Tag Archives: listener feedback

Slipping On The Short Coat

Share

The first step in med school

The Carver College of Medicine held its 25th annual White Coat Ceremony at Hancher Auditorium for first-year students beginning their medical education at Iowa on Friday, August 16, 2019

Ceremonies are important.  If you’re like Dave, you think they’re a bit of a pain–you have to dress up and keep a straight face.  But as a bit of (lengthy) symbolism, they do have their place, and the White Coat Ceremony is no exception.  Maddie Mix and Aline Sandouk reflect on their White Coat Ceremonies and what it meant to them to be standing up in front of those they admired, respected, and loved, and promised to essentially selflessly give their lives to medicine in return for admiration, respect, and love of their own.

Of course, since Aline got kicked out of Cedar Rapids’ Paramount Theater for using her cell phone by a very angry usher, I guess that respect and love she can expect from others will only go so far.  It makes a good story, though, and was totally offset by a bit of feedback she got from a listener.  Remember–you can send questions or feedback to theshortcoats@gmail.com!  We love it!


Buy Our Merch and Give At The Same Time

You care about others, or you wouldn’t be into this medicine thing. Our #merchforgood program lets you to give to our charity of the semester and get something for yourself at the same time!

This Week in Medical News

Another month, another new organ no one’s EVER noticed before.  Ebola gets a new, very promising treatment.  And the ongoing reproducibility crisis in research gets another look, this time from a study in the BMJ that looks at authors’ use of “spin.”

We Want to Hear From You

As we begin the next admissions cycle, we offer free advice!  How can we help? Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime,  or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

Continue reading Slipping On The Short Coat

In 2019, Medicine Is Political.

Share
angry politician photo
Photo by torbakhopper

[Once again, our charitable mission is supported in this episode by CommonBond.  Thank you, CommonBond!!!]

Former listener Cash commented on Facebook that he doesn’t listen any more because of our political comments.  So on today’s show, Aline Sandouk, Rob Humble, Irisa Mahaparn, and Admissions Counselor Kate McKenzie help Dave process Cash’s feedback.  Should medical students, physicians, and scientists express themselves on political issues or should they remain publicly neutral? Moreover, with medicine and science having become among the hottest topics in politics, is there an actual obligation to take a stand?


Buy Our Merch and Give At The Same Time

You care about others, or you wouldn’t be into this medicine thing. Our #merchforgood program lets you to give to our charity of the semester and get something for yourself at the same time!

This Week in Medical News

A recent study of volunteers who had their genes sequenced, proteins mapped, biome surveyed, and blood analyzed intensively found that the dream of “personalized” medicine may just be within reach…but at what cost?  Coca Cola is accused of including undisclosed kill clauses in its nutrition research agreements in case don’t like the results.  And another study confirms that which women of color have three times the risk of dying during pregnancy and after compared to white women!

We Want to Hear From You

How can we help you on your med school journey? Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.  Do all three!

Continue reading In 2019, Medicine Is Political.

Your Gap Year Job Doesn’t Matter

Share

Listeners ask, we answer.

Photo of a subway platform gap.
Mind the Gap Year? Photo by Quaisoir @ Lil Miss QQ

A flood of listener questions this week!  It’s probably due in part to medical school application season has begun, which means medical school applicants are trying to figure out if they have what it takes…on paper.  For instance, an anonymous listener (“Meldor”) called in to find out what kinds of gap year jobs Liza Mann, Elizabeth Shirazi, Kelsey Adler, and Teneme Konne thought would allow her to keep connected to the world of medicine while she’s applying.  Of course, a gap year job like that isn’t hard to find…but is that really necessary?  We play a game to find out who can best spin any gap year job to an admissions interviewer.

Also, listener Mike returns to let us know more exactly what he was concerned about in our long-past episode in which we spoke of gun violence.  And Andrea wants to know more about what medical students learn about health disparities; given that much of human disease is about societal influences, including economic and racial divides, it turns out the answer is quite a lot.

Lastly, after hearing our recent discussion on food deserts, Erica let us  know about an organization at her alma mater, the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN. Brightside Produce is devoted to generating scientific results that increase yields and reduce environmental impacts of small-scale agriculture in cities.  Basically, they’re fighting inner-city hunger using science to enable urban farmers.

We want to hear from you

Hearing from Mike, Andrea, Erica, and Meldor only whets our appetite for more listener contact.  Thank you, everyone!  If you have something to say or a question to ask, call us at 347-SHORTCT any time, and email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

Continue reading Your Gap Year Job Doesn’t Matter

RIP, Radioactive Boy Scout

Share
radioactive boy scout photo
I made it myself! Photo by jurvetson

Happy Thanksgiving!  The crew–John Pienta, Marc Toral, Dylan Todd and new guy Jay Blomme–were lucky enough to hear from a couple listeners about our recent post-presidential election episode.  For instance, Kayla called 347-SHORTCT to say thanks; we presume she had more to say, but she got cut off.  We continue our discussions on logic and logical errors, considering the efforts that Facebook and Google are making to reduce the effects of ‘fake news.’ John has some suggestions on how to have a productive conversation with people whose opinions you don’t share.  Dylan is the master of strange analogies that ultimately are right on target. We discuss one idea in DIY medicine we might be able to get behind, a device that allows women to take some control of their breast reconstruction journey.  And we mark the passing of ‘The Radioactive Boy Scout,’ David Hahn, who attempted to build a working nuclear reactor in his back yard as a teenager.  And some podcasters who couldn’t join us this week send in their thoughts on what they’d do with an extra day no one else could mess with. Listeners, share your thoughts with us each week.  Call us at 347-SHORTCT any time, and see our Facebook page for a question to consider every Monday.

Continue reading RIP, Radioactive Boy Scout