The WISER Podcast

We are excited to welcome you to the first episode of our season 8 WISER podcast: Older, Better, WISER! This season we are bringing back WISER alumni to chat about their adventures after graduating and give some advice to budding surgeons! In this episode we are joined by Dr. Clara Farley to heat her chat about breast surgical Oncology, DCIS de-escalation, and wellness.

Our hosts Franny Esposito and Isabella Le will chat with Dr. Farley about how her microbiology background and early exposure to medicine shaped her path, why she pursued research years during general surgery residency to strengthen her fellowship application, and what drew her to breast surgery and long-term patient relationships.

She discusses balancing clinical work, research, and personal life; her role as Emory’s site PI for the RECAST trial studying active surveillance for select low-risk DCIS patients; and co-founding Winship’s Young Women with Breast Cancer program to address fertility, finances, and tailored support. She also highlights her resident and faculty wellness work and offers candid advice for trainees, especially women considering surgery.

Time Stamps:

00:25 Meet Dr Clara Farley

01:06 Finding Surgery Early

02:26 Research Years Explained

05:01 Why Breast Surgery

06:57 Balancing Clinic Research Life

08:39 RECAST Trial And DCIS

11:17 Young Women Program

15:28 Resident And Faculty Wellness

17:58 Rapid Fire Advice

20:13 Women In Surgery

21:28 Why Breast Surgery Rocks

22:51 Advice For Future Surgeons

Editors: Frannie Esposito
Hosts: Frannie Esposito & Isabelle Le
Artwork: Neha Marapudi & Harleen Kaur
Music: Bluedot Sessions

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On this episode of the WISER Podcast, we continue Chief Insights, our mini-series highlighting the experiences of Emory’s female chief general surgery residents. Through these conversations, we explore their paths to surgery, the mentors who shaped them, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

For this installment, WISER co-presidents Julia Burns and Rachel Holstein sat down with Dr. Bernadette Peltier. Dr. Peltier attended UT Southwestern for medical school and completed her general surgery residency at Emory, where she is currently serving as a chief resident. She will be heading to the Cleveland Clinic next year to begin her thoracic surgery fellowship.

In this conversation, Dr. Peltier shares her nontraditional path into surgery, from initially considering internal medicine to discovering her passion during trauma rotations. She reflects on how she ultimately found her fit in thoracic surgery, the role of mentorship and advocacy in a competitive match process, and how she approached residency without taking dedicated research years. She also offers thoughtful advice for medical students and interns, emphasizing the importance of mastering the fundamentals of patient care, building strong relationships, and growing into your role over time. We also discuss her experience as a woman in surgery, the transition into chief year, and how she has found balance and support throughout training.

Editors: Julia Byrnes and Rachel Holstein
Producers: Julia Byrnes, Rachel Holstein and Vienna Wang
Hosts: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Artwork: Lily Kamat
Music: Bluedot Sessions

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On this episode of the WISER Podcast, we continue Chief Insights, our mini-series highlighting the experiences of Emory’s female chief general surgery residents. Through these conversations, we explore their paths to surgery, the mentors who shaped them, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

For this installment, WISER co-presidents Julia Byrnes and Rachel Holstein sat down with Dr. Aileen Johnson. Dr. Johnson attended MIT for undergraduate studies before earning her medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine and staying at Emory for general surgery residency. She is one of this year’s chief residents and will be pursuing a fellowship in abdominal transplant surgery at the University of Wisconsin next year.

In this conversation, Dr. Johnson reflects on how her early experiences in EMS during college solidified her commitment to patient care, how mentorship shaped her journey into transplant surgery, and what she gained from taking three dedicated research years. She shares thoughtful advice on ownership in training, cultivating autonomy, and preparing for the responsibility of becoming “the surgeon.” We also discuss her experience as a woman in surgery, the culture of chief year, and the importance of showing up prepared, curious, and intentional at every stage of training.

Editors: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Producers: Julia Byrnes, Rachel Holstein and Amelia Fogle
Hosts: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Artwork: Lily Kamat
Music: Bluedot Sessions

The post S7E4: Chief Insights: Dr. Aileen Johnson first appeared on WISER Podcast.

On this episode of the WISER Podcast, we continue Chief Insights, our mini-series highlighting the experiences of Emory’s female chief general surgery residents. Through these conversations, we explore their journeys in surgery, the mentors who shaped them, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

For this installment of Chief Insights, WISER co-presidents Julia Byrnes and Rachel Holstein sat down with Dr. Courtney Meyer. Dr. Meyer attended Albany Medical College for medical school before coming to Emory for general surgery residency, where she also completed her Master of Public Health. She is one of this year’s chief residents and will be staying at Emory and Grady Memorial Hospital to pursue a Trauma and Critical Care fellowship next year.

During our conversation, Dr. Meyer reflected on how her early experiences as a wilderness medic and her passion for public health shaped her interest in trauma surgery. She discusses the pivotal mentorship that guided her research path, her reflections on chief year, and the importance of representation and confidence for women in surgery.

Editors: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Producers: Julia Byrnes, Rachel Holstein and Amelia Fogle
Hosts: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Artwork: Lily Kamat
Music: Bluedot Sessions

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

The post S7E3: Chief Insights: Dr. Courtney Meyer first appeared on WISER Podcast.

On this episode of the WISER Podcast, we continue Chief Insights, our mini-series highlighting the experiences of Emory’s female chief general surgery residents. Through these conversations, we explore their journeys in surgery, the mentors who shaped them, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

For this installment of Chief Insights, WISER co-presidents Julia Byrnes and Rachel Holstein sat down with Dr. Courtney Meyer. Dr. Meyer attended Albany Medical College for medical school before coming to Emory for general surgery residency, where she also completed her Master of Public Health. She is one of this year’s chief residents and will be staying at Emory and Grady Memorial Hospital to pursue a Trauma and Critical Care fellowship next year.

During our conversation, Dr. Meyer reflected on how her early experiences as a wilderness medic and her passion for public health shaped her interest in trauma surgery. She discusses the pivotal mentorship that guided her research path, her reflections on chief year, and the importance of representation and confidence for women in surgery.

The post S7E3: Chief Insights: Dr. Courtney Meyer first appeared on WISER Podcast.

On this episode of the WISER podcast, we’re excited to launch Chief Insights, a new mini-series featuring conversations with female chief general surgery residents at Emory. Through these interviews, we explore their unique journeys in surgery and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

For our first episode of Chief Insights, WISER co-president Julia Byrnes and vice president Harleen Kaur sat down with Dr. Olivia Keane. Dr. Keane went to the Medical University of South Carolina for medical school and came to Emory for general surgery residency. She is one of the chief general surgery residents this year and will be staying at Emory and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta for pediatric surgery fellowship next year!

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

The post S7E2: Chief Insights: Dr. Olivia Keane first appeared on WISER Podcast.

Dr. Wendy Greene, the first African American female professor of surgery at Emory University, is a trailblazer in medicine and a champion of diversity, equity, and inclusion. A founding member of the African American Women’s Collaborative, she has led national conversations on DEI, secured a Level I trauma designation at Howard University Hospital, mentored countless future surgeons, and was recently awarded the Emory Department of Surgery’s Faculty DEI Pioneer Award. Yet, titles alone cannot capture the true essence of Dr. Greene, because what truly defines her is how she leads- with grace, humility, and an unshakable sense of purpose.

Guided by her mantra, “A bend in the road is not the end of the road, as long as you make the turn,” Dr. Greene exemplifies resilience, humility, and purpose. Please join us in celebrating this extraordinary leader!

Editors: Rachel Holstein and Julia Byrnes
Producers: Julia Byrnes, Rachel Holstein and Amelia Fogle
Hosts: Rachel Holstein and Cynthia Ramazani
Artwork: Lily Kamat
Music: Bluedot Sessions

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!

The post S7E1: Dr. Wendy Greene, on Inclusion, Equity, and Shaping the Future of Surgery first appeared on WISER Podcast.

Nicole C. Schmitt, MD, FACS, is an associate professor in the Department of Otolaryngology at Emory University School of Medicine. A board-certified otolaryngologist, Dr. Schmitt’s clinical and research work is focused on head and neck surgical oncology and novel therapeutic combinations. Dr. Schmitt obtained her Medical Degree from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. She completed her general surgery internship, a research fellowship and her residency in otolaryngology at University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. She also completed a fellowship in head and neck surgery and tumor biology at University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dr. Schmitt’s research interest is in characterizing immune effects of cytotoxic chemotherapy and designing optimal combinations of chemotherapy and immunotherapy for head and neck cancer.

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider donating to our GoFundMe. This will help us pay for the editing software necessary to run this podcast. Thank you for your generosity!

Hosts: Megan Wasson and Amelia Fogle
Editors: Megan Wasson
Producers: Shannon Su and Megan Wasson
Artwork: Harleen Kaur
Music: Bluedot Sessions

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Dr. Emily Lagergren, MD, RPVI is a board-certified vascular surgeon with Vascular Surgical Associates. She joined VSA in 2018.

Dr. Lagergren graduated magna cum laude from Florida State University, in Tallahassee, Florida, with a degree in biology. She obtained her general surgery training at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her interest to remain in the Southeast brought her to Emory School of Medicine, in Atlanta, Georgia, where she completed her two-year fellowship in Vascular and Endovascular surgery. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and finding the perfect work-life balance. 

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider donating to our GoFundMe. This will help us pay for the editing software necessary to run this podcast. Thank you for your generosity!

Hosts: Shannon Su and Julia Byrnes
Editors: Megan Wasson
Producers: Shannon Su and Megan Wasson
Artwork: Harleen Kaur
Music: Bluedot Sessions

Stay tuned for our final episode of season 6, coming soon!

The post Moms in Medicine: Dr. Lagergren’s Journey with IVF first appeared on WISER Podcast.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to the third segment of our Moms in Medicine series. This week, we are talking with Dr. Gabriela García Nores.

Dr. García is an esteemed plastic surgery faculty at Emory (and a huge advocate and sponsor of her mentees). Dr. Gabriela Garcia Nores received her MD degree from the Universidad San Martin de Porres, Facultad de Medicina Humana, Lima, Peru, in 2009. She completed general surgery residency at NYU Medical Center, during which she did a two-year research fellowship in the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Her plastic surgery residency was done at the Emory and followed by a fellowship in microvascular reconstruction at the University of Pennsylvania.

Click here to listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

If you enjoyed this episode, please consider donating to our GoFundMe. This will help us pay for the editing software necessary to run this podcast. Thank you for your generosity!

Hosts: Shannon Su and Megan Wasson
Editors: Megan Wasson
Producers: Shannon Su and Megan Wasson
Artwork: Shannon Su
Music: Bluedot Sessions

Stay tuned for the next part of our series!

The post Moms in Medicine: Residency and Pregnancy with Dr. Garcia Nores first appeared on WISER Podcast.