Blog Archives

Blog Archives: 2016

Reflections on World AIDS Day and the Path Forward for our Nation’s Youth - Nadia Dowshen, MD

By Corrinne Fahl

For people living with HIV/AIDS or those of us who have devoted our careers to ending the HIV epidemic, this one day of the year to draw attention to HIV, a disease that after 30 years still kills thousands of people each day, sometimes seems inconsequential. But in the aftermath of the U.S. presidential election, this World AIDS Day has special meaning because of messages of racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia heard throughout the campaign. These very same forces of hate threaten the health and well-being of young people I care for who are living with and at-risk for HIV…

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LGBT Health Program Creates Generational Chains of Mentorship

By Corrinne Fahl

Since Penn Medicine launched its Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Health Program in 2014, the group's numerous initiatives have tackled diversity and inclusion in the workplace, classroom, and clinical settings, educated students and staff on LGBT health topics and disparities, and participated in community outreach, among other efforts.

Now, a new LGBT student-trainee-faculty mentorship program is tapping into a rich community of LGBT professionals at varying levels of medical careers to mentor LGBT students. 

Borne out of a meeting in January 2016 between Rosemary Thomas, program coordinator for Penn Medicine's Program for LGBT Health, and the School of…

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Dr. Farzana Rashid Hossain, Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine, Honored with a 2016 Women of Distinction Award

By Corrinne Fahl

Dr. Farzana Rashid Hossain has been selected for a 2016 Women of Distinction Award by the Philadelphia Business Journal.

Dr. Farzana Rashid Hossain has been selected for a 2016 Women of Distinction Award by the Philadelphia Business Journal. Dr. Rashid Hossain was also appointed to the Philadelphia Commission for Women by Mayor Kenney earlier this year. 

Rashid Hossain's honors and awards include the Health Care Heroes Award from Penn Medicine and the Radhika Srinivasan Award for Humanism and Professionalism at the division of Gastroenterology at Penn Medicine.

"Dr. Rashid Hossain is an outstanding physician who is committed to helping…

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A Guest Blog from FOCUS: A Day for Women at Penn Med to Network, Engage in Leadership Mentoring, and Enjoy the Company of Colleagues

By Corrinne Fahl

September is Women in Medicine Month, an annual reminder to pause and remember the multitude of contributions women have made to the advancement of medicine.

September is Women in Medicine Month, an annual reminder to pause and remember the multitude of contributions women have made to the advancement of medicine. Dr. Helen Octavia Dickens, the University of Pennsylvania's first African American female full professor in the Medical School, was also the first African American Woman admitted to the American College of Surgeons.  Dr. Virginia Apgar introduced the first test to assess the health of newborn babies in 1953. Dr. Gertrude…

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Why It is More Important Than Ever to Reveal the Hidden Curriculum in Educating the Next Generation of Physicians By Dr. Higginbotham

By Eve J. Higginbotham, SM, MD

A recent article by a medical student from Brown University raises the question about the understanding of how future generations of physicians consider the influence that the social construct of "race" has on medicine.

In her article entitled "The Hidden Curriculum" Brown continues the conversation about the intersect between racism and medicine that one of our very own Penn medical students, Mark Attiah[1] noted in a previous article, highlighting the benefits of considering the benefits of an inclusive environment, "where everyone feels included in the larger dialogue." While one perspective appears to be in opposition of the other, both…

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National Research Priorities, Funding Announced for Tackling Health Disparities in Surgery Laura Newman and Jaya Aysola MD, DTMH, MPH

By Eve J. Higginbotham, SM, MD

The first national agenda to understand and address surgical disparities, announced by the National Institutes of Health and the American College of Surgeons, will likely foster much needed change in addressing ethnic disparities in surgical practice.  Research priorities were announced in the March 16 JAMA Surgery, and are based on an inaugural NIH-American College of Surgeons Symposium on Surgical Disparities Research, held in May 2015, at NIH. On April 18th, NIH announced a Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity, with the first R01 and R21 grant applications likely due in September, and the first awards expected in February…

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So What Did We Learn About Health Equity at Our 2016 MLK Symposium?

By Eve J. Higginbotham, SM, MD

If you missed the 2016 MLK Symposium this year held on January 27, don't despair.  The Leonard Davis Institute posted a blog by Imran Cronk, which nicely summarizes what you missed:  http://ldi.upenn.edu/healthpolicysense/health-equity-symposium-features-fiery-carmona. In a nutshell, we were reminded about the perfect storm in which we consider our questions about health equity.  Nationally we have witnessed the clashes between the police and vulnerable communities, threats against fragile gains made since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, defunding of key pipeline initiatives, the reemergence of grassroots advocacy, and legal challenges in efforts to diversify the health professional workforce. A…

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