The IAMSE Administrative Office will be closed December 24 and 25 in observance of the Christmas Holiday. We will resume normal business hours on Monday, December 28. We will also be closed December 31st and January 1st in observance of the New Year.
We would also like to wish you and your families a happy holiday season. We are excited for what 2021 has in store!
This month the IAMSE Publications Committee review is taken from the article titledĀ Preparing Medical Students to Address the Needs of Vulnerable Patient Populations: Implicit Bias Training in US Medical Schools, published online inĀ Medical Science Educator, (03 February 2020) by Morris, M.C., Cooper, R.L., Ramesh, A., Tabatabai, M., Arcury, T.A., Shinn, M., Im, W., Juarez, P & Matthews-Juarez, P.
Unconscious bias, also known as implicit bias, refers to attitudes or stereotypes that are outside our awareness and affect our understanding, interactions, and decisions. While academic medicine has made progress against explicit discrimination, implicit bias is still threatening to stifle the quality and equality of health care and health research. Bias can result in poor physician-patient communication, lack of trust, lower standard of care, restricted access to services, lower adherence to treatment, poorer personal health outcomes, and health disparities within the population. This is particularly true for vulnerable populations or those at increased risk of receiving a disparity in medical care on the basis of financial circumstances or social characteristics such as age, race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, spirituality, disability, or socioeconomic or insurance status.
In their study, the authors focused on the health disparities of three vulnerable patient populations ā LGBTQ, migrant farmworkers and individuals experiencing homelessness. While I initially found these populations somewhat disparate, I also thought thank you for elevating these populations to the forefront of the medical education conversation as they are a growing constituent of the social, political, and medical landscape! While estimates vary significantly, it is likely that LGBTQ individuals make up roughly 6% of adults worldwide, homelessness accounts for about 2% of the worldās population, and 1% of the US population are estimated to be migrant farmworkers.
The goal of the paper was to emphasize the need for implicit bias training in medical education, to survey the US medical education landscape on implicit bias training, and to determine if these particular populations were included in training. As such, the researchers surveyed all allopathic US medical schools garnering a response from half (71 schools). Of the respondents, 51% indicated that their students received implicit bias reduction training. LGTBQ was covered by 39% of the respondents, 14% included migrant farmworkers and 11% homelessness. Most of the training occurred within the first three years of medical training and was delivered primarily as lectures (71%), case- or problem-based learning (50%) and small group discussions (46%).
Implicit attitudes contribute to unequal care by influencing not only physicians’ assessments and clinical decision making but also the way they interact with patients.
While this was not an expansive study, it does illustrate the need for training of future physicians in implicit bias of vulnerable patients and helps to bring the conversation to the table. When considering implementing implicit bias training, it is important to critically appraise the pedagogical techniques that are most beneficial. One of the most effective strategies is supplementing training with evidence-based medicine to discern disparities. Another strategy is to specifically incorporate bias confrontation during clinical skills training and decision making simulations. Virtual reality is also a promising technology that has been shown to reduce bias and increase empathy. Regardless, the true formula for change will require an array of interventions designed to address the many structural and personal barriers that impede implicit attitudes.
Carrie Elzie, PhD
Associate Professor
Pathology and Anatomy
Eastern Virginia Medical School
Member, IAMSE Publications Committee
Stay connected with your colleagues around the globe and join us for this week’s IAMSE Cafe round table discussion. Please join our host, Jon Wisco from Boston University School of Medicine as he leads an open discussion with the audience about unconventional teaching methods. Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at 10AM EST ā Unconventional Teaching Methods. A recent survey at Boston University to faculty, undergraduate students, graduate students and professional students asking about their experience with online learning revealed a disconnect between what faculty and students consider to be an effective online learning environment: faculty view effective learning as engagement; students view effective learning as connection. As an #IAMSECafe community, letās talk about unique teaching strategies that we have employed or would like to utilize that engage and connect faculty with students. Come to share ideas as we prepare for the next semester/module! To join the meeting please click here. The meeting password is IAMSECafe or, if you are calling in from a phone, the numeric password is 778130. We look forward to seeing you this week!
Our association is a robust and diverse set of educators, researchers, medical professionals, volunteers and academics that come from all walks of life and from around the globe. Each month we choose a member to highlight their academic and professional career, and see how they are making the best of their membership in IAMSE. This monthāsĀ FeaturedĀ Member is IAMSE member Thom Gaddy, PhD.
Thom Gaddy, Ph.D.
Medical Science Educator (Associate Professor of Histology and Cell Biology)
Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership
How long have you been a member of IAMSE?
I first joined IAMSE in 2009, just after being hired for my current position at the Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership.
Looking at your time with the Association, what have you most enjoyed doing? What are you looking forward to? Committee involvement, conference attendance, WAS series, manuals, etc.?
Since joining the Association Iāve served on the Review Committee and for the past several years I been reviewing manuscripts for Medical Science Educator. Iāve attended most of the annual meetings, and this is probably what I have enjoyed and look forward to most since becoming a member. The meetings have played a big role in my professional development by facilitating the sharing of scholarship, which, in turn, has helped spawn new ideas about how to improve my teaching. Of course, I also enjoy the opportunity the annual meeting provides to reconnect with former colleagues and friends and making new acquaintances as well.
I have also enjoyed being part of the WAS committee. An extremely dedicated group of people with significant connections around the US. They work hard at bringing interesting topics to the membership and the individuals best positioned to give us the latest in this area.
What interesting things are you working on outside the Association right now? Research, presentations, etc.
Right now I am working on several interesting projects. Our teaching facilities recently underwent a major renovation as our incoming class size is incrementally increasing from 40 to 60 students, and as part of that renovation, we have built a 5-bay, high-fidelity simulation suite. Iāve volunteered to participate in our Sim program as a manikin operator. Since our students are participating in these simulation exercises very earlyāin the Fall semester of their first yearāweāve been very intentional about including foundational science educators in authoring and implementing these cases, and itās been rewarding to see how quickly the students come to appreciate how foundational science knowledge plays into their clinical decision-making during those clinical scenarios.
Another project that Iāve recently started working on is the StatPearls education initiative, where I am serving as an Editor-in-Chief for the Medical Student Histology resources. StatPearls was initially developed to provide free and low cost continuing medical education opportunities to practicing physicians but has now expanded to include all the disciplines in undergraduate medical education as well. So far Iāve been really impressed with the work of my predecessors and looking forward to providing my own expertise and resources to help this effort move forward.
IAMSE welcomes educators from multiple disciplines and backgrounds. How would you say being an IAMSE member has helped you become better in the field of Biology/Anatomy?
Oh boy, IAMSE has had a huge influence on my development as a medical science educator. Although the Medical College of Georgia (now part of Augusta University) was founded almost 200 years ago, I was one of the initial cohort of faculty that was hired to work at the new 4-year campus where we were essentially developing our curriculum from scratch. During my Ph.D. training, I had a great mentor and experience as a graduate teaching assistant that really helped me to develop and solidify my histology knowledge, and afterward, I had gained teaching experience as an assistant professor at two different liberal arts universities. What I lacked, though, was seeing āthe big pictureā of how a medical curriculum worked; and also, like many others, I wasnāt fully prepared for the wave of medical education reform that began about a decade ago and continues to take place today. Quite frankly, I was pretty bummed when I realized I wasnāt going to be able to teach a lot of the fundamental content knowledge within my discipline that, at the time, medical students were expected to learn. Thatās where IAMSE came in. Hearing about all the new ideas and what others were doing to push the envelope, helped me to recognize that even though the time spent teaching in my discipline was going to be much less than what I had expected, there was value in many of these reforms, integration in particular, and opportunities to grow as an educator.
Anything else that you would like to add?
Just a big thank you to IAMSEāits leadership and all of its membership. Itās a true joy to be part of such a robust and vibrant organization.
IAMSE would like to remind you that the call for poster and oral abstracts closes soon! The Annual IAMSE Meeting, to be held June 12-17, 2021, offers opportunities for faculty development and networking, bringing together medical sciences and medical education across the continuum of healthcare education.
There is no limit on the number of abstracts you may submit, but it is unlikely that more than two presentations per presenter can be accepted due to scheduling complexities. Abstract acceptance notifications will be returned in March 2021.
Since 2007, IAMSE has honored medical educators from its membership with two prestigious awards to recognize and promote teaching excellence and educational scholarship in the medical sciences. We are still accepting nominations for the 2021 Excellence in Teaching awards, which will be presented at the annual meeting in June 2021. Qualified candidates may self-nominate or be nominated by an IAMSE colleague.
Details regarding each award, required application materials, and deadlines can be found here. Member login is required.
Please submit the pre-application packet for the Early Career and Distinguished Career awards to support@iamse.org by December 31, 2020.
We want to say a big THANK YOU for your continued support throughout this challenging year. Because of you, we are able to bring a broad and diverse representation of non-profit and commercial entities forward for consideration during multiple times at our annual meeting each June.
We hope that you will consider exhibiting with us at our virtual meeting, to be held from June 12-17, 2021. The IAMSE meeting is a perfect place to display educational products and services and engage with meeting participants from around the world. We look forward to meeting our much-valued previous exhibitors again, as well as welcoming our first-time exhibitors.
We will have specific information regarding exhibiting opportunities to share with you in the coming weeks. Registration for the event will open in early 2021. If you have any questions about exhibiting with or supporting IAMSE, please feel free to reach out to us atĀ support@iamse.org.
In light of the shift to a virtual-only conference in 2021, IAMSE would like to remind you that the call for poster and oral abstracts has been extended! Abstracts are now due December 8, 2020!Ā The IAMSE meeting offers opportunities for faculty development and networking, bringing together medical sciences and medical education across the continuum of healthcare education.
There is no limit on the number of abstracts you may submit, but it is unlikely that more than two presentations per presenter can be accepted due to scheduling complexities. Abstract acceptance notifications will be returned in March 2021.
Stay connected with your colleagues around the globe and join us for this week’s IAMSE Cafe round table discussion. Please join our hosts, Francisco RaĆŗl Barroso Villafuerte from the School of Medicine in the Health Science Division of Anahuac University of Mexico as well as Kelly Quesnelle and Wendy Lackey-Cornelison of WMU Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, for an open conversation about resilience.
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Tuesday, December 1, 2020 at 10AM ESTĀ ā Resilience: An open discussion with IAMSE Cafe Hosts.Ā Resilience and adaptability have been recognized as important attributes of successful medical students and clinicians. These traits may be even more important today as both students and faculty have to cope with the additional stresses associated with learning, teaching, and practicing during a pandemic. How do we help build resilience in ourselves and our students? How do you model resilience for others when you are struggling?Ā
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To join the meeting pleaseĀ click here. The meeting password is IAMSECafe or, if you are calling in from a phone, the numeric password is 778130.
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We look forward to seeing you this week!
The IAMSE Board of Directors, based on input from the IAMSE membership and our meeting partners, has decided to shift all events associated with the 2021 Annual Meeting, Global Perspectives on Health Sciences Education, to an online format. Although we may be able to gather in small groups by next June, the cascade consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, including ongoing safety concerns, restricted travel, budget allotments, and availability, have forced IAMSE to make this difficult but necessary decision.
I want to recognize and thank so many of our members for the work that they have put into the 2021 Annual Meeting over the past year. The IAMSE Board is especially grateful to Mark Hernandez, who is leading the meeting planning, and to the Annual Program Committee for their work. They have responded graciously to our announcement to transition the in-person meeting to an online format and are in full support of the decision. They are currently back at work to bring you an amazing online version of our Annual Meeting.
We recognize that many of you have been debating whether to present your work at the 2021 IAMSE Annual Meeting due to uncertainties and concerns regarding travel. Therefore, we are extending the abstract deadline for oral and poster presentations from December 1st to December 8th, 2020. Click here for more information!
Even though we will not be meeting in person this year, we have shifted our focus to create a virtual event that promises to be just as robust and educational as any IAMSE event you have attended or heard about in the past, with several exciting new opportunities to complement the virtual venue.
For the past several months, IAMSE has been working closely with our partners at AMFEM (Mexican Association of Faculties and Schools of Medicine) to collaborate on combining our intended in-person meetings in Cancun in June. While we are no longer working toward that specific end, our partnership with this exceptional association will simply take a new direction. We look forward to the great work we can do together safely in the future. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that we are planning to come to Cancun as the site for our Annual Meeting in 2023 and we hope to work with AMFEM to bring you the in-person meeting that we had planned to have in 2021.
I understand that attending the IAMSE Annual Meeting in a virtual manner may not have been your original intention, but it is my hope that you will join us as we continue a tradition of rich, engaging and worthwhile educational discourse at the 2021 IAMSE Annual Meeting.
Please be on the lookout for additional information regarding the meeting in the coming weeks.
Take care of yourself and your communities.
Sincerely yours,
Neil Osheroff, PhD
President, IAMSE
As those of us in the United States prepare for Thanksgiving, we would like to extend a sincere THANK YOU for being a part of our success and daily lives.
The IAMSE Administrative Office will be closed on November 26-27, 2020 for Thanksgiving. We will resume normal business hours Monday, November 30, 2020.
We are truly grateful for the support you have provided to us at IAMSE. As we look forward to 2021 we are excited for the new opportunities that may lay ahead.
Thank you,
IAMSE Admin Team
As a reminder, nominations and self-nominations for the IAMSE Board of Directors are due by November 20, 2020 at 5 PM EST. The formal ājob descriptionsā for IAMSE Director areĀ posted here.Ā To submit your nomination or self-nomination byĀ November 20, 2020 at 5 PM ET, pleaseĀ click hereĀ to login and view the submission page.