Tag Archives: Dave Etler

The One Truth Linking Medicine, Mortality, and Meltdown

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Are things getting better or worse?

What if your a career in medicine, the collapse of civilization, and the maternal mortality crisis all shared one uncomfortable truth–progress doesn’t guarantee clarity, balance, or justice? In this episode, M3 Zay Edgren confesses he’s feeling a bit doomy about humanity’s chances, and M2 Taryn O’Brian feels frustrated with medicine’s successes with acute care while primary care languishes. But M3 Jeff Goddard (and Dave) are more optimistic, at least on the grand scale. What every future healthcare worker needs to ask is, “What does helping actually mean when the system is stacked with trade-offs? You’ll get insight into how real medical students think through messy, high-stakes issues—like why we’re amazing at keeping preemies alive but failing mothers, or why primary care is where the real impact happens but nobody wants to do it.

We explore what career indecision really looks like when you’re smart, driven, and yet unsure. You’ll also hear honest takes on burnout, idealism, and what med students actually think about the world they’re about to inherit—and remake.

If you’re staring down the med school track wondering what’s waiting for you on the other side, this episode hands you the context no class will. You’ll leave smarter, more grounded—and possibly nervous, but in a productive way.

Episode credits:

  • Producer: Dave Etler
  • Co-hosts: Taryn O’Brian, Jeff Goddard, and Zay Edgren

We Want to Hear From You: YOUR VOICE MATTERS!

We welcome your feedback, listener questions, and shower thoughts. Do you agree or disagree with something we said today? Did you hear something really helpful? Can we answer a question for you? Are we delivering a podcast you want to keep listening to? Let us know at https://theshortcoat.com/tellus and we’ll put your message in a future episode. Or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

The Short Coat Podcast is FeedSpot’s Top Iowa Student Podcast, and its Top Iowa Medical Podcast!  Thanks for listening!

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First Semester Med School: What Worked, What Failed, and How We Fixed It.

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Anki? Lecture notes? Study groups? Med students spill the truth about what actually works.

First semester of med school is like eating a never-ending stack of pancakes—it’s fast, overwhelming, and it doesn’t care if you’re full. Listener G asked us for some tips, and in this episode, M1s Zach Grissom, Megan Perry, Jay Miller, and Srishti Mathur take us through the rough transition from undergrad to medical school and what they wish they knew before starting. From study methods that failed (Anki obsession, passive learning) to strategies that actually worked (active recall, selective focus, study groups), they share what helped them survive.

Burnout hits hard, and everyone here felt it–the mental exhaustion, learning to take breaks, and the power of peer support. Plus, the surprising truth about exams—sometimes failing is the best teacher. they also tackle balancing med school with real life: keeping hobbies, staying social, and even reading trashy novels.

Finally, an improv game throws the med students into hilarious situations. Listen for our unfiltered med school survival tips, study hacks, and some much-needed laughs!

We Want to Hear From You: YOUR VOICE MATTERS!

We welcome your feedback, listener questions, and shower thoughts. Do you agree or disagree with something we said today? Did you hear something really helpful? Can we answer a question for you? Are we delivering a podcast you want to keep listening to? Let us know at https://theshortcoat.com/tellus and we’ll put your message in a future episode. Or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

The Short Coat Podcast is FeedSpot’s Top Iowa Student Podcast, and its Top Iowa Medical Podcast!  Thanks for listening!

Continue reading First Semester Med School: What Worked, What Failed, and How We Fixed It.

Rachel Takes Over to Ask the Big Questions

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She’s arguably the better host

Dave is too tired to helm the show, so he lured Admissions Coordinator Rachel Shulista to be on the show, then hands over the hosting duties to her while he instead takes a co-host’s chair! Joined by M3 Jeff Goddard, and M2s Taryn O’Brien and Fallon Jung, the group discusses the questions that Fallon apparently has had tucked away in her drafts folder and never sent in back when she was a listener. The episode also dives into serious discussions, such as the approach to end-of-life care, the importance of mental health among medical professionals, and personal reflections on life’s purpose. Midway, a spontaneous game of pondering deep questions amidst in-depth conversations about the medical profession, aging, and life choices. And stay to the end to see Dave’s movie star doppelganger, according to Rachel.

We Want to Hear From You: YOUR VOICE MATTERS!

We welcome your feedback, listener questions, and shower thoughts. Do you agree or disagree with something we said today? Did you hear something really helpful? Can we answer a question for you? Are we delivering a podcast you want to keep listening to? Let us know at https://theshortcoat.com/tellus and we’ll put your message in a future episode. Or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

We want to know more about you: Take the Listener Survey

Continue reading Rachel Takes Over to Ask the Big Questions

Bonus: Tropical Medicine is Saving the World, ft. Karen Goraleski

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The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

tropical medicine photoThe ASTMH is a sprawling organization, and for good reason.  As CEO Karen Goraleski says, it’s a big tent.  And with all the disciplines needed to fight emerging infectious diseases like Leishmaniasis and other neglected tropical diseases, from veterinary medicine to ecology to entomology to logistics–it’s no wonder.

With University of Iowa College of Public Health epidemiology student Kurayi Mahachi, this bonus episode explores the job of eliminating the world’s most difficult to treat diseases–infectious or otherwise–and why Americans must not shrug it off as someone else’s problem but join the fight.

Also, pre-medicine and med students take note:  TropMed is the ASTMH’s yearly conference, and it sounds very friendly, and at $15 it’s a ridiculous bargain for those looking to explore this fascinating, world-saving effort as a career.  This November, consider joining them in Maryland, just 10 miles from Washington, DC.


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!

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We offer free advice! Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.  We’ll answer your questions or find someone who can!

Continue reading Bonus: Tropical Medicine is Saving the World, ft. Karen Goraleski

Lack of Empathy: A Med School Dealbreaker?

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Everyone knows: doctors have to have empathy…right?

empathy photo
Photo by Pierre Phaneuf

Listener Mo wrote to us at theshortcoats@gmail.com to ask us if a lack of interest in dealing with the foibles of patients–with their anti-vaccine beliefs, their non-compliance with treatment, and reliance on the latest internet fads–means he should reconsider his med school dreams.  Lucky for Mo, Kaci McCleary, Irisa Mahaparn, and newbs Melissa Chan and Dabin Choi were on hand to propose some paths forward for non-empathetic med school applicants, as well as outlining some of the less obvious areas empathy comes in handy they might want to think about.  There isn’t a lot of wiggle room in this area…but there’s a little, and maybe Mo can squeeze into those cracks and come out with an MD on the other side.

This Week in Medical News

Is the ubiquity of IV saline an example of institutional inertia?  And in response to this article, the gang explores the institutional and systemic barriers that AMCAS and some schools’ admissions committees have erected against disadvantaged students.

We Want to Hear From You

Are you a disadvantaged applicant worried about your grades, money, and connections? Tell us your story at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

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Tales from the Clinic: from Theory to Practice

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There is nothing to fear but fear itself.

choose photo
Photo by amountaineer

Kylie Miller and Issac Schwantes take a break from their fairly new clinical duties to let Gabe Conley and Erik Kneller know how it’s going working with actual patients.  What unexpected things have they learned?  Were their professors really correct when the said that arcane bit of information would actually be useful in the real world?  Were their fears (whatever they were) realized?  Would they rather grandma puke every time they broke wind, or have a shingles outbreak whenever they get a passing grade or better in medical school?  Dave assures them: these are the questions listeners want answers to.

This Week in Medical News

The nation’s largest health insurer, Aetna, wants patients to diagnose themselves and risk huge ER bills if they get it wrong.  We recap the work of our own Sarah Ziegenhorn and her non-profit Iowa Harm Reduction Coalition, which is on the forefront of needle exchange efforts in Iowa.  The DEA is relaxing rules that prevented many healthcare workers from prescribing treatment to opioid addiction sufferers.  And we look at the tiny, cute robots that may one day crawl, tumble, and wiggle around your insides like an over-active inchworm.

We Want to Hear From You

What are your fears for starting the next phase of your education?  Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

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Winter Break, Guts and Brains, and Yahoo! Answers

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And all through the house…

answers photoIt’s winter break at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine.  For most people, that means there are a couple weeks to relax and rejuvenate their minds, bodies, and familial relations.  Despite a lack of available co-hosts, The Short Coats never take a break, which is why Dave had to invite fellow student affairs staffers Chris Roling (Financial Services) and Kate McKenzie (Admissions) to  join MD/PhD student Aline Sandouk and physician assistant student and noob co-host Paul Kretkowski on this week’s show.  To give Chris and Kate the full experience, we visit with the fine patients at the Yahoo! Answers Doctor’s Office to hear and answer their questions on concussions, nail gun injuries and impressive DIY treatments, and the potential dangers of floor pizza.

This Week in Medical News

Our humble state of Iowa is home to a new effort to create nanovaccines for influenza which promise to eliminate many of the current vaccine’s downsides while increasing its effectiveness.  More evidence that the gut and brain are intimately linked. And the scandal of the CDC’s banned words might have been a trifle overblown.

We Want to Hear From You

Have something you want us to talk about on the show? Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.  Do all three!

Continue reading Winter Break, Guts and Brains, and Yahoo! Answers

Man Flu and Other Struggles

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man flu photo

As the semester wrapped up, Dave didn’t feel it was necessary to ponder great questions or debate contentious issues, so this week’s show is pretty newsy…and there’s never a shortage of things to talk about there.  Of course, Dave had to make up a stupid game for Erik Kneller, Erick Schnieders, Irisa Mahaparn, and Kaci McCleary to play, in which they pimp each other on non-medical topics.

This Week in Medical News

Ever heard of bagel-related hand injuries?  Avocados can also wreak havoc on unwary knife-wielders, which is British chain Marks & Spencer excuse for offering UK citizens seedless avocados.  Significant progress has also been made in the fight against tropical illnesses as a result of the 2012 London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases.  We discuss the idea that moving to Canada may solve American MDs’ paperwork woes, even if the countries’ respective healthcare systems each have their benefits and drawbacks.  A UK surgeon decides it’s cool AF to carve his initials in his patients’ livers, although the patients themselves disagree.  And man flu is real.  Of course it is.

We Want to Hear From You

Do you have any suggestions for future show topics? Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

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Night Float: Choosing a Specialty

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Choosing a Speciality

firefighter costume photo
Photo by Ryan Dickey

From an early age people are asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Whether they knew it all along or discovered their career path along the way, medical students have made a commitment to the answer, “I want to be a doctor.” As soon as that answer is given, however, an equally challenging question awaits. “What kind of doctor do you want to be?”

In the second episode of Night Float, Dr. Tony Chung (R1: Ophthalmology), Dr. Travis Snyders (R2: Internal Medicine), and Lisa Wehr (M4) discuss the process of choosing a specialty. Some medical students will have an ‘aha’ moment, while many others will face a timeline and search more for a ‘tipping point’ that favors a particular choice. The resident physicians share their own experiences with decision making and encourage students to explore their options through making early connections, asking questions, gaining experiences, and not being discouraged or dissuaded even when the process involves navigating unsolicited advice or looping back around.

Helpful links

AAMC Careers in Medicine – Careers in medicine is a resource designed to assist medical students in choosing a specialty and navigating the residency match process in a strategic way.

We Want to Hear From You

How are you going about making your choice of specialty? What questions do you have about specialty choice? In general, what would you like to hear from residents about their medical school or residency experiences? Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

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Preparing for Residency Interviews

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Preparing for Residency Interviews

interviews photo
Photo by Matt From London

Welcome to Night Float! In this series  of special episodes, resident physicians take a break from the demands of their days (and nights) to offer information, guidance, and support to medical students and to share their residency experiences. Fourth year medical students are currently in the heart of residency interview season, and they are doing all they can to secure a position through the residency match process. In the first episode of Night Float, Dr. Desiré Christensen (R2: Psychiatry) and Dr. Matt Maves (R1: Pediatrics) discuss their interview experiences and offer suggestions about how to prepare.

Helpful links

AAMC Careers in Medicine – Careers in medicine is a resource designed to assist medical students in choosing a specialty and navigating the residency match process in a strategic way.

Doximity – Doximity is a network of physicians and medical students.

FREIDA – FREIDA is the AMA Residency & Fellowship Database.

We Want to Hear From You

What are your residency interview stories? What suggestions do you have for medical students preparing to match? Medical students, what questions do you have about the residency application process?

Call us at 347-SHORTCT anytime, visit our Facebook group, or email theshortcoats@gmail.com.

Continue reading Preparing for Residency Interviews