The local AMA medical student sections at Georgetown University School of Medicine, SUNY Upstate College of Medicine and William Carey College of Osteopathic Medicine recently earned their schools recognition for the AMA’s Event of the Month, which showcases creative recruitment, community service and education events coordinated by individual AMA medical student sections. Looking to host an upcoming event at your school? Check out the winners for ideas and vote for your favorite event of the year.
Here are the events the AMA’s recent winners hosted:
Charting new approaches to patient care
Is “upstream medicine” the future of patient care? That’s the question the local AMA medical student section at Georgetown University School of Medicine aimed to discuss at its recent lecture and clinical visit on upstream medicine. The event started with a 15-minute video on the issue of upstream medicine and how physicians can care for patients using this newly conceived approach. After the video, Erica McClaskey, MD, a family medicine physician at Georgetown Medical Center that has experience in upstream medicine, shared clinical scenarios and advice with students on the benefits of using an upstream approach to treat patients.
Debating the future of health policy
The local AMA medical student section at SUNY Upstate College of Medicine won for its third annual Dialogues in Health Policy debate, which aims to give students and faculty a forum to discuss hot topics in health care policy. This year’s discussion focused on the pros and cons of accountable care organizations (ACOs) and featured presentations from eight students selected from SUNY Upstate’s College of Medicine and School of Public Health through an essay-based application.
"By presenting the pros and cons of ACOs in a debate format, the audience became more engaged about health policy issues and concerns than if the topic were presented as a lecture," said Yuxin Liu and Olivia Yost, co-debate coordinators from the local AMA medical student section at SUNY Upstate. "Many attendees commented that they learned a lot and really enjoyed the event format."
Mastering emergencies outside
Talk about survival skills: The William Carey College of Osteopathic Medicine took that concept to a whole new level in its “Step Outside” event where students ventured into the great outdoors for a collaborative session on emergency care in the wilderness. The two-day session featured presentations from Will Smith, MD, a medical director for several emergency wilderness first responder agencies and a military physician from the U.S. Army Reserve who shared some of the challenges he faced rescuing patients and walked students through a typical triage process.
Students also learned how to make their own splints using outdoor equipment such as sleeping bags, pads, clothing and backpacks. The hands-on clinic focused on teaching students utility and efficacy in real-life emergency scenarios.
“The skills clinic was very educational and exciting because it consisted of skills that we don't learn in every day curriculums. When would you normally make a forearm splint out of a sleeping pad?” said Cameron Petro-Sakuma, president of the local AMA medical student section.
Is your AMA medical student section holding similar events? Submit a Section Involvement Grant (SIG) Recap Form and photos within 30 days of your event to be eligible for the Event of the Month nomination, which the AMA selects each month. At the end of the school year, all monthly awards will be showcased in June at the National Medical Student Meeting and be voted on by students for one Event of the Year winner.
Through the SIG program, the AMA-MSS provides an opportunity for local AMA medical student sections to:
- Educate students about the AMA and provide an opportunity for students to get more involved
- Help put AMA policy into action by providing a service to medical school campuses or communities
- Engage in activities that focus on AMA's top priorities
Don’t forget to also cast your vote for the AMA’s Event of the Year Award. Winners will be announced at the National Medical Student Meeting June 5-6 in Chicago.
