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Nclude

By Katelin Mirkin, M2

Nclude's first lunch talk with Dr. Melanie Rak, attending physician of physical medicine and rehabilitation and pediatric rehabilitation medicine at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

M1 year offered us priceless opportunities: how to interact with physicians, patients, each other, and even cadavers. But it left out one crucial group: people with different physical and mental abilities. A group of students noticed this and sought to find more ways to interact and improve communication, interpersonal skills, and understanding with these members of our community. That's how one of Feinberg's newest student groups — Nclude — was born.

Nclude is dedicated to reaching out to people of all abilities and encouraging students to contribute to society at all phases of their medical careers. Student members want to serve and understand our entire community.

Every month, Nclude partners with the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago's Caring for Kids program to provide "Teen Night" and "Step Up and Chow Down" for a group of kids with a wide range of physical and mental abilities. "Step Up and Chow Down" pairs volunteers with participants to engage in a fun exercise to demonstrate how easy it is to stay in shape. Afterward, participants learn how to make a healthy snack in a cooking workshop.

Other past Nclude activities include water skiing and visiting a water park with RIC kids, in addition to raising money for Special Olympics by plunging into the freezing depths of Lake Michigan in the dead of winter.

To view all the student organizations, visit Infoplex.

Running Club

By Jay Sarthy, M2

We did it! — Twenty-one Feinberg medical students ran in the 2010 Chicago Marathon on October 10. For most, it was their first time. Here are a few of the students pictured with a staff member and two faculty members who also took up the challenge. (front row, l to r): Berna Jacobson, Dr. Andrea Baumgartner, Erin Unterbrink, Kimberly Everett, Zach Bay, Renee Banakis, Diana Sidelko, Christine O’Conor, Devang Amin, Brandon Yim; (2nd row, l to r): Dr. John Franklin, Kelly Walker, Andrew Su, Beth Schweighofer, Jason Sandberg, Caleb Hsieh, Arif Jivan, Melissa Weinrobe, Betty Kong and Ye Yuan.

The all-consuming lifestyle of a medical student provides little time for maintaining personal health and meeting new people. Since time is a major constraint for participating in activities, it is important that the things we commit to provide tangible benefits while not becoming overwhelming. The Running Club strives to maximize opportunities for getting in shape, making new friends, and relieving stress.

We meet every Wednesday afternoon at the track on Chicago Avenue. We currently have approximately 20 members who have divided themselves into groups based on times and distances they are comfortable running, so we can incorporate athletes of all abilities. Moreover, working in groups enhances commitment to running, and provides an opportunity to interact with students outside of an assigned college and class.

We are planning to coordinate participation in 5k, 10k, and half-marathons around the city of Chicago.

New this year, we sponsored a sub-group as a valuable resource for the 21 students who were training for and ran the Chicago Marathon together in October. We hosted an event with Dr. George Chiampas (the medical director of the Chicago Marathon), who discussed common medical problems associated with marathon running. In addition, we hosted several other talks related to marathon running, and in particular, training for the marathon over the summer in the dynamic climate of the Windy City.

To view all the student organizations, visit Infoplex.

American Medical Women’s Association

By Jennifer Hoffmann, M2

The American Medical Women's Association and Women's Faculty Organization co-sponsored Feinberg's most successful mentoring tea event to date.

The American Medical Women's Association (AMWA) has been working to strengthen ties between female medical students and faculty. We have hosted dinners, teas, and panel events, bringing faculty and students together to discuss a range of topics, from how to choose a specialty to how to balance work and family life. Our most recent tea was a great networking event, with more than 80 students and 15 faculty members in attendance.

For AMWA, mentoring goes in both directions. Not only do AMWA students learn from those with more experience, but we also make it a point to give back to those women who will be following in our paths. Our current efforts focus on increasing interest in the medical profession among underserved high school girls. Through the Oncofertility Saturday Academy program, AMWA members volunteer to teach girls from a Chicago science charter school how to perform physical examination skills. Also, we empower the girls to take control of their own health.

AMWA Co-presidents Jennifer Hoffmann (left) and Joelle Straehla spearheaded planning for the annual tea event.

Another important goal for AMWA is women's health advocacy. Last spring, we had a panel of ovarian cancer survivors talk to medical students to increase our awareness of the disease. In October as part of Intimate Partner Violence Prevention month, we hosted a series of small-group sessions, lunch talks, and outreach events, including a self defense class for AMWA members and a 5K walk/run to support Apna Ghar, a shelter for South Asian victims of domestic violence.

To support our initiatives, we have held several fundraisers. Family and friends of medical students are encouraged to buy "exam care packages," which include baked goods, school supplies, gift cards, and personalized notes that the students receive before each exam. Also, family and friends are encouraged to buy our "Women in Medicine: Just What the Doctor Ordered" T-shirts.

The exam care packages and T-shirts are available for purchase via PayPal on our website:
https://www.infoplex.northwestern.edu/groups/AMWA/fundraising.html.

To view all the student organizations, visit Infoplex.

Student National Medical Association (SNMA)

By Krys Foster, M2

SNMA members attend the regional and national SNMA conferences every year and our chapter collaborates with SNMA chapters throughout the Chicagoland area for events.

SNMA is an organization whose mission is to provide support for medical students of color by focusing on their needs, concerns, and overall well-being related to the field of medicine. We also work to improve awareness of the culturally sensitive needs of a diverse population amongst our colleagues.

SNMA-Feinberg Chapter has hosted a number of health disparities lunch talks, fundraisers for health relief efforts, and works closely with the office of Minority and Cultural Affairs (now the Office of Diversity) to support programming in line with our goals. Every year SNMA hosts the Health Professions Recruitment and Exposure Program (HPREP), a Saturday mentorship program that exposes about 25 high school students to health-related fields through workshops in essay writing, problem-based learning, anatomy lab, and basic physical exam skills. Our plan for next year is to expand this program to include pre-med college students as well.

We also participate in a number of city, regional, and national events. Our members attend the regional and national SNMA conferences every year (this year it was in Chicago!), and our chapter collaborates with SNMA chapters throughout the Chicagoland area for events, including our recent successful "Short and Sweet" Speed Dating Fundraiser. Upcoming are the Spring Fling party to raise money for HPREP Scholarships and an end-of-the year Ice Cream Social for the entire Northwestern community to raise money to purchase school supplies for a local elementary school.

To view all the student organizations, visit Infoplex.

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