Tag: obesity

Shradha Chhabria Shradha Chhabria (1 Posts)

Contributing Writer

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine in Scranton, Pennsylvania

Shradha is a third year medical student at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine in Scranton, Pennsylvania class of 2022. In 2016, she graduated from Georgetown University with a Bachelor of Science in international health, and is currently pursuing her Masters of Public Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public health in global health and population with a concentration in obesity epidemiology and prevention before she returns to medical school for her M4 year. She enjoys yoga, meditation and cooking in her free time. After graduating medical school, Shradha would like to pursue a career in Obesity Medicine.




Taking a Wider View: A Medical Student’s Perspective on Reforming Obesity Medicine Training

Published by Shradha Chhabria

As physicians, we must work to lift patients up when they are struggling, rather than shaming them into well-being. As Dr. Donald Berwick once noted, it is not always patients’ diagnoses, but their helplessness that kills them. Indeed, the helplessness we instill through our focus on individualism and molecular pathology in the clinical setting will ensure that this epidemic kills millions prematurely and costs billions of dollars. If obesity is a disease caused by society — its inequities, trauma, and expectations — then the solution for obesity should address more than just the patient sitting in front of us.

Physicians’ Role in Addressing Racism

Published by Swetha Tummala

Mercedes drove two hours to the nearest healthcare clinic to get her first physical exam in ten years. I met Mercedes while shadowing a primary care physician, Dr. L. In the clinic, Mercedes divulged to me how nervous she had been driving in – she knew what the meeting held in store. Her fears were confirmed: just five minutes into her exam, Dr. L advised her, “Mercedes, you have to lose weight.”

Swetha Tummala Swetha Tummala (1 Posts)

Contributing Writer

Boston University School of Medicine

Swetha is a first-year medical student at Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, MA class of 2024. In 2020, she graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Arts in medical sciences. She enjoys singing, playing the ukulele, and baking in her free time.