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Haad Arif Haad Arif (1 Posts)

Contributing Writer

University of California Riverside School of Medicine


Haad Arif is a medical student at the University of California Riverside (UCR) School of Medicine in Riverside, California, Class of 2025. In 2020, he graduated from UCR with a Bachelor of Science in biology. He then pursued his Masters of Business Administration at the UCR A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management before starting his medical school journey. He enjoys playing and coaching rugby and taking care of his bonsai tree in his free time. After graduating medical school, Haad would like to pursue a career in orthopedic surgery.




When Advocating Becomes Difficult: Health Care Professionals and War

The purpose of this piece is not to assign blame, nor is it to debate the inciting event for the current state of the people in Gaza. Instead, I hope to inspire you, the reader, to set aside any political differences and to lean into your role as both a human and patient advocate. I urge you to speak up in support of our colleagues overseas, who are treating and operating under the threat of death; for history will not judge our silence kindly.

The Long Overdue Cessation of Harmful Surgeries on Intersex Children

Recently two prominent children’s hospitals have made unprecedented announcements. Boston Children’s Hospital and Chicago’s Laurie Children’s Hospital announced that they would stop performing certain surgeries on children born with intersex traits. These announcements come after huge direct efforts by advocacy groups like The Intersex Jusice Project, lead by Pidgeon Pagonis, and InterAct, a national intersex youth advocacy group. 

The Mother of All Preventative Medicine — Anti-Aging: A Review of “Lifespan” by David Sinclair

The incidence of chronic disease is strongly correlated with aging. According to the Information Theory of Aging, aging results from a progressive loss of genetic material due to gradually worsening cellular repair mechanisms. This cellular erosion leads to a nearly interminable list of diseases, including but certainly not limited to cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative disease.

Zaynah Alam (3 Posts)

Writer-in-Training

Emory University School of Medicine


Zaynah Alam is a member of the Class of 2021 at Emory University School of Medicine. She grew up in Chapel Hill, NC and has a BS in Neuroscience from Duke University. Her interests include science fiction, health as a human right, and eating at every pho restaurant in the city of Atlanta.