Contributing Writer Emeritus
University of California Irvine School of Medicine
Shaudee is a Class of 2016 medical student at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.
A native Californian, Shaudee earned her BS in biological sciences at the University of California Irvine in 2011. She feels lucky to continue to live in and study medicine at UC Irvine where she can be close to her family and friends with whom she shares a loving bond. An Avid yoga practitioner, Shaudee firmly believes in the power of inner peace and a calm mind as key to health and happiness. She is the founding co-chair of UCI's AMA-MSS chapter and is passionate about health care policy at the local and national level. She continuously strives to educate herself on health policy by interacting with local congressmen and women and advocating for GME funding, and other pertinent issues to medical students. She is also the Co-president of UCI's Family Medicine Interest Group and chair of patient education for the student-run Shifa Health Clinic in Orange County.
My medical school recently hosted a sweet elderly patient to share her experience of living with gout. Mrs. J is a poised, elegant and vibrant lady of 82 years who has the stamina and vitality of a young adult. Her zeal for life and positive attitude—despite the debilitating disease—is contagious. Her openness about her struggles and the challenges she faces as a patient make her an invaluable teacher to us as medical students. She states that …
This past weekend I had the pleasure of talking about Obamacare (or the ACA, the death, the uplifting of America, depending on your stance) with a stranger at a local brewery. He, like many I’ve heard before him, feels that he shouldn’t have to pay for other people’s care (which he already is, in a different way). Not their blood pressure meds for self-induced diabetes, not for oxygen for a 35 pack-year smoker, and not …
It is no secret the US health care model is unsustainable. Costs continue to skyrocket, emergency rooms have become the primary care source for many of the uninsured, and physicians spend 22% of their time on nonclinical paperwork. Amidst the numerous problems and proposed causes, the unpredictable and high cost of health care is an undeniable symptom of a sick health care system. The price of procedures, visits, medications, and hospital stays has become a …
It is probably no surprise to any of in-Training’s readers that health care is changing. On October 1, the health insurance marketplaces opened for business … and then promptly became the victim of the largest Internet traffic jam in recent memory. Obviously, people are looking for a better way (or any way) to afford medical care. It is the job of health care professionals to make sure that their uninsured and underinsured patients are educated …
On October 4 – 5, 2013, the American Medical Association hosted the “Accelerating Change in Medical Education Conference” in Chicago, IL., bringing together leaders in the realm of medical education for discussions aimed at “closing the gap between current physician training and the needs of our evolving health care system.” In attendance were two in-Training editors, Emily Lu and Jarna Shah, who reported on the conference and offer their in-depth medical student perspectives on the …
On October 4 – 5, 2013, the American Medical Association hosted the “Accelerating Change in Medical Education Conference” in Chicago, IL., bringing together leaders in the realm of medical education for discussions aimed at “closing the gap between current physician training and the needs of our evolving health care system.” In attendance were two in-Training editors, Emily Lu and Jarna Shah, who reported on the conference and offer their in-depth medical student perspectives on the …
On October 4 – 5, 2013, the American Medical Association hosted the “Accelerating Change in Medical Education Conference” in Chicago, IL., bringing together leaders in the realm of medical education for discussions aimed at “closing the gap between current physician training and the needs of our evolving health care system.” In attendance were two in-Training editors, Emily Lu and Jarna Shah, who reported on the conference and offer their in-depth medical student perspectives on the …
On October 4 – 5, 2013, the American Medical Association hosted the “Accelerating Change in Medical Education Conference” in Chicago, IL., bringing together leaders in the realm of medical education for discussions aimed at “closing the gap between current physician training and the needs of our evolving health care system.” In attendance were two in-Training editors, Emily Lu and Jarna Shah, who reported on the conference and offer their in-depth medical student perspectives on the …
Atul Nakhasi has been called the most sought-after young man in Iowa—2007 Person of the Year, Campus Kingmaker, you name it—for his game-changing political organizing as president of University of Iowa Democrats during the 2008 presidential election. Atul now oversees 50,000 U.S. medical students as chair of the American Medical Association Medical Student Section (AMA-MSS). I vividly remember the email Atul sent to me during his campaign for chair almost a year ago. He casually …
Editor’s note: This article was originally published here by contributing writer Emily Lu on her blog, Medicine for Change. Like every other health policy nerd out there, I’ve been following the debate over the Oregon Medicaid experiment results about as closely as most Chicagoans followed the Bulls game. For those not up to speed, here’s a quick replay: Due to financial constraints, Oregon was only able to expand Medicaid enrollment by 10,000 in 2008, though many more people were …
Check Twitter. From two blocks away, it was difficult to tell what had happened near the finish line, but the smoke and the movements of the crowd were enough to know that it was time for us to leave. As we hurried home, I sent the above texts, a mere five minutes after the explosions. Concerned, my friend immediately called with the news that not only had I beaten traditional news outlets to the punch, …
Rugged yet breathtakingly subtle, the backdrop of Telluride, Colorado was a boon for our group of medical students to dissect the obstacles we encounter to safely care for our patients. The setting was the 2012 Telluride Patient Safety Roundtable. I, along with nearly 20 other medical students and leaders from prominent patient safety and health care quality organizations, convened to become better advocates for patient safety. This innovative roundtable, in its eighth iteration, sought to immerse upcoming medical professionals in discussions …
Contributing Writer Emeritus
Ohio State University College of Medicine
Dacia Russell is a Class of 2015 medical student at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She comes to medical school with a broad-based background in legal policy and community development. Dacia graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College with a degree in chemistry and a French language citation.
Since college, she has worked in economic development, health policy and law. Dacia earned a law degree at Stanford Law School and her legal training has included an externship at the United States Department of State in the Law Enforcement and Intelligence Division of the Office of the Legal Adviser. She is currently a member of the bar in New York.
Dacia intends to use her advocacy training to advance public policy aimed at improving patient safety and health care delivery. Dacia plans to pursue a career in emergency medicine and health administration.
