We are always looking for great suggestions of people and topics to cover on this podcast. So when a few people suggested an episode on our school's Wellness Committee, we were thrilled to sit down with M4 Nicol Tugarinov and M3 Nycole Hidalgo, both of whom sit on the Wellness Committee, to learn all about what this group is and how it helps promote and support medical student wellness.

The Student Clinician Ceremony is a rite of passage for our medical students as they finish their preclinical years and enter clinical rotations. As a companion piece to the upcoming Student Clinician Ceremony, we are delighted to bring you the wisdom and perspectives of three wonderful MS4s: Indira Jetton, Dennis Morozov, and Gurbani Singh. They share stories of humanism in their third year, when they received help in a moment of need, and their top advice for students at this special time in training and life.

Many medical students pursue passions and hobbies alongside their medical studies. Kerrigan Dougherty, MS3, was featured in The Baltimore Banner for their work with the Skylight Boutique in Baltimore. In today's episode, they share some of their life story, their nonstandard path to medicine, their joy in working with the Skylight Boutique, and some tips and tricks for superb time management when balancing med school with the rest of life.

Reference:

Scharper, J. "One of the country's few gender-affirming thrift stores is in Baltimore." The Baltimore Banner. November 4, 2024. Link.

It is that time of year again: 4th year scheduling season is here for our MS3s. Dr. Beth Lamos clarifies, demystifies, and reassures us about Advance Phase Scheduling - essentially everything that comes after Step 1, with a focus on the individual experiences that come after clerkships. She shares clear, practical information and concrete strategies to make the best of 4th year.

Resources:

• Advanced Clinical Phase Scheduling Process. UMSOM OSA Academic Handbook. Link.

• Clinical Scheduling and Sites. UMSOM OSA Handbook. Link.

During the course of our medical careers, we see a lot of hard things. We're in the room when patients die. We see the effects of enormous physical, emotional, and psychological trauma. We watch our peers and colleagues go through really hard times. We often compartmentalize this pain in the moment because we have to move forward and see the next patient. But we don't always make an effort to DE-compartmentalize afterward. What is decompartmentalization, and how can we practice it effectively to keep ourselves healthy? Dr. Marissa Flaherty from the OSA and the Department of Psychiatry is back to walk us through grief, debriefing, and decompartmentalization.

Resource:

https://students-residents.aamc.org/medical-student-well-being/learning-decompartmentalize-self-care

Situational awareness and judgment are two of the most important ingredients to success in life and definitely medical school, especially the clinical years. Even if you don't know what you're doing on day 1 of a new rotation, or even where the bathrooms are, situational awareness will allow you to clue in to the dynamics around you, avoid mistakes and gaffes, and help you shine through fluid, seamless interactions with others. Dr. John Allen from the OSA sits down with Dr. Frayha to explore situational awareness in med school: what it means and how to cultivate it, along with specific scripting and strategies for different situations.

Resources:

• AMA resource on how clinical clerkship students can hone situational awareness

• What is situational awareness in healthcare?

• Feller S, et al. Situational Awareness in the Context of Clinical Practice. Healthcare (Basel). 2023 Dec 4;11(23):3098. PMID: 38063666.

• Weller JM, et al. Teamwork matters: team situation awareness to build high-performing healthcare teams, a narrative review. Br J Anaesth. 2024 Apr;132(4):771-778. Epub 2024 Feb 2. PMID: 38310070.

Sometimes, patients may exhibit agitated or even violent behavior in the clinical setting. It is so important to understand background and context, try to preserve the therapeutic relationship, and also ensure our and our patient's physical safety in these challenging circumstances. Dr. Marissa Flaherty from the OSA and the Department of Psychiatry is a wealth of information on this topic. In this episode, she offers tons of practical tips, scripting, and solutions for staying safe, de-escalating potential conflict, and remaining an advocate for your patient's needs while protecting yourself.

Does your brain ever jump to worst-case scenarios, no matter the situation? Many of us in medicine can relate to this phenomenon. It's called catastrophic thinking, and in this episode, Dr. Beth Lamos helps us understand what it is, why we do it, why it may be adaptive, all the ways it can be harmful, and concrete tools and strategies to de-catastrophize our way of thinking.

Resources:

• What to Do When Your Mind Always Dwells on the Worst Case Scenario. Harvard Business Review. Published September 15, 2020. Accessed July 20, 2024. Link.

• 16 Decatastrophizing Tools, Worksheets, and Role-Plays. Positive Psychology. Published September 24, 2020. Accessed July 20, 2024. Link.

The UMSLE Step 1 exam going pass/fail in 2022 has been a huge change in medical education. In this episode, the OSA's Dr. John Allen talks through how the change has impacted our students at the UMSOM, the OSA's approach to residency and career advising, Step 2 CK prep, and the residency application process in general. This conversation is filled with wisdom to help students survive and thrive throughout med school and the transition to residency.

For more information on Step 1 P/F, check out episodes 54 and 108 of The OSA Insider.