It’s absolutely heartbreaking. We continue to face a black maternal mortality crisis in this country. My heart aches. We have to do more.

So lucky to have such an amazing mentor and friend in the Newcomb lab this past year. Nowrin is going to be a phenomenal physician-scientist. x.com/vanderbiltmstp…

Today less than 5% of medical images show dark skin. Lack of representation has the potential to negatively affect the quality of healthcare for communities of color. See #IllustrateChange the library of #BIPOC medical illustrations: illustratechange.com #InsideTheMatch

Interesting talk about T cell exhaustion in cancer from Kaechlab (Sue Kaech) at SIS VUMC_VCI last week. She ended with powerful speech on reproductive freedom and calling on universities to speak out against discriminatory legislation. Love seeing faculty use their platforms like this.

The Supreme Court's decision to strike down affirmative action, including in professional schools, like medical and nursing, will have detrimental consequences on Black health for generations to come. This is about life & death for us. Today, we are only 5% of physicians.

#BREAKING: HUGE NEWS! 🎉🎉🎉 The judge in our Zurawski v. Texas case has ruled IN FAVOR of our plaintiffs, BLOCKING Texas' abortion bans as they apply to dangerous pregnancy complications including fatal fetal diagnoses.

This past June, we had our MSTP retreat at Henry Horton State Park! We introduced the new M1 class, reflected on successes and challenges from the past year, discussed our research with each other, and engaged in some fun-spirited competition!

Had the opportunity to attend the Practical and Sustainable Steps for Addressing Bias in Contraceptive Care session hosted by UCSF's Free the Pill program this weekend with Jeewoo Kim (she/her). Thanks to UCSF and the community organizers for an engaging and educational event!

A reminder that the NEJM recently published a four-site study of gender-affirming hormones for #trans adolescents (N=315). They found improvements in mental health, with physical congruence tracking with those improvements (parallel-process models), suggesting causation.

Where are the reproductive rights activists now? Menstrual health is so critical and should not be political. Where is the AID?? Women's March Minister of Menstruation™️🩸 Physicians for Reproductive Health Center for Reproductive Rights

Thank you Emory School of Medicine, Tina Tian, and SEMSS committee for a great weekend at SEMSS in Atlanta!! And congrats to Neil Chada and Nada for first place presentations! Looking forward to hosting at Vanderbilt MSTP next year.

Life in the MSTP: Many of our four MSTP colleges recently had their family dinners!

It leaves a dearth of time for research. Ob/Gyn has the lowest number of Career Development Awards of any medical field, as below. As a society, we NEED to support women and their doctors before it is too late.

Had an outstanding time at the 2024 AAP/ASCI/APSA JointMeeting in Chicago. Thanks to the Vanderbilt MSTP for the opportunity to share my recent work!

Several members of the Vanderbilt MSTP attended and presented at the annual AAP/ASCI/APSA Joint Meeting April 4th - 7th in Chicago, IL. Read more about their time at the conference here: medschool.vanderbilt.edu/mstp/2024/04/2…

Last month the G2 Class received their extremely important and official M.P. degrees at their Halftime Celebration!

The SEMSS 2024 website (southeasternmdphd.org) is now live! x.com/SEmdphd/status…

Just published this Instragram post, expanding on a Twitter thread I wrote last year on LGBTQ+ rights from an Islamic perspective. 1/

Oral Abstract Deadline has been extended to August 16th! Visit southeasternmdphd.org for more information. Travel awards and poster abstracts remain due on August 16th.