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► Purvi Shah '20 and her little sib, Cari Carpenter '21, atop Burnt Rock Mountain.

Seeing Home Through the Eyes of a Volunteer

This summer, Class of 2021 medical student Hanaa Shihadeh had a chance to see her native country of Jordan through a different set of eyes - those of a Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) volunteer. Shihadeh has wanted to volunteer with SAMS since she heard about it from her older sister, a physician in New York City, who has been volunteering for the organization for several years. Unfortunately, the organization requires its non-physician volunteers to be fluent in Arabic and to have a certain level of medical education to work in the refugee camps it serves. Shihadeh was only able to check one of the necessary boxes until she completed her first year of medical school last spring. Read more here.

► Class of 2022: Start preparing for White Coat Ceremony. IMPORTANT information here. 

What I Did This Summer: Conde Studies Smokers' Biological Risk for Stroke

Smoking is known to play a role in increasing a user's risk for several diseases, including stroke. Juan Conde, Ph.D., who was one of seven Class of 2021 medical students selected for a summer research fellowship with the UVM Cardiovascular Research Institute, worked with Professor of Medicine Mary Cushman, M.D., M.Sc., to try and determine the biological mechanisms involved in his project, titled  “Smoking, Stroke Biomarkers and Risk of Stroke in a National Cohort.” Using data gathered through the longitudinal REGARDs (Reasons for Geographic Distribution of Stroke) study, Conde tried "to find out who, amongst the 30,000 participants that were smokers, were at greater risk of developing stroke." To accomplish this task, he focused on several biomarkers for blood clotting and inflammation that had been previously implicated in predicting certain stroke subtypes. "The data look very interesting so far," says Conde. "We have three biomarker targets as mediating the risk of stroke in smokers," he adds. He's continuing the research in an effort to look at other interactions, because "if we find a biomarker with a very strong correlation, then we could clinically predict who amongst smokers is at a higher risk of stroke," which would allow clinicians to adjust treatment or preventative measures to avoid strokes/mortalities in these individuals.

► Check out info on our Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship Program - applications are due September 14!

Meet the New Clerkship Associate Directors

A new generation of future clerkship leaders were recently appointed at the College of Medicine. They are:

Jason Bartsch, M.D., Associate Director, Internal Medicine Clerkship

Dr. Bartsch received his M.D. from George Washington University and completed an internal medicine residency at UVM Medical Center. He is an assistant professor of medicine and member of the Teaching Academy.

Erin Morris, M.D., Associate Director, Obstetrics and Gynecology Clerkship

Dr. Morris is an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology. She received her M.D. from the University of Utah School of Medicine and completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics, and a fellowship in maternal fetal medicine at the UVM Medical Center. She is a 2007 recipient of the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO) Excellence in Teaching Award.

Molly Rideout, M.D., Associate Director, Pediatric Clerkship

Dr. Rideout is an associate professor of pediatrics, who received her medical degree from McGill University and completed her pediatrics residency at the UVM Medical Center. She is the advisor for the Larner College of Medicine's Schweitzer Fellows and a master teacher level member in the Teaching Academy.

► Be a guest on the Big Sib/Little Sib Podcast. Contact Michelle Bookless for more information.

On the Blog: Harshal Athalye Pediatric Rotation

Harshal Athalye '20 answers questions about working in rural Vermont for his pediatrics clerkship.  “At the start of the rotation, I thought I had ruled out working in a rural area due to its potential isolation. But one pearl that has stuck with me is that specialists are just a phone call away. Technology continues to close the communication gap for rural medicine, making it feel much less secluded."  Read the full blog post.

Contact us to learn more about writing for the Larner College of Medicine blog.

► Explore Ethical Dilemmas on Global Health Diaries

SIG Highlight: Military Medicine Student Interest Group

The Military Medicine Student Interest Group was established for UVM Larner College of Medicine students who have received scholarships from the United States Armed Forces for medical school. The group is planning on hosting several networking events with veteran faculty members, as well as regular physical training opportunities. When asked why students wanted to form this SIG, Hillary Danis, one of the student leaders of the group, said “We want to be a support system and a resource for students as they pursue this somewhat atypical path through medical school, residency, and their careers as practicing physicians.” Please contact Hillary Danis for more information.

View all Student Leadership Opportunities >>