Academic Medicine Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Being Intentional: How Space, Place, and Pace Influence Equity in Workplace-Based Assessment Jan 12, 2026

Show notes

Discussing new research into how the physical and social context of the clinical learning environment shape power dynamics and influence equity in assessment for residents are author Hannah Kakara Anderson, PhD, MBA, Research in Medical Education Committee member Binbin Zheng, PhD, MEd, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Nicole Findlay, MD, MPH. Empowering clinician educators to actively address the forces of space, place, and pace, they argue, can help promote a more equitable learning and assessment environment.

Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.

A Big Deal Jan 05, 2026

Show notes

Our stories make us human and shape the doctors we become. Yet, we rarely let our pasts show from beneath our white coats.

Sydney Katz reflects on how little trainees and attendings know about one another outside of the hospital.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the December 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Presence Beyond Language: A Medical Student's First Day in Clinic Dec 15, 2025

Show notes

Although discussions about language services like interpreters or translators, patient–provider concordance, and linguistic equity merit much greater consideration, I can offer one reflection: the human connection we all share is more important than the languages we do not.

Akila V. Muthukumar reflects on building a connection with patients when using phone interpreter services to communicate.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Denatured Dec 08, 2025

Show notes

When I am in the hospital, there is at least a semblance of humanity. In a room with a patient, there is the possibility of the unexpected. Alone with my computer, there is only the ruthless pursuit of the correct, and the colorful pie chart of my inadequacy.

Anna Dovre reflects on how studying for medical board exams feels like a process of denaturing.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Picturing Practice as a Medical Student Dec 01, 2025

Show notes

As I brought the blade to the patient, I tried to infer the right depth, weight, and speed by matching to my pictured recollection of all the other incisions I had seen—an act, perhaps, akin to Ansel Adams's technique of photographic previsualization.

Benjamin A. Freeman reflects on how studying photography can be beneficial to medical education.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the November 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Reflections After Testifying at an Asylum Hearing Nov 17, 2025

Show notes

My hope is that, by learning to recognize how physicians interface with injustice in systems early in their training, learners will be better prepared to navigate and, when necessary, defy these systems throughout their careers.

Juliana E. Morris reflects on the importance of talking openly with students and involving them in decision-making while volunteering at a medical student-run asylum clinic.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Trust the Process Nov 03, 2025

Show notes

In the years since this experience ... I have sought to encourage trainees and students to reorient their focus from patient outcomes as a referendum on their competency and to focus instead on the process-based thinking preceding them and to try to make space for the mystery between.

Benjamin W. Frush reflects on the perils of an outcome-focused culture in medicine.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the October 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

Transitioning Identities: The Dual Identities of Medical Student Parents Oct 27, 2025

Show notes

Discussing a new study into how medical student parents navigate their dual identities as physicians-in-training and parents are author Emily Carroll, MD, MEHP, Research in Medical Education Committee member Gary Beck Dallaghan, PhD, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Kiani Gardner, PhD. They also explore how medical schools can foster an inclusive learning environment for these learners.

Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.

The "Uninsured" Patient Oct 06, 2025

Show notes

I never saw Andrew after that night, but I think of him often. I hope that our interaction played a small part in getting him the care he needed.

Sujal Manohar reflects on the importance of digging deeper into a patient's social history by expanding past the typical questions.

The essay read in this episode was published in the Teaching and Learning Moments column in the September 2025 issue of Academic Medicine. Read the essay at academicmedicine.org.

The Lure of Lore: How Medical Students Learn to Navigate Interprofessional Interactions Sep 24, 2025

Show notes

Discussing a new study that explores medical student learning during interprofessional interactions in clinical clerkships are author Kelsey Miller, MD, EdM, Research in Medical Education (RIME) Committee member Bonny Dickinson, PhD, MS-HPEd, and AAMC MedEdSCHOLAR Kelvin Pollard, MD. They explore the "lore" about working with other health professionals that medical students learn from their peers during clerkships and how interprofessional interactions shape students' professional identity, autonomy and collaboration skills, and sense of their role on the health care team.

Read the article discussed and access the episode transcript at academicmedicineblog.org.

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