Nearly 600 medical students attended this year’s National Medical Student Meeting, which took place June 4-6 in Chicago.
The AMA Medical Student Section (MSS) meeting had something for medical students in each year of medical school, including a residency program director panel, mock residency interviews and discussions on student loans. The section welcomed Raymond Urbanski, MD, founder and chief medical officer for BioPharma Consulting, for a presentation on why new pharmaceutical drugs are so costly. Students also heard from Vin Capone, development executive at Apple, for a talk on technology and medicine.
At the 12th annual AMA-MSS Medical Specialty Showcase on Saturday, 43 specialty societies, 7 other medical fields, and 4 modes of practice represented in the AMA House of Delegates participated. Students received an introduction to these specialties and materials to help them make informed decisions about their careers.
For the first time, the section hosted a clinical skills workshop, including airway management training, blood pressure checks, ultrasounds and suturing.
The AMA-MSS considered 60 items of business and drafted a final reference committee report using testimony presented online via its Virtual Reference Committee. This year’s meeting represented the third implementation of completely virtual testimony. The Virtual Reference Committee received more than 6,500 views and offered the opportunity for all medical student members to provide testimony on the items of business, regardless of whether they were able to attend the meeting.
Finally, on Friday, nearly 50 medical students and physicians participate in a Doctors Back to School™ health and wellness event at Kozminski Community Academy and Daniel Hale Williams Preparatory School as part of the AMA-MSS national service project. Medical students and physicians educated Chicago-area students in fourth through eighth grade about entering the medical profession and making healthy lifestyle choices through fun, interactive games and activities.
2015–2016 AMA-MSS Governing Council members:
- William Pearce, University of South Florida, chair
- Jessica Peterson, Medical College of Wisconsin, vice chair
- Cameron Paterson, University of South Florida, delegate
- Kilby Osborn, Indiana University, alternate delegate
- Poornima Oruganti, Northeast Ohio Medical University, at-large officer
- Trishna Narula, Stanford University, speaker
- Theresa Phan, Texas Tech University, vice speaker
Dina Marie Pitta, University of Wisconsin, will begin her term as medical student representative on the AMA Board of Trustees at the close of the 2015 AMA Annual Meeting.
