Triumph After Tragedy – 11 Seconds, 15 Years Later

Episode 414 aired on November 14, 2010, and the podcast is now available as a free download on our iTunes page!

In this episode, the Radio Rounds team speaks with special guest Travis Roy, author of a book entitled Eleven Seconds, which chronicles his life-altering accident in 1995, in which he became paralyzed from the neck down, just 11 seconds into his first varsity hockey game with the then-reigning NCAA champion Boston University.

Travis’s story is about hope and perseverance in the face of tragedy. As a followup to this episode — and for bonus audio excerpts of our interview with Travis — be sure to check out Radio Rounds host Avash Kalra’s article on College Hockey News. Travis describes his accident in further detail, as well as the incredible response from the college hockey community.

In addition, learn more about Travis and the Travis Roy Foundation, which provides generous research support and individual grants for spinal cord injury survivors.

Remember that, as always, the free-to-download podcast of this episode (and all past episodes) can be found on our iTunes page!

Mysteries & Oddities in the Mutter Museum

Episode 413 aired on November 7, 2010 and is now available as a free download on our iTunes page!

In this episode, the Radio Rounds crew takes a special visit to the famed Mutter Museum at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia — a museum that welcomes tens of thousands of curious visitors each year and showcases a legendary collection of medical history.

Oh, and more than a few medical oddities as well.

Hosts Avash Kalra and John Corker speak with the Curator of the Museum, Anna Dhody, as well as the Museum’s Director, Dr. Robert Hicks. Ms. Dhody and Dr. Hicks discuss the famous exhibits at the museum, including the Hyrtl skull collection, a collection of 2,000 objects extracted from people’s throats, the tallest skeleton on display in North America, and of course, the famous mystery of the preserved Soap Lady — whose corpse turned itself into a soapy substance called adipocere.

Learn more on the Mutter Museum website, and remember that, as always, the free-to-download podcast of this episode (and all past episodes) can be found on our iTunes page!

No Letter, Now What?

This episode, which aired in May 2010, is now available as a free download on our iTunes page!

Supply and Demand. It’s a principle that underlies even medical school admissions. Each year, there are invariably many very qualified applicants who are not admitted to medical school, and it’s not because they are not deserving of a position. At the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine — which houses the medical students who produce Radio Rounds — the annual acceptance rate is approximately 7%, meaning that 93 out of every 100 applicants are not accepted to the school.

So for students who don’t receive a letter, what can they do to improve their application for the following year? In this special episode, we ask that question (and many more) to three medical school admissions directors:

  • Dr. Stephen ManuelAssistant Dean of Admissions, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine
  • Dr. Steve PetersonAssociate Dean of Admissions, Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine
  • Debra E. StalkMPH Director of Admissions & Associate Director, MBS Program, The Commonwealth Medical College

As always, the free-to-download podcast of this episode (and all past episodes) can be found on our iTunes page!

Rounding on the Hill

This episode aired as a Special Report in April 2010 and is now available on iTunes!

This edition of Radio Rounds features an exclusive interview with American Medical Association (AMA) President Dr. James Rohack and medical students who participated in the recent AMA Lobby Day on Capitol Hill.

Dr. Rohack discusses the AMA’s perspective on health care reform, stressing the importance of always keeping the patients’ best interests in mind. In addition, ‘Rounds’ co-host John Corker shares field reports from his recent visit to Washington D.C., where he spoke to medical students about health policy, the U.S. health care system, and the importance of a medical student voice in the reform process.

Moving Mountains – An Inspired Effort to Eradicate Disease

This episode — the SEASON THREE FINALE — aired on March 7, 2010 and is now available on iTunes!

This episode closes Season Three in style, featuring perspectives on medicine from two ends of the medical career spectrum — a physician who has devoted his work to public health efforts abroad, and medical students working to effect change on Capitol Hill.

First, joining the program is Dr. Jon Andrus, Deputy Director for the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), part of the World Health Organization (WHO). In 2000, he received the Distinguished Service Medal, the highest award of the United States Public Health Service, for his leadership in working to eradicate polio in the Americas and Southeast Asia. Dr. Andrus discusses the importance of global health work, as well as his own experiences — the obstacles he has faced abroad, the unimaginable challenge of serving as the sole physician for a district of 210,000 people in Africa, and his inspired leadership in eradicating a disease on two continents.

We also feature a field report from Washington D.C., where Radio Rounds lead correspondent John Corker interviews a fellow medical student in the midst of the American Medical Association’s ‘Lobby Day’ event. We hear about the importance of medical student involvement and advocacy in health care reform.

Finally, the weekly residency segment in this episode features valuable career advice from Dr. Alex Macario, the Director of the Anesthesiology Residency Program at Stanford University.

On behalf of Avash Kalra, Lakshman Swamy, Shamie Das, and John Corker, thanks for listening to Season 3. Feel free to contact the Radio Rounds team by email, contact@radiorounds.org .

Black History Month – Advancing Health & Wellness

This episode, which aired on February 28, 2010, is now available on iTunes!

In this episode, Radio Rounds recognizes Black History Month with an all-star lineup of guests who discuss the impact of minority physicians, particularly African American physicians — as well as the intricacies of the health care process as it relates to predominantly urban environments. Among many other topics, we discuss the impact of violence on young African American males, the NAACP’s involvement on Capitol Hill, and the role of student minority advocates in the Student National Medical Association (SNMA).

Guests in this episode include:

  • Dr. John Rich, author of Wrong Place, Wrong Time: Trauma and Violence in the Lives of Young Black Men. Dr. Rich is a leader in the field of public health, and his work has focused on serving one of the nation’s most ignored and underserved populations — African-American men in urban settings. He currently serves as Chair of Health Management and Policy at the Drexel University School of Public Health, in Philadelphia.
  • Shavon Arline, Health Care Program Director for the NAACP.
  • Travelle Franklin-Ford, National President of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) and MD/PhD student at the University of Wisconsin. Established in 1964, SNMA is the oldest and largest medical student organization dedicated to serving the needs of underrepresented minority students who wish to pursue careers in the field of medicine.
  • Dr. Kevin Watt, Opthalmologist; Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine

In all, 13 voices appear on this special Radio Rounds episode — setting an all-time record at the time of the broadcast! Among them are SNMA members at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine — Alyson Grant, Randy Wallace, Khalil Sharif, and Lorena Rodriguez.

Facing the Skeptics

This episode, which aired on February 21, 2010, is now available on iTunes!

This episode features Dr. Steven Novella, Director of Neurology at Yale University and host of The Skeptics Guide to the Universe — a wildly popular podcast that explores the myths that pervade science and medicine. Dr. Novella discusses the anti-vaccination movement and what it means for the current practice of medicine, and he also shares his thoughts on complementary/alternative medicine.

This episode’s ‘Residency Insights’ segment showcases a pair of physicians sharing stories from their careers, with each highlighting personal interactions that they have had with patients and that they carry with them as a reminder of the incredible human side of medicine.  Dr. Tim Pritts (Director of the General Surgery Residency Program at the University of Cincinnati) and Dr. Steven Reichert (Director of Cornell University’s Internal Medicine Residency Program at New York Hospital Queens) appear on the program.

Powerful Perspectives – Casey’s Paralysis & Dr. Lyon’s Return from Haiti

This episode, which aired on February 14, 2010, is now available on iTunes!

Kicking off Episode 307 is an update from the Radio Rounds Haiti correspondent, Dr. Evan Lyon from Partners in Health (PIH). Dr. Lyon has been a volunteer physician with Partners in Health / Zanmi Lasante for over a decade, spending much of his time at clinics in Haiti. He was part of PIH’s initial efforts to respond to the earthquake on January 12, 2010, and appeared on Episode 303 while he was en route to Port-au-Prince. Now back in the United States, Dr. Lyon shares with the ‘Rounds’ team what he saw and experienced, while also offering his thoughts on the future of the relief efforts. Dr. Lyon eloquently conveys the images from Haiti that both haunt and motivate him.

Also featured in this episode is a powerful bedside interview with a patient at the Haslinger Family Pediatric Palliative Care Center at Akron Children’s Hospital in Akron, Ohio. We hear from Casey — a 13 year old boy who experienced back pain one day at school, visited the ER that evening, and was never able to walk out of the hospital after an apparent spinal cord injury resulted in paralysis. Nevertheless, Casey remains strong, showing perspective well beyond his years, and in this incredible segment, he and his mother choose to focus on all things positive. We learn that Casey is becoming a star sled hockey player (listen to the podcast if you want to know what sled hockey is!), and as he said himself, “Life’s not going to stop for you.”

Finally, in this episode’s residency segment, we hear from Dr. Lenny Feldman and Dr. Rosalyn Stewart, Co-Directors of the Internal Medicine/Pediatrics residency program at Johns Hopkins University.

Restoring Lives: A Plastic Surgeron, His Patient & A Story from Haiti

This episode, which aired on February 7, 2010, is now available on iTunes!

This jam-packed episode begins by featuring Indiana University sports medicine physician and faculty member Dr. Douglas McKeag, who recently visited Haiti to assist with the massive relief efforts that are ongoing following the recent earthquake. Dr. McKeag tells a powerful story of what he witnessed and experienced, and in one of the most moving pieces ever aired on Radio Rounds, he describes a heartbreaking story that you will not soon forget. Nevertheless, his description builds the foundation for the hope and the recovery that has begun and will continue thanks to the unprecedented support from all over the world.

This episode also features Dr. Steven Schmidt, a plastic surgeon in Dayton, Ohio, and Cynthia, an inspiring breast cancer survivor patient whose road to recovery involved extensive plastic surgery treatment. Dr. Schmidt discusses his extensive work abroad, where he has performed hundreds of surgeries for patients in the third world. One of his patients closer to home was Cynthia, who describes her experience being diagnosed with breast cancer — not once, but twice. She discusses the implications for herself, her personal life and family, and her life-altering surgeries performed by Dr. Schmidt himself. If you’d like to learn more about Dr. Schmidt and his work, visit his website at: http://www.legacyofhealing.org .

Our weekly Residency Segment features advice from Dr. Evan Waxman, Director of the Opthamology Residency Program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Also featured on this episode is guest-host Telisha Ortiz, a second-year medical student at the Boonshoft School of Medicine who joins her classmates, hosts Avash Kalra and Shamie Das, for the program this week. Finally, Avash closes the show by offering his prediction for Super Bowl XLIV, which took place on the day this episode originally aired. Take a listen to find out if he correctly predicted the outcome!

Social Media’s Bedside Voice – KevinMD

This episode, which aired on January 31, 2010, is available on iTunes!

Featured in this edition of Radio Rounds is Dr. Kevin Pho, the creator and author of KevinMD.com, the web’s leading physician blog with over 21,000 RSS subscribers and 16,000 Twitter followers. The Wall Street Journal calls KevinMD.com a “punchy, prolific blog that chronicles America’s dysfunctional health care system through the prism of a primary care provider.”

Dr. Pho, an internal medicine physician in Nashua, New Hampshire, shares his thoughts on social media in modern medicine and the important role that social media plays for new physicians. The ability to interact with patients, he stresses, is only enhanced by physicians adapting to medicine’s growing online presence. Be sure to check out KevinMD.com and read more about Dr. Kevin Pho’s thoughts on his blog, as well as his occasional contributions to The New York Times.

In this episode, we also hear from Dr. Gerald Berke, as part of the Radio Rounds weekly residency series. Dr. Berke is the Director for the Otolaryngology (ENT) residency program at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA.