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Joe Ladowski Joe Ladowski (4 Posts)

Consulting Editor, Former Editor-in-Chief (2015-2017) and Former Medical Student Editor (2014-2015)

University of Alabama-Birmingham School of Medicine

Hi everyone! My name is Joe Ladowski and I am a MSTP (MD/PhD) student at University of Alabama-Birmingham School of Medicine. I am originally from Fort Wayne, IN I attended undergraduate at the University of Chicago and graduated in 2012 with a degree in Biological Sciences with a Specialization in Endocrinology. While at the UofC I was an active member of the school's rugby team, a volunteer with Global Brigades, and spent my free electives taking courses in Medical Ethics. Right now I'm leaning towards a career in surgery, possibly transplant surgery. My research focuses on xenotransplantation, genetically modifying pigs for human transplant. Aside from the normal medical student stuff I'm interested in the ethics of organ allocation and the policy behind the current laws. I love reading all sorts of books and would love to teach someday. I was also actively involved in my school's medical spanish, medical ethics, and medical student book clubs.




Is it Time to #endstep2cs? An Interview with the Initiative Founder and a USMLE Representative

Published by Joe Ladowski

In March 2016, six medical students at Harvard Medical School launched #endstep2cs, an initiative aimed to garner support for the termination of the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 2 Clinical Skills (CS) that is currently administered to medical students prior to graduation. This past week, we talked with Christopher Henderson, one of the organization founders, and Dr. Peter Katsufrakis, the senior vice president for assessment programs at the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME), to discuss the faults and merits of both the CS exam and the student-led initiative to end it.

MedSchool Financials: Transportation, by Joseph Chiweshe, MD, MPH

Published by Joseph Chiweshe, MD, MPH

On the journey to become a physician, your education will take you to a lot of different places, both geographically and developmentally. Throughout this process, the cost of transportation is an important and worthwhile factor to monitor. Transportation can become a large a part of your budget; however, there are several things you can do and steps you can take to keep it well within your budget during the time spent in medical school and beyond.

Perspective (2016)

Published by Nicole Cifra

When I started neuroanatomy, I was fascinated by the brain. However, I found it difficult to keep track of the where structures were spatially when there were so many different ways to dissect it. To help myself study, I drew a coronal section alongside an intact hemisphere so I could better appreciate the structures in relationship to one another. When I spend any amount of time creating a piece of artwork, I retain it much more quickly, as if my hands are translating it into my memory.

Orientation Speaker

Published by Kate Bock

Medical students’ place in the hierarchy of medicine means we are routinely restricted in what we can (or should) say. That taboo list includes our own transformation — despite being only one of thousands impacted by medical education, all too often we are left alone to process how it changes us. Review of Systems is a series of down-to-earth slam poems by Kate Bock, putting words to the unspoken process not just of learning medicine, but of becoming a doctor.

Hitting the “Sweet Spot” in Life

Published by Neha Kumar

To me, hitting a tennis ball is a symbol of how we as medical students perceive mental health: we know very well what habits are good for us and which are not. We know that we need eight to nine hours of sleep each night, a healthy diet and regular exercise. We know to engage in positive thinking, to nurture healthy relationships while cutting out toxic ones and to take time to “take care of ourselves” even when we are at our most stressed.

The Beginning or the End?

Published by Omar Aldaas

The beginning of third year clerkships is an exciting time for medical students. The first step of my licensing exam was finally behind me and now I could focus on applying the knowledge into a clinical context. I had heard a lot of stories about the third year of medical school. Perhaps what stood out most were the reflections shared with me when people witnessed death for the first time. From full codes to hospice patients, something about death seemed to draw out the most intense emotions and thoughts that can change lives forever. Although I always try to do the best for my patients, I knew it was inevitable that I would come across death. I wondered what profound thoughts and reflections I would have when I experienced it for the first time. It wasn’t too long before I was called to do CPR in the emergency department and I found it did not play out as I expected.

Anatomy as Art: Installation #10

Published by Nita Chen, MD

At Albany Medical College, upon our orientation to gross anatomy, we are asked to draw our feelings on blank index cards prior to entering the cadaver laboratory. As we progress through the year, our sentiments regarding anatomy may remain the same, or may change, and these drawings allow us to look back at this milestone we crossed as budding medical students.

The UK Junior Doctors’ Contract: An Insight into Industrial Action

Published by Grace Hatton

Recent announcements by the British government that a revised contract on junior physicians’ salary and working hours across England will be imposed has come under intense scrutiny. Criticisms from the national workforce to media figures and opposing party politicians have ranged from accusations of compromising patient safety to ensuing longer working hours with reduced pay as compared to the current scheme for around 55,000 affected doctors. But the retaliating strikes on part of the National Health Service (NHS) workforce in protest have certainly proved controversial.

Seeing Past the Unicorns In Medicine, by Valencia Walker, MD

Published by Valencia Walker, MD

As an “underrepresented minority” in medicine, my personal experiences of mistreatment while navigating the challenges of pursuing this career are mostly invisible to the rest of society, but I know that they are far from mythical or unique. In fact, my experiences harmonize perfectly with the tales of so many African-American physicians before me and even in the accounts of the students I currently mentor. Everyone asks, “Aren’t things different now for African-Americans?” Yes. But, are they better? Sadly, not exactly.

Valencia Walker, MD Valencia Walker, MD (1 Posts)

Physician Guest Writer

David Geffen School of Medicine UCLA

Dr. Valencia Walker is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine UCLA. She is a practicing neonatologist with research interests focused on optimizing maternal-child health for local and international communities. As the Associate Medical Director of the UCLA Santa Monica NICU and Medical Director for UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center Newborn Nursery, Dr. Walker works as the physician champion for several projects designed to improve outcomes for the mother-infant dyad. Dr. Walker also travels to countries such as India, Guatemala, Tanzania and Haiti for medical mission trips. She has been dedicated to providing care for sick children and working in collaboration with local health officers to improve medical infrastructures as well as address the social, economic and health inequities within these countries.

Dr. Walker sits on a national committee for the Association of American Medical Colleges that is charged with crafting the design and implementation of policy statements that shape the country’s narrative surrounding barriers to better health outcomes in the United States. At the state level, she is Chairperson of the Ethnic Medical Organizations Section of the California Medical Association (CMA) and previously served on the CMA’s Science and Public Health Reference Committee which advises and guides the policies supported by the CMA for the welfare of patients and providers. Additionally, Dr. Walker is the current president for the Association of Black Women Physicians (ABWP). The mission of ABWP is to advocate for achieving health equity across traditionally underserved communities and eliminating the health disparities that exist.