It is with a heavy heart that we at the MCW Kern Institute for the Transformation of Medical Education announce that Mr. Robert D. Kern died early morning on November 8, 2022, in his sleep. 

We extend our condolences to his family and colleagues at the Kern Family Foundation. Please share remembrances, statements of gratitude and stories about the personal impact of Mr. Kern’s generous support of our work. We will gather these to share with his family and our community. 

The Editorial Board of the Transformational Times

In This Special Veteran's Day Issue:

Your Turn

• This Week's Reflection Prompt: What would you give to someone hosting their first Thanksgiving event?



Upcoming Events/Announcements

Sea-Fever

By John Masefield



I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;

And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea’s face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over.

Accepted Academic Medicine Article: Using Resident-Sensitive Quality Measures Derived From Electronic Health Record Data to Assess Residents' Performance in Pediatric Emergency Medicine

Authors: Smirnova Alina MD, PhD; Chahine Saad PhD, MEd; Milani Christina MSc; Schuh Abigail MD, MMHPE; Sebok-Syer Stephanie S. PhD; Swartz Jordan MD; Wilhite Jeffrey A. MPH; Kalet Adina MD, MPH; Durning Steven J. MD, MPH; Lombarts Kiki M.J.M.H.; van der Vleuten Cees P.M. PhD; Schumacher Daniel J. MD, MPH, MEd 

Traditional quality metrics do not adequately represent the clinical work done by residents and, thus, cannot be used to link residency training to health care quality. This study aimed to determine whether electronic health record (EHR) data can be used to meaningfully assess residents’ clinical performance in pediatric emergency medicine using resident-sensitive quality measures (RSQMs).

Kern Scholars Program Faculty Development Opportunities

We are excited to announce two opportunities for faculty development through our Kern Scholars Program. Each year we support one Kern Scholar in each of the following programs:

Masters of Health Professions Education through New York University Langone's Department of Medicine

Master of Arts in Character Education at the Jubilee Center for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom.

Letters of Interest are due to Jeff Fritz in December. Learn more through the link below.

Share your Perspective: The Impact of Recent Reproductive Health Policy Changes on your Professional and Academic Roles in the MCW Community

Sponsored by the Council for Women's Advocacy

This event will focus on the ways that recent changes to reproductive health laws have and will impact your professional and academic roles. We hope to hear from individuals throughout the MCW community, including students, trainees, staff, and faculty. Individuals will have the opportunity to share their experiences for two minutes each so we have time to hear from as many people as possible. There will also be an opportunity to anonymously submit stories prior to the meeting which will then be read during the event. 

While we recognize this is a sensitive and often very personal topic, this event is not intended to be a debate. Instead, it is an opportunity to discuss the impact of these laws through a professional and academic lens. All MCW voices are welcome. 

To share an anonymous experience, please click HERE. 

If you have questions, please contact AWSM@mcw.edu.

November 18, 2022

12:00 - 1:00 pm CT

Live Via Zoom

EXPERIENCE. TALK. LISTEN.

Join the Next Med Moth Event

Come to MCW’s Med Moth, a storytelling event with faculty and students sharing their own true experiences in the world of medicine. Inspired by The Moth, this event will entail authentic storytelling and an enlightening audience experience.  

November 17, 2022

6:30 pm CT

Alumni Center

Educating Character Across The University

Dr. Cornel West - author, activist, philosopher, public intellectual, and civil rights leader, will kick off a major conference at Wake Forest University entitled "Educating Character Across The University" on December 1-3. The Program for Leadership and Character has invited him to take part in a moderated discussion about character and education. The event will be free and open to the public.

Over the following two days, the conference will highlight promising work on character education in the university context and strengthen a community of scholars across institutions and academic communities. Co-sponsored by the Oxford Character Project at the University of Oxford, the conference will feature presentations, panels, and workshops focused on integrating character into courses, designing character-related co-curricular programming, assessing character-related curricula and programs, and building a culture of character within colleges and universities.

While the keynote with Dr. West is open to all and requires no advance registration, the conference itself is aimed at educators and administrators from colleges and universities across the nation and the world. Workshops, panels, and networking events are scheduled from the morning of December 2 until noon on December 3.

December 1-3, 2022

Wake Forest University

Jeff Fritz, PhD, Editor-in-Chief



Editorial Board: Bruce Campbell, MD, Kathlyn Fletcher, MD, Adina Kalet, MD, Wendy Peltier, MD, Erin Weileder, Nabil Attlassy, Julia Bosco, Ana Istrate, Wolf Pulsiano, Eileen Peterson,  Anna Visser, James Wu & Emelyn Zaworski

Reproductive system vector created by pikisuperstar - www.freepik.com