Transformational Times
Words of Hope, Character & Resilience from our Virtual Community
Friday, June 25, 2021 & Friday, July 2, 2021
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In This Special Pride Issue: |
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Director's Corner
Perspectives/Opinions
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Outside Links
Poetry Corner
Your Turn
Announcements & Resources
- Kern Institute Faculty Changes
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Subscribe to InQueery
- Essay Contest
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Call for Transformational Times Editorial Board Members
- Residents and Fellows: Join the Kern Institute GME Pillar
- RFP for GME Connectedness/Wellbeing Program
- Kern National Network News & Events
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Director's Corner
Proud of Pride: Activism and a Pandemic Transformed Medical Education, But There is Still Work to Do
by Adina Kalet, MD, MS
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June is LGBTQ+ Pride History Month. There have been worldwide celebrations of this remarkable civil rights movement which was spurred on by a devastating pandemic. This week Dr. Kalet reflects on the impact this activism has had on how we prepare our students to care for all patients with caring and character....
This year, in six schools across the nation, senior medical students demonstrated their readiness to graduate by participating in a 3-hour simulated “night on call.” As faculty watch remotely, students rotate through “stations,” engaging with a series of patient cases designed to be “bread and butter” on-call coverage situations.
I observe as each student enters a patient room to “get consent” for a diagnostic thoracentesis (removal of fluid surrounding the lung through a large bore needle) needed to investigate the cause of and guide treatment for the patient’s worsening lung infection.
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Perspective/Opinion
We Can Do Better
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By Scott Lamm, Rising M4
Scott Lamm is a 4th year medical student reflecting on the shortcomings he has witnessed within medical education and LGBTQ+ health and what we can change to do better...
When it comes to preparing physicians to care for the health of the LGBTQ+ community, we can do better. Over the course of three years, I have been in a total of four lectures that focused on topics related to LBGTQ+ health; this is one hour less than the average medical school in the United States. Only 24% of students rated the quality of those five lecture hours as good or very good. Our lack of robust preparation is likely detrimental to this population.
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Perspective/Opinion
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People in Medicine (LGBTPM)
By Bryn Sutherland, Rising M2
Our MCW Student Organization, LGBTQ+ People in Medicine (LGBTPM), provides a summary of their activities, programs, upcoming events and how to be involved...
MCW is fortunate to have its very own LGBTQ+ student organization, LGBTQ People in Medicine (LGBTPM). For over 20 years, medical, pharmacy, and graduate students have collaborated to support LGBTQ+ students, create health learning opportunities, and engage students with the LGBTQ community in the greater Milwaukee area.
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Perspective/Opinion
Finding Community in #GayMedTwitter
By Brian Conway, Rising M2
Rising MCW 2nd year MD/MS student, Brian Conway (he/they), shares ways to find community locally and globally and through social media for LGBTQ+ medical professionals, or more simply put: Gay Med Twitter ...
I feel very lucky to have close connections within the LGBTQ+ (often simply referred to as “queer”) community here at MCW. From the friends I have made in the student group LGBTQ+ People in Medicine (LGBTPM), to connecting with faculty in the Inclusion Clinic, to volunteering at the Brady East STD (BESTD) Clinic, my queer support system is alive and well In Milwaukee. But I will admit–to no fault of MCW–that this network is small due to the specificity of our identities as LGBTQ+ medical professionals and physicians in training. As queer people, our relationships (personal, professional, or familial) can be complicated. Although our fear of rejection has been mitigated in recent years as our identities are becoming celebrated rather than tolerated, we still seek out those like us. We strive to feel a deeper connection. Our conception of family and friends is not bound by blood, by marriage, or even by proximity. Our love is bound only by love itself, and this can lead us to seek out other queer people through social media as we strengthen our Chosen Family. While our network of queer individuals at MCW might feel small, there is a much larger, well-connected family waiting for us around the country and around the world through social media.
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Madeline Farber is a PhD candidate in clinical psychology at Duke University. Her creative writing has appeared in TriQuarterly, Rise Up Review, Open Minds Quarterly, and On the Seawall.
Her first book of poetry, less on that later, is out on July 10th.
Roots
I want to be a sidewalk
cracked and raised
over an ancient tree
with roots too stubborn
to relent to cement.
I want to make space.
I want to know my place.
I want to have that much
give. Or maybe I want
to be the tree.
Either way, I stand
out. Either way, I am
tripped over
by someone foolish
enough to misjudge
my depth.
Either way, they
will deem me
inconvenient;
curse me for being
in their way;
and I will remain
unfazed &
unscathed.
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WandaVision!
- Marty Muntz, MD, Faculty
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The American President
- Kathlyn Fletcher, MD, Faculty
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Manifest
- Shivani Chopra, Pre-Med Student
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Ted Lasso!
- Leah P., Faculty
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Turn: Washington's Spies
- Julia Schmitt, Staff
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Respond to next week's reflection prompt:
What is your favorite rainy day activity?
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Kern Institute Faculty Changes
Kristina Kaljo, PhD, Named New Kern Institute Faculty Pillar Director
It is our pleasure to announce Dr. Kristina Kaljo as our new Faculty Pillar Director!
Dr. Kaljo is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Research and Advanced Education, and has been at MCW since 2014. She holds a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in Urban Education with an emphasis in Curriculum and Instruction and Urban Studies. Dr. Kaljo serves as the Co-Director of the Student-centered Pipeline to Advance Research in Cancer Careers (SPARCC), is a steering committee member and instructor in the KINETIC3 program, and a faculty member of the Kern Institute. She also served as the Ob/Gyn Clerkship Co-Director from 2017, recently ‘retiring’ from that role to join the Kern Institute at a greater capacity. She has been an influential leader in the development and implementation of the KINETIC3 program, as well as in dissemination of this successful program both at the local and national level. Alongside Janet Rader, MD, Dr. Kaljo is NIH/NCI-funded to develop and implement SPARCC, a summer program that immerses undergraduate students underrepresented in medicine/health professions into the vast opportunities of clinical cancer research. Her medical education research interests include culturally responsive teaching, faculty development, and psychological safety within learning environments. As Dr. Kaljo joins the Kern Institute’s leadership team, we look forward to her leadership and the growth of the Faculty Pillar under her guidance!
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Dr. Alexandra Harrington has accepted a new role as the Curriculum Innovation Director for the new School of Medicine curriculum. Dr. Harrington is enthusiastic about her new position in Academic Affairs and “looks forward to collaborations with the amazingly talented Kern Institute team in the near future.” Dr. Harrington has served as the Faculty Pillar Director since the initial launch of the Kern Institute in 2016 and is the founding director of KINETIC3.
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Subscribe to the InQueery Newsletter
LGBTQ+ People in Medicine (LGBTPM) student leaders Brian Conway and Ming Lin developed InQueery, a student-led bi-annual newsletter focused on enhancing clinical knowledge and competence in providing LGBTQ+ healthcare.
InQueery is a collaborative effort between MCW students, faculty, and staff who identify as LGBTQ+ or as an ally to the community. Premiering in March 2021, the first issue centered on LGBTQ+ health disparities as several MCW students and faculty discussed a wide range of topics from public policy and economic crises impacting the LGBTQ+ community to research interests pertaining to queer medicine. Pieces submitted to InQueery can take a variety of forms, such as brief perspective pieces, summaries and analyses of research, creative writing, and visual art.
Any MCW campus member can subscribe to InQueery. If you are interested in receiving a copy of the first issue of InQueery or if you are interested in contributing to the newsletter, you can email Co-Editors in Chief Brian Conway and Ming Lin at mcwmedinqueery@gmail.com.
Stay tuned for the next call for submissions in August as well as the next issue of InQueery scheduled to COME OUT in October!
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Transformational Times Essay Contest
Imagining the Future of Medical Education
Transformational Times is holding an essay contest and we want to hear from you.
Create an essay (no more than 250 words) that helps the reader imagine the possible future of medical education.
Choose one of the following prompts:
- Imagine you are in a medical school or residency program that does not yet exist. Describe a perfect day where you learn an important patient care lesson that would not be possible today.
- Describe an amazing learning or teaching moment you have experienced at some point in your life. What lesson did you take away that, if incorporated into medical education, would improve medical school or residency?
- If you were to imagine a medical school or residency program in 2030, what three things would you be most likely to include? And why?
Winners will be awarded a gift card and will be published in an upcoming issue of Transformational Times. Several winners may be selected. Essays are due by July 30, 2021.
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Call for Transformational Times Editorial Board Members
The Transformational Times is seeking MCW students (from all colleges), residents, and fellows to serve as associate editors on the 2021 - 2022 editorial board.
Associate editors take charge of specific sections, including poetry, visuals, or other areas of personal interest. They help with identifying issues of concern to students and trainees and help recruit people to write essays on these topics. Associate editors are also expected to contribute at least one written piece during the course of the year.
The editorial board meets weekly (usually on Tuesday afternoons) and holds occasional retreats; associate editors attend when available. Persons from underrepresented minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and other voices deserving amplification are strongly encouraged to apply.
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Residents and Fellows:
Kern is inviting applications from residents and fellows to join our GME Pillar as a team member.
Develop your leadership skills by participating in the planning and executing of programs for residents and fellows, and participate in innovative scholarly projects along with us.
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RFP for GME Connectedness/Wellbeing Program
The Kern Institute’s GME Pillar and MCWAH are happy to announce a program to increase connectedness and well-being across MCWAH’s GME programs.
Residency and fellowship programs are invited to submit proposals for programming/activities that would enhance connectedness and well-being among GME programs.
Proposals should include at least TWO programs and up to $500 can be requested. A post-activity report is required. Please see the Request for Proposal (RFP) below for details and submit your proposals before August 2, 2021, below.
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The Transformational Times publishes weekly, delivering stories of hope, character and resilience to our virtual community. |
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Editorial Board: Kathlyn Fletcher, MD, Adina Kalet, MD, Wendy Peltier, MD, Erin Weileder, Scott Lamm, Eileen Peterson, Sarah Torres, & Anna Visser
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