for learning about chronic illnesses that are infection associated, and we've also developed a 200-page provider manual. I really think that we will be able to shift the narrative that currently exists,” Dr. Baxter tells host Michael Carrese. That narrative includes lingering skepticism among providers of some infection-associated illnesses, which Dr. Baxter witnessed herself as a Long COVID patient, an experience that has added meaningful perspective to her work. Dr. Baxter is also working on her own time to advance knowledge and combat misinformation through a robust social media presence as “The Science Maven” and helps other scientists and clinicians to do the same. "If we're not there to fill in that void, other people will fill it for us and the narrative may not be consistent with the truth or facts." This is a great opportunity to learn about the art and science of communications that can reach clinicians and patients alike.

Mentioned in this episode:

Cohen Center for Recovery from Complex Chronic Illness

The Science Maven

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On this episode of “Raise the Line” we welcome Dr. Sheldon Fields, a trailblazer in the nursing field and the president of the National Black Nurses Association. In a candid conversation, Dr. Fields shares his inspiring journey from the bedside to becoming a prominent figure in nursing, HIV/AIDS prevention and academia and also shares the challenges he faced as a Black man in a predominantly white and female field. "I fell in love with a profession that has not always loved me back," he tells host Kelsey Lafayette. Dr. Fields brings over thirty years of experience as an educator, researcher, clinician, administrator, consultant, health policy specialist, and entrepreneur to his current role at NBNA, and as the inaugural associate dean for equity and inclusion at the College of Nursing at Penn State University, where he also serves as a research professor. Listeners will find Dr. Fields' insights on navigating a career in healthcare particularly valuable, as he stresses the importance of resilience, continuing education, and mentorship. It's a compelling listen for anyone interested in the intersection of health, policy, and social justice.

Mentioned in this episode:

National Black Nurses Association

ClinicalKey AI Free Trial

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We’re honored to continue our global tour of medical education today with Professor Katarzyna Taran, MD, PhD, a pioneering interdisciplinary researcher of tumor cell biology, an award winning educator noted for her focus on student engagement, and -- in a first for a Raise the Line guest -- a shooting sports certified coach and referee. As Professor Taran explains to host Michael Carrese, these seemingly disparate professional activities require the same underlying attributes: patience, the ability to overcome barriers, openness and adaptation. She believes those last qualities are especially important for today’s medical students to acquire given the accelerated pace of change in healthcare. “They need to be equipped with the ability for critical thinking, to analyze and synthesize, and to search for unconventional solutions.” Professor Taran tries to impart these skills, in addition to the medical and scientific knowledge students must know, through a high level of engagement. “Teaching is relational, so try to be familiar with students' concerns. Talk to them, listen to them and you will become someone they trust.” In this wide-ranging and engaging conversation, Professor Taran also discusses her work as the head of the Laboratory of Isotopic Fractionation in Pathological Processes in Chair of Oncology, the use of neurodidactics in teaching, and the connection between the science of pathology and the future of humans in space. 

Mentioned in this episode:

Medical University of Lodz

ClinicalKey AI Free Trial

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We like to think of Osmosis from Elsevier as a global community of millions of learners, connected by a desire to serve humanity and an inclination to use a diverse mix of educational resources to help them become excellent healthcare practitioners. On today’s episode of Raise the Line, we’re going to learn how Osmosis has created an opportunity for hundreds of those students from sixty countries to actually solidify those connections through the Osmosis Health Leadership Initiative (OHLI). Our guide to this effort is Osmosis Community Specialist Alfred Collins, who brings a keen interest in developing tech solutions to power the future of human communication to his work with OHLI.

“Technology collapses barriers to communication and to understanding the nuances behind culture, behind global perspectives,” he tells host Lindsey Smith. One example he cites is how OHLI members learn about variations in the way different cultures approach collaboration, an important insight to gain as they head into team-based healthcare environments. OHLI members convene regularly over video sessions to hear from leaders in healthcare and learn about hosting successful on-campus events, among other enriching content.  They also have an opportunity to provide feedback on improving the Osmosis learning platform, and this year they’re participating in a “hackathon” aimed at improving the future of healthcare. Tune in to find out more about what the OHLI program offers, how to apply, and how Alfred thinks virtual reality and AI technologies will impact the future of community building. 

Mentioned in this episode:

Osmosis Health Leadership Initiative

ClinicalKey AI Free Trial

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David Game remembers the days when the use of digital technology in education publishing amounted to putting a dictionary on a compact disc. Now, as the senior vice president of Product Management, Global Medical Education at Elsevier, he oversees a suite of learning materials that use artificial intelligence, virtual reality and 3-D modeling. “We’ve expanded into immersive technology with Apple Vision Pro that enables you to be inside the human body, to see and explore the human heart from the inside out and it is absolutely stunning,” says Game, whose long career in publishing includes experience in North America, the United Kingdom, Europe, China and India. As Game has witnessed first-hand, advancements in ed tech, including distance learning, have provided students with an array of options and modalities to choose from that accommodate different learning styles and life circumstances, and that puts a premium on being able to meet students where they are. “We want to make sure that students find learning from our materials engaging, efficient, and aligned with how they live their lives and do their work.” Join host Lindsey Smith for this fascinating episode of Raise the Line to learn how Elsevier is leveraging the innovations offered by Osmosis, Complete Anatomy and ClinicalKey Student to enrich the learning of medical students on their journey to becoming excellent clinicians.

Mentioned in this Episode:

Complete Anatomy

ClinicalKey Student

Osmosis

ClinicalKey AI Free Trial

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An interesting new study from the Geisinger health system in Pennsylvania examining if genomic screening in a large population increases the identification of disease risk prompted Raise the Line to re-release a previous episode about a textbook designed to help all medical providers understand the clinical applications of genomic testing. Genomics in the Clinic: A Practical Guide to Genetic Testing, Evaluation, and Counseling from Elsevier Science Direct dives into the use of this important tool in diagnosis and screening, indicating how individuals may respond to drug therapies, and more. “We really need to educate all healthcare providers about the practice of genetics because they're going to be involved directly or indirectly in genetic testing and conveying information about what the results mean to patients and their families,” explains co-author Dr. Ethylin Wang Jabs, enterprise chair of the Department of Clinical Genomics for Mayo Clinic. Jabs and her co-author, Dr. Antonie Kline, director of Clinical Genetics at the Harvey Institute for Human Genetics at Greater Baltimore Medical Center, chose a format that makes heavy use of case studies to help readers get a better grasp on this complicated field and they also include chapters on direct-to-consumer testing and the ethical and social implications in genomic medicine. “Any kind of potentially predictive testing can have ethical issues related to it, including insurance coverage, testing for family members, protections for minors, and more,” says Dr. Kline. Join host Caleb Furnas for an illuminating episode on an area of discussion in medicine that’s growing in importance as the use of genetic testing rapidly increases. 

Mentioned in this episode: Genomics in the Clinic: A Practical Guide

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To mark International Rare Disease Day, we're going to introduce you to a remarkable young woman, Zainab Alani, who is not letting her challenging rare condition stand in the way of her dream of becoming a physician. After noticing Zainab’s struggles with muscle weakness and fatigue at age 15, her mother – a physician – took her to doctors advocating for a diagnosis of the rare autoimmune condition generalized myasthenia gravis (MG). Unfortunately, a series of clinicians attributed her symptoms to her menstrual cycle and other errant causes and even accused Zainab of being ‘a lazy teenager.’ “Despite having that support and knowledge behind me, these doctors were dismissing my symptoms because of that deceiving label of rare,” Zainab explains to host Lindsey Smith. Wanting to spare others from this frustrating diagnostic odyssey, Zainab turned to advocacy once in medical school and is working with her sister and others through the organization Rare Aware Glasgow to raise awareness among the general public about rare conditions and to spur the medical community to adjust its perspective. “We don't expect medical professionals to know every single rare disease, we just want them to acknowledge their existence and not dismiss them when a family member or a patient brings them up as a differential diagnosis.” In this inspiring episode in our Year of the Zebra podcast series you’ll also learn about intersectionality creating burdens in medical diagnosis and a questionable basis for patients being denied access to new treatments.

Mentioned in this episode:

Rare Aware Glasgow
The Myasthenia Medic

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Having the ability to manage uncertainty is helpful in all professions, but perhaps especially so in medicine where uncertainty abounds and the stakes for managing it are high. Despite that, medical students receive little training in this area, something which our guest today, Dr. Jenny Moffett of RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Dublin, is working to change. “There are approaches to uncertainty that can be learned. We can change our perspective and perceptions around uncertainty, stepping away from always viewing it as something aversive, but perhaps maybe looking at it with a little bit more curiosity and openness, and that's definitely a transformation that faculty can make,” says Dr. Moffett, the program director of the Postgraduate Diploma in Health Professions Education. In addition to a perspective shift, Moffett also believes providers should develop skills to talk about uncertainty with patients in an open and honest way. “Clinicians can say, I'm on this journey with you. I don't have all of the answers, but we have paths, we have options, and I'll be there with you as we work them out.” Join host Caleb Furnas as he explores Dr. Moffett’s fascinating work in this area which includes development of an immersive puzzle game that encourages students to address complex, ambiguous, and unpredictable issues.

Mentioned in this episode:

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

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