September is Women in Medicine Month
Promoting gender equity and eliminating the inequities in compensation and career advancement that physicians can face is a longstanding goal of ACP. As we enter Women in Medicine Month, we are pleased to showcase the experiences and accomplishments of female medical students and highlight contributions by our members to the advancement of women in medicine.
ACP believes that addressing the barriers that women in medicine face is essential for the internal medicine community to benefit from the full potential of women physicians in the workforce. We encourage all members to watch our Women in Medicine webinars, learn more about ACP’s position on gender equity, and get involved in your ACP chapter or your medical school’s Internal Medicine Internist Group to support local Women in Medicine initiatives.
Sincerely,
Darilyn V. Moyer, MD, FACP, FRCP, FIDSA, FAMWA
ACP Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer
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Feature
How to Hire Millennials
(from the July 20, 2022, ACP Hospitalist)
A hospital's culture was a bigger factor in taking or keeping a job than pay or potential for advancement, according to a recent study of hospitalists born after 1982.
I.M. Internal Medicine
Spotlight: Tara Shrout Allen, MD, MSc
Read about Tara Shrout Allen, MD, MSc, and her path to becoming a physician-scientist as a first-generation college student and physician from a small town in Kentucky.
Council of Student Members (CSM) Spotlight
Women in Medicine: Milestones and Progress Yet to Be Made
I matriculated into medical school in the fall of 2020. That year, women made up 53.8% of the entering class at US MD schools and 54.1% of matriculants at US DO schools (5, 6). Despite the increased numbers of women in medical school cohorts, the legacy of its predominantly male origins continues to perpetuate harmful stereotypes and creates limitations and inequalities for female medical students, residents, and attending physicians.
Medical Student Perspective
The Magic of Children's Hospitals: A Naive Perspective of a Third-Year Medical Student
The pit in my stomach was growing larger with each step I took as I walked ever closer and closer to the front door of the children's hospital where I was going to begin my pediatric clerkship. As a third-year medical student, I often find myself uncertain about my role on the medical team, insecure about the depth of my medical knowledge and whether the residents find my presence annoying or helpful.
Advocacy Update
Proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2023 Includes Positive Changes for Internal Medicine Physicians
(from the August 12, 2022, ACP Advocate)
The ƹϵεapp is pleased that the new proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for 2023 adopts many of its recommendations about better recognizing the worth of primary care physicians in the U.S. health care system.
Read the full article in ACP Advocate.
The ACP Advocate is a bi-weekly e-newsletter that provides ACP members with news about public policy issues affecting internal medicine and patient care.
ACP Position Paper
(from the July 2022, Annals of Internal Medicine)
A new policy paper in Annals of Internal Medicine, Reforming Physician Payments to Achieve Greater Equity and Value in Health Care, calls out the current physician payment system for inadequately addressing socioeconomic factors that impact the health outcome of their patients. The paper offers recommendations on how the physician payment system should be reformed to better support health equity.
Read the full article in .
ACP public policy papers summarize and dissect published research and discussion on current issues involving clinical practice, medical education, bioethics, and health care financing and delivery, and make specific recommendations for internists, patients, and policy makers. Read about ACP's public policy development process.
Analyzing Annals
A Longitudinal Study of COVID-19 Sequelae and Immunity: Baseline Findings and Understanding and Improving Recovery From COVID-19
A substantial proportion of persons who develop COVID-19 experience postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). This article reports baseline findings from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study that seeks to characterize the risk factors, clinical findings, laboratory features, and natural history of PASC. The accompanying editorial discusses the need for research to help us understand this condition and the importance of not allowing objective testing to overshadow patient experience as we gain a better understanding of PASC.
Annals of Internal Medicine is the premier internal medicine academic journal published by the ƹϵεapp (ACP). It is one of the most widely cited and influential specialty medical journals in the world.
Winning Abstracts
Medical Student Non-Modifiable Risk Factors and USMLE Step 1 Exam Scores
Females, people of Color, and nontraditional students have been shown to score significantly lower than their Caucasian, male counterparts on Step 1 (1,2). A passing score is required, however, residencies have been utilizing Step 1 scores to screen out applicants. A study of Internal Medicine residencies found that African Americans were 3 times less likely to be interviewed when Step 1 was used to screen applicants (3).
Want to have your abstract featured here? ACP holds a National Abstracts Competition as part of the ACP Internal Medicine Meeting every year. Find out more at ACP Online.
Subspecialty and Combined Training Careers
Rheumatology
Rheumatology is the subspecialty of internal medicine that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of medical diseases of the joints, muscles, and connective tissues. Although traditionally thought of as dealing primarily with joint diseases such as arthritis, physicians trained in rheumatology (“rheumatologists”) possess expertise in evaluating and managing a wide spectrum of disorders related to the musculoskeletal system, including systemic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases that may also involve other organ systems.
See all the career pathways open to internal medicine doctors and explore a “day-in-the-life” of an IM specialist/subspecialist at the bottom of our “Medical Student Career Path” page.
Bipolar Disorder
Bipolar disorder affects approximately 2% of U.S. adults and is the most expensive mental health condition for commercial insurers nationwide. Rates of bipolar disorder are elevated among persons with depression, anxiety disorders, and substance use disorders—conditions frequently seen by primary care clinicians.
Get Involved
Apply to Be an Intern in ACP's Washington, DC Office
The 2023 Health Policy Internship application cycle is now open until Oct. 31. The internship provides a multifaceted opportunity for trainees to learn about the legislative process, health policy, and advocacy in organized medicine. Learn more.
Council of Student Members Call for Nominations
The Council of Student Members (CSM) is currently seeking candidates to fill vacant seats for 2023-24. Nominations are due by November 1, 2022. Questions? Contact ACP staff. Learn more.
IMIG Event Inspiration
EKG Reading Workshop
Last summer, internal medicine interest group members at the Warren Albert Medical School of Brown University held an EKG reading workshop led by one of the school's cardiologists. The subspecialist ran through different tracings and gave tips and tricks for reading EKGs. Over 30 students attended: MS1s interested in clinical skills and MS2s studying for their cardiology block. See more event ideas.
Chapter Chatter
The physicians in the ACP Texas Chapter Women in Medicine have been busy! Committee co-chairs Sarah Candler, MD, MPH, FACP and Kimberly Sims, MD, FACP, implemented a Women in Medicine (WIM) #IMProud social media campaign to highlight women in the profession.
They also created engagement opportunities such as a quarterly virtual meeting, “‘The Women in Medicine (WIM) Nightcap Conversations.” Last December's meeting was about mentorship and began with a virtual mixology lesson for attendees featuring . Dr. Sims discussed the difference between mentor, sponsor, and coach and concluded with breakout rooms and moderated discussion.
The membership of ACP is divided into 85 chapters and regions, each uniquely tailored to the needs and interests of its members. See what events are coming up in your local chapter.
“Quiz Me!” Question
Test your medical knowledge each month with questions from The Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program® (MKSAP).
A 25-year-old woman is evaluated for a 6-month history of dyspepsia associated with early satiety, occasional epigastric burning, rare nausea, and postprandial bloating and belching. She has no melena or weight loss. She was born in the United States, has not recently traveled outside the country, and has no family history of gastrointestinal cancer.
The Medical Knowledge Self-Assessment Program® (MKSAP) has been the “go-to” resource for board prep and lifelong learning since 1967. Learn more.
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