Raise the Line

“Our rare disease community is looking to solve for many different types of policy barriers because we have a very diverse patient community,” says Annie Kennedy, who was drawn to the rare disease issue due to some personal experience early in her life.  After spending many years as a patient advocate -- including being with patients during provider visits -- she has developed a keen understanding of where the healthcare system can be improved to do justice to rare disease patients and families. That insight informs her work as chief of Policy, Advocacy and Patient Engagement at the EveryLife Foundation where she helps provide patient communities with tools and resources they can use to make their voice heard in the policy arena. In fact, next week, EveryLife is holding its annual Rare Disease Week on Capitol Hill during which members of the rare disease community will meet with lawmakers in Washington to provide meaningful perspectives and encourage their support. “There are more than thirty million Americans living with rare diseases, so this is a real public health priority,” she tells Raise the Line host Michael Carrese. One resource EveryLife has brought to the table is a study on the total cost of living with a rare disease, not just the costs of medical care, which is helping to inform policy discussions. You’ll also learn about some key steps pharma companies, insurers and providers can take to support the rare disease community and where the field is heading in the next few years.  Mentioned in this episode: https://everylifefoundation.org/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

“In about three weeks, I went from a completely normal thirty-year-old to somebody with a heart transplant. It was crazy,” says Dr. Alin Gragossian, who shares her remarkable experience on this edition of Raise the Line. What makes her tale even more interesting is that at the time of the life-threatening heart episode that necessitated the transplant, she was finishing up a residency in emergency medicine. In fact, Dr. Gragossian is dually trained in emergency medicine and critical care medicine. Since her transplant, she’s been using her platform to share her unique experiences with other health professionals and raise awareness about the importance of organ donation. “I’ve had a lot of amazing lessons from what I call ‘patient school’ that medical school never really taught me,” she tells host Michael Carrese. Listen in to this fascinating episode to hear Dr. Gragossian describe what life is like after an organ transplant and the lessons learned as a transplant patient that she’s applying to her medical career. She gets candid about what she would change about medical school curriculums and what would encourage more people to become organ donors. Then, she talks about her podcast, “Both Sides of the Stethoscope” and emphasizes the power of strong patient communities and support groups. If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

There are so many choices to make as an undergrad in med school: selecting which medical field to go into; whether to go down the academic path; and how to use your knowledge and skills to find success and create positive change in the world, to name a few. On today’s episode we’re going to hear from someone who helps students work through all of those questions and also assists faculty colleagues with adjusting to the changing medical education landscape. Dr. Kim Tartaglia does all of this wearing several hats at Ohio State University Wexner College of Medicine including Professor of Medicine, Director of the “IMWell” program for internal medicine residents and Director of Faculty Mentorship. “There are so many different ways to make an impact that there’s not one path to success and there’s not one path to be impactful,” she tells host Michael Carrese. Listen in to this episode as Dr. Tartaglia shares her perspective on how medical education has changed since the pandemic as well as how students and academic leaders are relating to each other differently as they work to improve the med ed system. You’ll also learn how she chose her specialty in med school, what drew her to stay in academics, how she established an enjoyable career in medical academics, and the benefits of attending OSU’s College of Medicine. And stay tuned to the end for an enlightening discussion of the role of lifestyle medicine in treating and reversing disease, and the benefits of coaching and mentorship for med school residents.Mentioned in this episode: https://medicine.osu.edu/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

A singing guest!  A poetic chat bot! This special episode of Raise the Line features those unusual artistic highpoints along with the substantive and interesting conversation you always get with host Shiv Gaglani. Our guest, Dr. Mark Korson, is a metabolic geneticist and Director of Education and Physician Support Services at VMP Genetics who believes patients have a crucial role to play in the education of both learners and practicing clinicians, especially when dealing with rare diseases. “Patients teach about disease a whole lot better than I do because they tell stories and storytelling is so incredibly powerful as a teaching tool.” Tune in as Korson talks about career opportunities in genetics and metabolic disease, the ways he integrates patient voices into his teaching, and the biggest opportunities and challenges in treating genetic and metabolic diseases and biochemical disorders. Plus, he shares his advice for learners about pursuing a career in the increasingly complex and demanding healthcare field. “You have to protect your personal life and protect it greedily because if you don't do that, at some point it's going to impact how you like your career.”Mentioned in this episode: https://www.vmpgenetics.com/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

“There's a real diversity of jobs available that folks don’t always think about initially when they think about going into healthcare,” says Marc Cummings, the President and CEO of Life Science Washington, a nonprofit trade association serving the life sciences industry in the state of Washington. Dr. Tina Albertson, the Chief Medical Officer at nearby Lyell Immunopharma, agrees. For instance at her company, which does R&D on cell therapies for solid tumor cancers, there’s a need for specialists in logistics who organize and monitor the movement of patient cells that need to be flown to other locations to be genetically engineered and returned to the bedside for use in treatment. As these industry veterans share with host Michael Carrese, the Seattle region is a well-established hub in the growing biotech sector due to a unique blend of strengths including longstanding non-profit research institutions and powerhouse tech companies such as Microsoft and Amazon. “This region is really well-prepared for innovation from a basic science standpoint and also from the tech side of our community,” says Albertson. Check out this revealing discussion of the challenges and opportunities in life sciences, the critical role AI and machine learning is now playing, and what they wish more people understood about clinical trials and drug development. Mentioned in this episode: https://lyell.com/https://lifesciencewa.org/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

“With psychedelics right now, there's a lot of hype around the compound, which is somewhat important, but Sunstone Therapies is really founded on the belief that the delivery is more important than the drug,” says Dr. Manish Agrawal, the company’s co-founder and CEO. As interest in the use of psychedelics for mental health treatment grows and various compounds continue to move down the path of FDA approval, Agrawal wants to be sure the medical system is prepared to provide the safest and most effective experience for patients.  In fact, his company is conducting clinical trials to help define the standards for optimal patient care. Serious thought is given to everything from lighting to how patients are greeted, and of course there is great emphasis placed on training therapists properly and supporting them as they do what can be emotionally taxing work. “When people come through Sunstone, we want them to feel loved and held -- because they're dealing with very difficult issues -- but also the rigor and the discipline of a very thorough process that is very safe.” Listen to this super thoughtful conversation with host Shiv Gaglani as Agrawal discusses a new model of mental health care, psychedelic-assisted group therapy, and the transformative results he’s seen in patients. “In the right context with the right amount of support and understanding, psychedelics can help people resolve difficult emotions.”Mentioned in this episode: https://www.sunstonetherapies.com/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

Our guest on this episode of Raise the Line, Dr. Githinji Gitahi, ended up in the medical field because he’s always had a nagging need for social justice. “That was a place that I found where social justice is needed and is probably the foundation for healthy populations,” he tells host Shiv Gaglani. Dr. Gitahi is the Group CEO of Amref Health Africa, the leading Africa-based health development international NGO whose vision is to achieve lasting health change in Africa. Tune-in to this episode to learn about the key areas Amref Health Africa is focused on as well as how African countries are training and retaining more healthcare workers and physicians in their communities. You’ll also get a glimpse into the challenges African communities have experienced throughout the COVID pandemic and the key role that trust plays in gaining respect and compliance for public health measures, like vaccinations. Then, Dr. Gitahi shares his vision and goals for Amref Health Africa over the next ten years and offers powerful advice for aspiring healthcare leaders who want to create social change through medicine.Mentioned in this episode: https://amref.org/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

Why is it that Hispanics make up 20% of the U.S. population, but only 6% of the physician workforce? Well, Dr. Pilar Ortega, founding president of the National Association of Medical Spanish and co-founder of the Medical Organization for Latino Advancement, is working towards closing that gap. As an immigrant herself, she and her family have experienced trying to navigate a medical system that wasn’t designed for them. Now as an emergency physician and clinical associate professor with dual appointments at the University of Illinois Chicago Departments of Emergency Medicine and Medical Education, she’s tackling those issues head-on. She will also have the opportunity to address these concerns in her new role asVice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Wearing her academic hat, Dr. Ortega utilizes her bi-cultural background to create resources and credentials for Spanish-speaking providers, including two books published by our parent company, Elsevier: Spanish and the Medical Interview: A Textbook for Clinically Relevant Medical Spanish and Spanish and the Medical Interview: Clinical Cases and Exam Review. Don’t miss this enlightening episode of Raise the Line as Dr. Ortega shares her thoughts with host Shiv Gaglani on why language should be seen as a professional skill, the importance of language re-education and the discrimination both Latino providers and patients face.Mentioned in this episode: https://www.namspanish.org/ If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

“Patients don’t understand how little we actually know in medicine. I'm not sure if doctors understand this, either,” says Dr. Lisa Sanders, an associate professor at Yale School of Medicine who is perhaps best known as the author of the “Diagnosis” column for the New York Times Magazine. You’re in for more of that refreshing frankness from Sanders whose fascinating career path includes network TV journalism, advising the popular “House, MD” series on Fox and writing several books, including her most recent, Diagnosis: Solving the Most Baffling Medical Mysteries. In this lively exchange with host Shiv Gaglani, Sanders shares insights on a wide range of topics including opening up the diagnostic process, the critical importance of being able to take a good patient history and the work she is about to begin as the medical director of the Long Covid Clinic at Yale New Haven Health. Plus, she offers her take on the impact AI will have in aiding the diagnostic process. “I think it's going to be important, but it won't make diagnosis a science because bodies are too variable, symptoms are very variable and the way people tell their stories is different.” Mentioned in this episode: https://www.nytimes.com/column/diagnosis If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast

“In medical school, you don't learn about leadership. You don't learn about what skills are required to make large-scale strategic decisions that can impact your patients,” says Nita Gombakomba, who will complete her medical degree later this year at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.  As national president of the Student National Medical Association -- which has been fighting for equity and diversity in the medical field for sixty years – Nita has cultivated a broad perspective on medical education and the practice of medicine as she contemplates the future she and her classmates are facing. As she explains to host Michael Carrese, adding leadership training to medical school curricula is particularly important for students from underrepresented communities who see few role models in the ranks of healthcare leadership. As president of SNMA, she’s made leadership opportunities for members a focus, as well as community service initiatives and addressing health disparities. “We've really been pushing the focus on how housing instability also doubles as healthcare instability and the other health disparities that are related to that.” Tune in for a thoughtful perspective from the trenches of medical education and learn why it was important for Nita to take a break from med school to earn an MBA. https://snma.org/Mentioned in this episode:  If you like this podcast, please share it on your social channels. You can also subscribe to the series and check out all of our episodes at www.osmosis.org/podcast