The Student National Medical Association (SNMA) chapter of the Burnett School of Medicine took over the school’s Instagram account to present programming for Black History Month. Follow our IG account here. Watch a video of the takeover here.
March is Women’s History Month, which commemorates and encourages the study, observance and celebration of the vital role of women in American history. This month, we celebrate the women who were pioneers in medicine.
Antonia Novello, M.D.
In 1990, Antonia Novello, M.D., became the first woman and first Hispanic to become surgeon general of the United States. As a child in Puerto Rico, Novello suffered from a congenital digestive condition that her family could barely afford to treat. That experience motivated her to study medicine and ensure that care was available to all. She earned her medical degree from the University of Puerto Rico and was committed to battling health inequities among the poor and minority groups. As surgeon general, Novello chose to focus on protecting the young and the vulnerable, addressing such issues as underage drinking and cigarette ads that targeted children. In 2019, Dr. Novello visited our medical school to speak with students and faculty. On teaching future physicians, Dr. Novello said: “If one can teach them that medicine can be tech savvy, but at the same time empathetic, respect of the patient, communication, and caring about your human beings, what a way to go.”
Elizabeth Blackwell, M.D.
Elizabeth Blackwell, M.D., said she turned to medicine after a close friend who was dying suggested she would have been spared her worst suffering if her physician had been a woman. In 1849, she became the first woman in the United States to be granted an M.D. degree from New York’s Geneva Medical College. She supported medical education for women and helped many other women’s careers. She also published several important books including Medicine as a Profession For Women in 1860 and Address on the Medical Education of Women in 1864. Dr. Blackwell wrote that she was initially repelled by the idea of studying medicine: She “hated everything connected with the body, and could not bear the sight of a medical book… My favourite studies were history and metaphysics, and the very thought of dwelling on the physical structure of the body and its various ailments filled me with disgust.”
Rebecca Lee Crumpler, M.D.
Rebecca Lee Crumpler, M.D., was admitted to the New England Female Medical College in 1860. When she graduated in 1864, Crumpler was the first African American woman in the United States to earn an M.D. degree, and the only African American woman to graduate from the New England Female Medical College, which merged with Boston University School of Medicine in 1873. In her groundbreaking 1883 publication, A Book of Medical Discourses: In Two Parts, Dr. Crumpler wrote: “It may be well to state here that, having been reared by a kind aunt in Pennsylvania, whose usefulness with the sick was continually sought, I early conceived a liking for, and sought every opportunity to relieve the sufferings of others.”
Susan LaFlesche Picotte, M.D.
When she was a child, Susan LaFlesche Picotte, M.D., witnessed a white doctor refusing to care for a Native American woman. In 1889, Picotte, the daughter of an Omaha chief, graduated from the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania at the top of her class and became the first Native American woman in the United States to earn a medical degree. Upon returning home in 1890, she worked as a government physician responsible for 1,200 to 1,300 people. Dr. Picotte worked 15-hour days, yet she earned only half of what others in that position received. She was a strong advocate for political reform. In 1906, she led a delegation to Washington to lobby for prohibiting alcohol on the reservation. Dr. Picotte also became a county health officer and lobbied the state legislature to improve public health laws. In 1913, she opened a hospital in the remote reservation town of Waterhill, Nebraska.
Velma P. Scantlebury, M.D., FACS
Velma P. Scantlebury, M.D., FACS, knew she wanted to physician when she was 8 years old. In 1969, her parents moved from Barbados to New York City to give her a better chance to become a doctor. She earned her medical degree from Columbia University in New York City and became the first female African American transplant surgeon in the United States in 1989. She recently retired from ChristianaCare’s Kidney Transplant Program where she served as the Associate Director, and Director of Outpatient Clinics. Dr. Scantlebury is currently a Professor at the Burnett School of Medicine. “We have a lot of things to be grateful for when it comes to those who have paved the way before us,” Dr. Scantlebury said. “But when I think about the social inequities we have to realize that there are opportunities out there and that we all have potential. We all need to have that potential fostered and developed and recognized and given an opportunity to excel.”
Fourth-year medical students Briana Collins, Rachel Rice and Shelby Wildish shared their experiences during their Global Health Elective in India on the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU’s Instagram account last week. The students, accompanied by faculty member Hari Raja, M.D., are participating in a monthlong observation of Bangalaore Baptist Hospital. Watch a video here.
FORT WORTH – Nearly 100 people came out to support and uplift Black men in Fort Worth during the launch of the second annual Barbershop Talk Therapy series led by Antonio Igbokidi, MS-3, at Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University.
“I think today was profound,” Igbokidi said. “We had so many testimonies. We had so many young people.”
The mental health initiative, which was held at Lake Como House of Fades Barbershop on Sunday, February 5, is a collaboration between the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU and the FWISD Family Action Center. Igbokidi partnered with the barbershop to give men of color a safe space to discuss mental health with their peers.
Over the course of three hours, Black men were able to come in and get a free haircut, while discussing topics close to their heart.
“It think it was everything it was supposed to be for an event that uplifts, inspires and empowers the community,” Igbokidi said.
Outside the barbershop, patrons were able to get free health screenings courtesy of the Black Heart Association. About 50 men were able to get screened and learn more about their health at the event.
“I hope that more people can be able to experience this magic that comes with the Barbershop Talk Therapy project,” Igbokidi said.
FORT WORTH – Tall concrete pillars, which will form the historic arches associated with Texas Christian University architecture, are lining the sky in Fort Worth’s Near Southside neighborhood.
Episode two of “On Site: Construction of the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University with Founding Dean, Stuart D. Flynn, M.D.,” details the concrete work of Linbeck construction crews on the new four-story medical education building.
Brooke Ruesch, Director of Project Development at TCU, gives a tour of the the Learning Studio, Arcade, elevators and café that will be located on the first floor. The building will support 240 medical students and hundreds of faculty and staff by summer 2024.
FORT WORTH – Mei Mei Edwards, who studied music as an undergrad before attending medical school, has experienced first-hand how music impacts patients.
“I’ve seen loved ones utilizing the patients’ favorite rock song to kind of bring them back and ground them in the moment,” said Edwards, a fourth-year medical student at the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University.
The Burnett School of Medicine students recently learned about research that highlights the impact music can have on patient care from a world-renowned physician and musicologist.
Patricia Caicedo, M.D., Ph.D., who has interdisciplinary training as a musician, musicologist, physician and interest in technology, visited Fort Worth to talk about her new book, “We Are What We Listen To: The Impact of Music On Individual and Social Health” with medical students in October.
“The lecture addressed this ancient connection between music and medicine,” Dr. Caicedo said. “How music affects our well-being, our cognitive health and how it also helps us connect with communities.”
Edwards said music brings in the pscho-social impact of a patient, a human being. “To me that was a very powerful aspect of Dr. Caicedo’s presentation of how music and even memory kind of come together,” she said.
Dr. Caicedo’s visit was a part of the THRIVE: Medical Student Well-Being Curriculum at the medical school. THRIVE is the longitudinal, integrated and collaborative system of instruction, learning and support for the School of Medicine students focusing on their well-being.
The goal of THRIVE is the continued development of knowledge, skills and attitudes about wellness for the medical students, according to Craig Keaton, Ph.D., Assistant Director of THRIVE: Medical Student Well-Being Curriculum.
“We’re looking into all the different ways we can build into the curriculum the development of the student as an individual personally and professionally,” Keaton said.
FORT WORTH – A balanced diet of fruits, vegetables and protein is just as necessary now for second-year medical student Isabella Amado as it was when she competed as a gymnast in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
“Back when I was training, it improved my training and now I think it will improve my studying,” Amado said. “I love vegetables as a meal and finding alternate ways of getting protein in is important because you feel better after you eat and it’s lighter on your stomach.”
For medical students the rigors of medical school can be time consuming, expensive and physically and mentally taxing. Like student-athletes, medical students need to maintain a healthy diet to ensure their minds are in peak form.
Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University is exploring ways to help medical students learn to budget while still eating healthy. The Office of Admissions, Outreach and Financial Education hosted a session with the Culinary Medicine Student Interest Group called “Meal Prep On A Budget” in which a culinary dietician demonstrated how one ingredient can be used for several meals.
“This isn’t something that they think about all that often,” said Chris Gilbody, Director of Financial Education and Scholarship at Burnett School of Medicine. “For them to be able to think about this, not only for themselves but also their future patients, is something I’m really excited about.”
The students learned how to make four different meals using chick peas as the main ingredient from Dixya Bhattarai, MS, RD/LD, a culinary dietician at Food, Pleasure & Health.
The dishes were chick pea and spinach curry, chick pea salad, Tabbouleh and chick pea fajitas. Using chick peas as the star of each dish showed the students the versatility of plant-based meals, according to Bhattarai.
“If you’re looking for protein, you could make it with salad, or stew, or mix it with another salad like Tabbouleh to bulk up the meal,” Bhattarai said. “It’s versatile, nutritious and actually very budget friendly.”
Data released in October 2021 shows the average cost of groceries per month for a U.S. college student is $260, according to the Education Data Initiative. In Texas, the average cost for groceries per month is $191.
“I try to keep my budget low so I don’t go over my spending limit,” Amado said. “I give myself little allowances for the month so trying to stay within that budget is very important.”
Creating a manageable budget for food expenses can sometimes be challenging for medical students coming to Texas from all across the country, Gilbody added.
“A lot of the time different foods that are available in Texas might be different from what they are used to at home,” Gilbody said. “A lot of times you’ll turn to cooking yourself for a lot of those different inexpensive options that are healthy.”
As Amado continues her medical school journey to become a physician, she appreciates the additional support and advice.
“It’s all 100% super useful,” Amado said. “All the advice from financial [education] and how to stay in budget and use your resources has been super helpful. I’ve used it a ton so I’m really thankful they host these events.”
FORT WORTH – For medical students, stepping into a patient’s shoes can be an eye-opening experience.
Medical students at Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University were able to experience firsthand what it would be like to be a domestic violence or abuse patient navigating through the U.S. healthcare system.
“By having situations like this where I can see some of the warning signs and things that happen, I could maybe identify those a little quicker in the hospital setting,” said Brandon Mallory, MS-4 at Burnett School of Medicine, who one day hopes to practice emergency medicine.
About one third (27%) of women aged 15-49 years-old worldwide have reported experiencing some form of physical and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner, according to data published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in October 2021.
However, in recent years domestic violence has not been viewed as a healthcare problem in the United States as much as it should be, according to Ken Hopper, M.D., associate professor and physician development coach at Burnett School of Medicine at TCU.
“And it has enormous costs both emotionally for the individual that’s being abused, for the abuser and our society,” Dr. Hopper said.
During Phase 3 of their medical education at the Burnett School of Medicine, medical students go through a 16-week Preparation For Practice (P4P) course. P4P puts an emphasis on 10 themes the medical school has designated as critical to a well-rounded physician practicing 21st-century medicine.
The P4P curriculum prepares students for multidimensional aspects of the medical profession. It includes topics such as business of medicine, medical ethics, healthcare policy and advocacy, patient safety, informatics, population health, team-based care and the role of the physician as educator.
For the domestic violence and partner violence session, 60 students were split into groups of two with one student playing the role of the patient and the other as the ‘shadow,’ who silently observes and follows the case. The medical school’s Simulation & Technology classrooms were transformed to represent different places someone experiencing domestic violence would go to get help.
There was a community center, church, support groups, relatives and friends, court, child protective services, workplaces, doctor’s office, homeless shelter, their home with the abuser and a funeral home.
Case Study: 60-year-old woman experiencing domestic violence
Mallory and his partner studied the hypothetical case of a 60-year-old Jewish woman and her husband who have two adult children.
Their relationship started off well when they were in their 30s, but over time, her husband would get angry and become abusive if she didn’t cook for him, clean the house or if she was away from home for what he deemed to be too long. As time passed, he forbid her to work and as they got older, the abuse escalated. The 60-year-old woman finally had enough and sought out help from her Rabbi.
“Her children didn’t want her to leave their dad and even her Rabbi urged her to continue to work on her marriage,” Mallory said.
The 60-year-old woman reached out to a support group that had gun violence survivors. After a few sessions, she felt her domestic abuse at home was not as serious as other types of violence.
“She went back (to her husband) multiple times until it got to a point where he got really aggressive and she called the police and got an order of protection,” Mallory said.
The 60-year-old woman got a new job and tried to restart her life without her husband. However, that road became difficult because her skillset was outdated for many of the jobs available where she lived.
The session helped Mallory understand how his own biases toward domestic violence might need to be recognized before treating future patients suffering from abuse.
“When you think about domestic abuse you tend to think it’s a typically young couple,” Mallory said. “In my head, if someone is abusing you, you wouldn’t stay with them for 30 years. To see that they had this whole life together, it made me realize I need to check my own biases because even if a person is coming in older to check for signs of domestic abuse or to ask how their home life is.”
Giving medical students that perspective is the ultimate goal of the session, Dr. Hopper added.
“They get to experience the difficulties of getting things done when you’re in one of these types of situations,” Dr. Hopper said. “Because you’re wondering who’s going to be your advocate when you start saying someone is doing something like this to you. And to look at the cost and failures that can occur.”
Case Study: 24-year-old woman moves from Ukraine to America after falling in love
Another hypothetical case study involved a 24-year-old Ukrainian woman who answered an ad to be a pen pal with an American man.
The case was followed by Mei Mei Edwards and Charna Kinard, both MS-4s at Burnett School of Medicine.
“She quickly falls in love with him and despite not knowing the English language she decided to move to America and live with him,” Edwards said.
Their relationship went well in the beginning. The couple even got married, but a few years into their marriage the relationship began to sour. The man became jealous of almost any man who looked at the woman, but he directed that anger toward her. His anger spilled over into physical abuse and even rape at one point.
“Not knowing the language in America, she didn’t have any support,” Edwards said. “She tried going to a variety of support groups. She tried going to a shelter but honestly the language barrier became too much.”
The 24-year-old woman sought out interpreters, but still ran into problems communicating with others in America.
“They either dismissed her or gave her poor interpretations of what the doctors might have been saying,” Edwards said. “She could only turn back to her husband and hoped he would get better.”
The relationship never got better. Eventually a domestic dispute between the couple turned deadly. The 24-year-old woman was killed by her husband due to jealously in the case study.
Edwards and Kinard walked into the dimly lit classroom resembling a funeral home. They both sat in front of the woman’s coffin and contemplated what could have been done differently to prevent her death.
“It was very eye-opening because even as a medical student in clinic I can be of assistance or provide a different prospective for my preceptor to ensure our patient’s safety,” Kinard said.
Each room and flash card in the case study revealed the options available to the abuse victim. Before following each new step in her path, the students were given another flash card explaining the thought process into the decisions the woman made.
“You realize that it’s not as simple as the skits that we’ve seen growing up or modules we have to do from one institution to another,” Kinard said. “It’s a lot more involved and often times it’s a lot more hopeless. Sometimes, even when you try your best, the system is not helpful.”
The timing of when this session occurs in Phase 3 is after the medical students have completed their Transition to Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship (TLIC) and have been immersed in hospitals in a variety of settings.
Once they return for this once-a-week session, they’ve seen real-life cases similar to the case studies, Dr. Hopper added.
“I think there will be an appreciation of the hidden cases that we’ve been looking at today,” he said.
FORT WORTH – In August 2022, construction crews broke ground on the new four-story medical education building that will be the future home of the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU in Fort Worth’s Near Southside.
The new video series, “ON SITE: Construction of the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University with Founding Dean, Stuart D. Flynn, M.D.” will follow the construction of the building that will support 240 medical students and hundreds of faculty and staff by summer 2024.
In episode one Dean Flynn is joined by Jason Soileau, Assistant Vice Chancellor of Planning, Design and Construction at TCU, to give an overview of what the building will look like and some of its unique features.
FORT WORTH — For the third year in a row, the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University has received the 2022 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education.
As a recipient of the annual Health Professions HEED Award — a national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion — Burnett School of Medicine will be featured, along with 64 other recipients, in the December 2022 issue of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine.
The Burnett School of Medicine was recognized for a program called “Pathways to White Coats for Men of Color.” The group met in February to view the documentary “Black Men in White Coats,” which was followed by a panel discussion featuring physicians of color, medical students and local high school students. Another initiative was the Diversity and Inclusion Mentoring Network program, which provides an opportunity for medical students and faculty members to develop a mentoring relationship in an informal environment.
“The Health Professions HEED Award process consists of a comprehensive and rigorous application that includes questions relating to the recruitment and retention of students and employees — and best practices for both — continued leadership support for diversity, and other aspects of campus diversity and inclusion,” said Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. “We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a Health Professions HEED Award recipient. Our standards are high, and we look for schools where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being done every day across their campus.”
Medical School Recipients of the 2022 Health Professions HEED Award include:
T. Still University of Graduate Health Sciences
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine
Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
Florida State University College of Medicine
Michigan Medicine University of Michigan Medical School
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
The Medical College of Wisconsin
The Medical University of South Carolina
The Ohio State University College of Medicine
The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix
The University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine New York
UC Davis School of Medicine
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)
University of California Riverside School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine
University of Kentucky, College of Medicine, Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Medicine
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
University of Virginia School of Medicine
UT Southwestern Medical Center
VCOM – Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine
Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine
Weill Cornell Medicine
For more information about the 2022 Health Professions HEED Award, visit insightintodiversity.com.
About Burnett School of Medicine at TCU
The Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth’s M.D. school, opened with a class of 60 students in July 2019. The new allopathic medical school was formed in 2015. The Burnett School of Medicine’s focus on communication, a first-of-its-kind curriculum and the development of Empathetic Scholars® uniquely positions the school to radically transform medical education, improving care for generations.
About INSIGHT Into Diversity
INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine is the oldest and largest diversity publication in higher education today and is well-known for its annual Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award, the only award recognizing colleges and universities for outstanding diversity and inclusion efforts across their campuses. In addition to its online job board, INSIGHT Into Diversity presents timely, thought-provoking news and feature stories on matters of diversity and inclusion across higher education and beyond. Articles include interviews with innovators and experts, as well as profiles of best practices and exemplary programs. Readers will also discover career opportunities that connect job seekers with institutions and businesses that embrace a diverse and inclusive workforce. Current, archived, and digital issues of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine are available online at insightintodiversity.com.