Rounds Goes Genetic

The free podcast of this episode is available on our iTunes page!

This episode of Radio Rounds features a dynamic and truly eye-opening interview with pediatrician and author Dr. Robert Marion, whose new book — Genetic Rounds: A Doctor’s Life in the Field that Revolutionized Medicine — is a poignant description of his daily work in the cutting-edge field of clinical genetics.

Dr. Marion (left) speaks candidly with ‘Rounds’ hosts Avash Kalra and Lakshman Swamy about a variety of topics — including his experiences during residency during the early 1980s, which are described in his bestseller The Intern Blues. He tells stories that highlight what can happen to physicians when they are pushed to their physical and mental limits. And he offers advice regarding how aspiring physicians can survive.

For more information, check out Dr. Marion’s website here!

Cutting to the Heart of the Matter

The free podcast of this episode is available on our iTunes page!

Featured in this episode is Dr. Anthony Acinapura (left), a seasoned cardiothoracic surgeon in New York City. Dr. Acinapura has made an impact in both New York and nationally, lowering mortality rates on a national basis by helping to create a cardiothoracic database for the Society of Thoracic Surgeons still used today.

Having practiced for 47 years — going on 48 — Dr. Acinapura talks with the Radio Rounds team about the immense changes that he has seen in cardiovascular medicine and surgery during the last half-century. As one might expect, that change has been dramatic.

And Dr. Acinapura has had a front row seat.

A Stroke of Insight

The free podcast of this episode is available on our iTunes page!

On Sunday November 8, 2009, Radio Rounds welcomed special guest Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, who in 2008 was named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World (don’t worry — in the coming years, we’ll try and speak to the other 99 as well).

In December 1996, Dr. Taylor woke up to discover that she was experiencing a stroke — but amazingly, as a neuroanatomist, she knew and realized exactly what was happening to her. Three weeks later, neurosurgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital removed a golf-ball sized clot from her brain, and Taylor went on to write a book about her experience and her eight-year recovery. The book is entitled My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey, which spent 17 weeks on the New York Times Hardcover Non-Fiction Bestseller list.

In this episode, Dr. Taylor discusses her experience, her current perspective on life, and her tireless work as an advocate of stroke patients. She also talks about how people around the world have responded to her unique, inspiring story and gave advice to physicians on how to treat stroke patients.

Advocacy in Medicine

You can hear a clip from this episode on our BEST OF SEASON ONE file, available as a free podcast download on iTunes.

This episode was the Season One Finale and featured an action-packed conclusion to the flagship season of Radio Rounds. Our featured guest was Dr. Alvin Jackson (left), the Director of the Ohio Department of Health. Dr Jackson offered his thoughts and insight on a variety of topics — health policy concerns, health disparities, his personal work caring for migrant workers, and his recent meeting in Washington with President Barack Obama.

We were also joined by a lineup of leaders from various student organizations at the Boonshoft School of Medicine. Representing the American Medical Association (AMA) were Tony Hesketh MSIII and George Salloum MSII, and representing the American Medical Students Association (AMSA) were Shanthi Ramesh MSII and Dr. Aaron Patterson. Dr. Patterson, who graduated earlier this month, also discussed his work and the importance of advocacy with the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA).

We also had some fun during the show by inviting one of our professors, Dr. B. Laurel Elder, to sing a song that she recently composed for the BSOM Class of 2012 — the “Microbiology Top 50.” You can listen to this entertaining clip as a separate file available on our iTunes page!

Tracy Kidder – Beyond Mountains Beyond Mountains

The Season Two Finale aired Sunday, December 6, 2009, and the free podcast is available to download on our iTunes page!

This episode features Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy Kidder(left), the author of Mountains Beyond Mountains — an acclaimed nonfiction account of international health icon Dr. Paul Farmer — and also the recently released Strength in What Remains.

Kidder’s Strength in What Remains tells the astounding true story of a young man from Burundi who escapes genocide, only to arrive in New York City with only $200 in his pocket and no knowledge of the English language. The man, named Deo, sleeps on park benches in Central Park… until he manages to attend Columbia University, complete a medical degree, and go back to his native country to found a clinic.

In this episode, Kidder joins Radio Rounds as part of his book tour for Strength in What Remains. Kidder describes his experiences with Dr. Farmer and Deo — specifically, what it was like to immerse himself in their lives, their worlds and then write his best-selling books about them. He comments on the process of being with Deo as he returned to the country, Burundi, where he at one time had lost almost everything he had.

JAMA – The Editor-in-Chief

The free podcast of this episode is available on our iTunes page!

This was the 25th episode of Radio Rounds, and hosts and founders Avash Kalra, Lakshman Swamy, and Shamie Das take a fond look back at their favorite memories from the show since it premiered in April 2009. In addition, they welcome special guest Dr. Catherine DeAngelis, the Editor-in-Chief of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association — one of the premier medical journals in the world.

In November 2009, Executive Producer Shamie Das traveled to Houston, TX, to the American Medical Association (AMA) National Interim Conference, where he met keynote speaker Dr. DeAngelis and recorded this interview. Dr. DeAngelis is also a Professor of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and has been the recipient of seven honorary doctorate degrees and numerous awards for humanitarianism and medical excellence.

In the interview, she discusses how she came to be the Editor-in-Chief of JAMA and her views on evidence-based medicine and medical education.

Conrad Fischer Part II – Hope. The Facts. Heroism.

The free podcast of this episode is available on our iTunes page!

This episode features the second half to Radio Rounds’ conversation with Dr. Conrad Fischer, author of Routine Miracles: Restoring Faith and Hope in Medicine. Make sure to listen to both parts of the interview (Episodes 215 and 216)!

In Part II of our interview, Dr. Fischer continues his message of hope and heroism in medicine, and he discusses how current medical students and physicians can overcome negativity that sometimes might rear its ugly head regarding the medical profession — whether it’s in the media or from physicians themselves. NOW, he says, is the best time to be in medicine — not 25 years ago, as you may hear some people say.

He describes his book, Routine Miracles, as a “manifesto for action” within the current culture of medicine, and he uses his closing message to assure the listeners of the inspiring and unprecedented work that physicians and the profession of medicine are doing.

The Healer’s Art

You can hear a clip from this episode on our BEST OF SEASON ONE file, available as a free podcast download on iTunes.

This week, we had an inspiring and heartwarming discussion with internationally renowned physician Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, the author of the New York Times bestseller Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal. Dr. Remen joined us via telephone and spoke for almost an hour on the role of the physician as a healer, and she discussed the great power of humanity that lies at the heart of medicine. Dr. Remen is the founder of the Healer’s Art course program that is used by medical schools all over the world, and as we heard on Sunday, she is a master storyteller.

In the second half of the show, we opened things up for a roundtable discussion. With Dr. Remen still on the line, we were also joined by two additional guests in the studio. First, we spoke to Dr. Evangeline Andarsio, who is an OB/GYN in Dayton, Ohio and a Clinical Professor at the Boonshoft School of Medicine (BSOM). She is also the co-director of BSOM’s Healer’s Art Program. Finally, we were joined by Dr. Dean Parmelee, a Child Psychiatrist and Dean of Academic Affairs at BSOM, who has helped implement the Healer’s Art program at BSOM in addition to other innovative educational opportunities.

Med School Rx

This episode, which aired on January 10, 2010, is now available as a free download on our iTunes page!

This episode features Dr. Walter Hartwig, Professor and Department Chair of Anatomy at Touro University in California. He is the author of the recently released book entitled Med School Rx: Getting In, Getting Through, and Getting On with Doctoring.

Dr. Hartwig eloquently discusses his views regarding the meaning of being a physician, and he provides advice for both pre-medical students and medical students to get the most out of their journeys through the medical profession. Among the topics discussed: Dr. Hartwig’s views on the difference between motivation and inspiration, his advice for pre-medical students applying to medical schools, and his thoughts regarding the continued dedication that doctors should naturally have– to be “in [the patient’s] moment” and “to be able to rise in the morning to be as excted about something that you’ve already mastered, as if it were the first time you’re seeking to master it.”

This episode also features the debut of the weekly Residency segment, featured throughout Season 3 of Radio Rounds, during which we hear from a residency program director from somewhere around the country. This episode features Dr. Michael Leitman, Director of the General Surgery Residency Program at New York City’s Beth Israel Medical Center. Dr. Leitman discusses how he compares medical students who are applying to his residency program, and he also shares his thoughts regarding residency interviews.

Global Health

You can hear a clip from this episode on our BEST OF SEASON ONE file, available as a free podcast download on iTunes.

In this episode, we enjoyed a riveting discussion about global health concerns, as well as the elaborate connections between medicine and nutrition. Our feature guest was Dr. Diklar Makola (left), a gastroenterologist in Dayton, Ohio, who has extensive experience in practicing medicine both in the United States and abroad. Dr. Makola also has a PhD in nutrition, and his perspectives on medicine and global health have been further enhanced by his research work, which he also discussed on the program.

In the second half of the show, we were joined by Matias Iberico and Jonathan Slaughter, who are second-year medical students at the Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University, in the Class of 2011. Matias and Jonathan are also co-chairs of the School of Medicine’s ‘Global Health Initiative.’ Both have had valuable experience working in medical settings abroad, and they were able to share their insights regarding the importance of global health care efforts. Visit the Global Health Initiative website here!