APSA Newsletter - Phi Psi, 2011 Fall, Volume 6, No. 2

Letter from the Editor

Evan Noch, Temple University School of Medicine,

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Our Fall 2011 issue of Phi Psi is designed to motivate and inspire our members and physician-scientists-in-training by providing articles dedicated to career pathways, healthy lifestyles, and ways to stay focused to obtain our future goals.  As our lives become evermore complicated by the thousands of directions in which we are forced to concentrate our attention, we thought that it would be useful to take a moment to step back and reflect on why it is we are training to do what we do and how we can all live our best lives while doing that.

This issue of Phi Psi begins with our Letter from the President, Ivayla Geneva, who discusses APSA’s recent achievement at obtaining 1,000 members, the successful APSA regional meetings held this fall across the country, and the upcoming APSA Annual Meeting to be held in Chicago, IL from April 27th-29th.

Letter from the President

Ivayla Geneva, State University of New York-Upstate,

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Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I would like to begin by thanking you all for helping APSA reach a major milestone – in mid-November our ambitious goal of expanding our membership to 1,000 members became a reality!  So thank you for being part of the APSA family and for supporting APSA’s mission.  You are awesome!

Earlier this fall, I had the great pleasure to meet with many of you at APSA’s Regional Meetings, which brought together a total of over 500 trainees and faculty.  I would like to take this opportunity to commend the great work of the organizing committee leaders and all of the volunteers who made the APSA Regional Meetings such grand events!  I was also very pleased to see many of the conference attendees apply for APSA leadership positions during our mid-year recruitment period.  The mid-year recruitment is now over; however, please rest assured that if you are interested but have not had the chance to apply this time around, the next opportunity will present itself in the spring of 2012 at which point APSA will be holding its main leadership recruitment for the year.

Putting the “Health” Back in Health Care Education

Eli Levin, PhD, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey,

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It’s 10pm on a Tuesday and you just finished reviewing the day’s powerpoint slides.  You attended lecture from 8am to 5pm, strategized with classmates about the upcoming exam and, after grabbing a couple Big Macs for dinner, studied until this moment.  Now you just want to watch an episode or two of Scrubs on Netflix and pass out for the night, but a recurrent thought sneaks up on you.  When you woke up this morning, you told yourself that today would be different; you would make yourself a healthy meal or two and maybe even visit the gym that you pay $40 each month for the privilege of not attending.  However, none of that happened, and you begin to wonder if you will ever find the time to take better care of yourself.

Q & A with Bruce Beutler, MD, 2011 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine

Evan Noch, PhD, Temple University School Of Medicine,

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In this newsletter issue, we conducted a fascinating and informative interview with Bruce Beutler, MD, who discusses his research, training, and his recent achievement as one of the awardees of the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.  Dr. Beutler also shares a bit of advice for physician-scientists-in-training and several ways to stay inspired and focused on our own career goals.

Trainees in the Social Sciences and Humanities Find a Home in APSA

Adam Baim, University of Chicago,

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The past two years have seen an influx of MD/PhD trainees from the social sciences and humanities (SSH) into the ranks of APSA’s membership.

This trend is a curious one, at first glance.  Research in SSH fields – such as anthropology, economics, history, philosophy, or sociology – bears little resemblance to the research done by most MD/PhDs.  The contribution of SSH disciplines to medicine is also unique: while the natural sciences produce new tools for patient care, SSH fields typically explore how health services are delivered and how medicine fits into society more generally. As researchers and teachers we address issues of critical importance, including health disparities and global health, patterns of knowledge dissemination and implementation in medicine, and the doctor-patient relationship, to name only a few.

What the Future Holds for Us—From the Horse’s Mouth!

Sean Smirnov, University of Massachusetts Medical School,

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Trying to determine what the future holds for physician-scientists, I had the opportunity to interview Professor Tony Carruthers, PhD, the Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.  To relieve the pressure, let me end the suspense: a very bright future awaits MD/PhD graduates!

According to the Dean, as advances in biological science make it harder for the rigor of the science curriculum in medical school to keep pace, the demand for physician-scientists with profound research training will grow. Population-oriented research – driven by quality-improvement efforts, a growing need for successful clinical research, and increased access to statistical data due to the implementation of electronic medical record systems would significantly contribute to this demand for MD/PhD trainees capable of combining clinical knowledge and skills with refined knowledge and expertise in scientific methodology.  “At the University of Massachusetts, we recognize the importance of physician-scientists much more than we did 20 years ago,” the Dean said.

Book Review: Changing the Culture of Academic Medicine — Perspectives of Women Faculty, by Linda H. Pololi

Qurat-ul-ain Jelani, New York University School Of Medicine,

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In the field of medicine, the "glass-ceiling effect" still exists!

In cohort studies conducted by Lynn Nonemaker, Ph.D. around the year 2000 and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the rates of advancement to the ranks of assistant, associate, and full professor for all US medical graduates and for all members of US medical school faculties from 1979-1993 and 1979-1997, respectively, were studied.  The conclusion from that study has been replicated in almost all subsequent studies; although women were more likely than men to pursue an academic career, the number of women who advanced to the ranks of associate and full professor was significantly lower than expected.  Another study showed that 59 percent of women achieve the rank of associate or full professor after roughly 11 years on the medical school faculty while for men, it was 83 percent.  Other studies show that women are over-represented in the ranks of junior faculty.  A study conducted by the Mongan Institute for Health Policy pointed out the disparity or gender gap in pay, even though female physicians were as qualified and accomplished as their male counterparts.  The reasons for the lack of women in leadership positions, their slow career advancements, and disparities in compensation have not been clearly outlined – fewer mentoring opportunities, family responsibilities, attrition, lack of necessary skills and lack of ambition for leadership have been cited in this regard.