5 Tips to Developing the Daily Habit of Writing in Academia

As newly-minted education fellows, we are expected to be productive writers, and we wanted to share what we’ve learned so far about developing the daily habit – yes, habit! – of writing. For some people, writing seems easy. But not everyone can write non-stop, like they’re running out of time. Writing productively is an important skill to learn, especially if you have your sights set on an academic career. Here are 5 tips to get you started!

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2019-04-20T10:44:14-08:00

Sep 9, 2018 | Medical Education

By: Cynthia Peng, MD and William Dixon, MD |Editors: Michael Gisondi, MD; Kimberly Schertzer, MD

The Problem

The peri-mortem cesarean section, rebranded in recent years as the “Resuscitative Hysterotomy”, is a potentially lifesaving procedure for both a pregnant mother and her child. It is both daunting and infrequently performed, necessitating frequent review of indications, techniques, and pitfalls to ensure the best possible outcome for mother and baby. The decision to perform this procedure should be made only in pulseless women with a uterine fundus above the umbilicus, which indicates a gestation of >20 weeks.^1,2 Prior studies suggest the procedure should be performed within 5 minutes of maternal cardiac arrest in order to maximize the probability of favorable maternal neurologic outcome and the secondary goal of fetal survival.^³ Given the paucity of clinical exposure to this potentially-life saving intervention, resuscitative hysterotomy is an ideal candidate for simulation-mediated deliberate practice.

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2018-10-28T21:53:00-08:00

Aug 28, 2018 | IDEA series, Simulation

By: Elaine Smith, MD, Dimitrios Papanagnou, MD, MPH, EdD(c), Elizabeth Teixeira, MD, Lawrence Lau, MD, Mitch Berman, MD and Xiao Chi (Tony) Zhang, MD, MS |Editors: Mary Haas, MD

TLDR Book Review: “make it stick: The Science of Successful Learning”

Bookstore shelves and Amazon lists are filled with self-help titles that promise to make you a better manager, a better parent, or a better fishmonger. But most of them suffer from the same weakness: 2 pages of good practical advice is padded with 298 pages of filler.

Our new column TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read) is a solution to what we call the McNugget Problem: trying to find the 5 bullet points of meaty goodness suspended within a mass of stale anecdotes, overcooked platitudes, and bad food analogies. Our TLDR goal is to find the critical take-aways in each book we review, and present them to you in a concise, easy-to-apply format. We read the books so you don’t have to!

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2019-10-31T18:55:36-08:00

Aug 21, 2018 | Book Club

By: Christina Shenvi, MD PhD and Neil Shenvi, PhD

From One Medical Student to Another: 5 Tips for Research Success

One of the most challenging aspects of medical school is the sheer volume of information that must be absorbed in a short period. This can pose a problem for those interested in developing research skills and pursuing an independent project. As colleagues, we know that our inherent curiosity is satisfied by discovering new information as much as it is by learning clinical content. We believe that it is important to showcase our hard work through a formal research project, but there are systematic barriers to finding a research mentor and team. Although there are many resources to guide you on “how” to publish, in this post we give some basic tips and tricks, from one medical student to another, on how to get involved in research and find a project that best fits your goals.

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2018-08-07T09:45:37-08:00

Aug 7, 2018 | Medical Education

By: Sara Capobianco, Alexander H. Tran, Benjamin Trieu, Daniel Chiou and Xiao Chi (Tony) Zhang, MD, MS

MEdIC Series: The Case of the Medication Mishap – Expert Review and Curated Community Commentary

Our last case of season 5, The Case of the Medication Mishap, presented the scenario of a senior resident, Tim, who inadvertently administers an incorrect medication dose that leads to a serious adverse event. He then struggles with how to handle this situation as we often aren’t coached on the approach to physician errors and disclosing adverse events throughout our medical training. Physicians aren’t allowed to make mistakes, right? If you haven’t had a chance yet, we urge you to check out the case and share your thoughts on this important topic!

The MEdIC team (Drs. Tamara McColl, Teresa Chan, Sarah Luckett-Gatopoulos, Eve Purdy, John Eicken, Alkarim Velji, and Brent Thoma) hosted an online discussion around the case over the last 2 weeks with insights from the ALiEM community. We are proud to present to you the curated commentary and our expert reviews. Thank you to all participants for contributing to the rich discussions surrounding this case!

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2019-04-01T11:48:39-08:00

Jul 20, 2018 | MEdIC series

By: Tamara McColl, MD FRCPC

MEdIC Series: The Case of the Medication Mishap

Welcome to season 5, episode 9 of the ALiEM Medical Education in Cases (MEdIC) series! Our team (Drs. Tamara McColl, Teresa Chan, Eve Purdy, John Eicken, Sarah Luckett-Gatopoulos, Alkarim Velji, and Brent Thoma) is pleased to welcome you to our online community of practice where we discuss the practice of academic medicine!

In our last case of the year, we present the scenario of a senior resident, Tim, who inadvertently administers an incorrect medication dose that leads to a serious adverse event. He then struggles with how to deal with this error as we often aren’t coached on situations like these throughout our training. Physicians aren’t allowed to make mistakes, right?

Check out the case and join the conversation in the comments section! We’d love to hear your thoughts on this important topic!

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2019-04-01T11:47:17-08:00

Jul 6, 2018 | MEdIC series

By: Tamara McColl, MD FRCPC

EM Fellowship Match Advice: Global Health Fellowship

EM Fellowship Match Advice, now its in third season, is back to put the focus on Global Health Fellowships. A panel of three outstanding fellowship directors discuss the reasons why a resident may consider advanced training in this global health, future job opportunities, and the difference in approach between some of these programs. Hosted by Drs. Michael Gisondi and Michelle Lin, watch the video Google Hangout or listen to the Soundcloud podcast to learn more about Global Health!
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