AMSA Alumni Connector
Issue #3 – February 2022
Hello AMSA Alumni!
Now more than ever the medical community and our society needs innovative and caring thinkers such as you! With the background that we have as alumni of the American Medical Student Association we know what it takes to create good change. We know how to get into that “good trouble” that the late great John Lewis spoke so fervently about. Step one to create the change that we want to see in our society is to vote for individuals who we believe will make a difference. Whether it is gender, racial, sexual equality and equity and so much more. We must stand up as physicians, especially as AMSA trained physicians, for every single one of our patients regardless of their background.
The COVID pandemic has highlighted so many of the disparities that exist in our society. Disparities that AMSA has a long history of fighting to end. We must use this opportunity to say no more, and to make the change that should have been made decades and decades ago. Our society had fallen into this illusion that racism and many despicable things of the past were no more; at least that is how the sentiment felt in our country. We have seen a disproportionate amount of people of color who have died during this pandemic. There have been protests urging for racial equality around the death of George Floyd. We have heard the persistent voices of the LGBTQIA+ community continuing to say I am here, I am human, and I am not going anywhere. Now is the time that we must look forward, and not be afraid to look back so that we do not repeat the errors that have led to the harm of so many of our brothers and sisters.
We have seen over the last five to seven years a complete guttural reaction to the election of our first African-American President Barack Obama. It is of no surprise as an African-American individual myself that a country that has a history so deep rooted in racism has responded this way. However, as physicians not only can we continue to push the envelope when it comes to our clinical practice, we can do that as well outside of the clinic. That is why this year during the 2022 midterm elections, just as we did in the 2020 elections, we must show up and turn out. We also must educate our neighbors, our friends, and our loved ones on how this process works. People may have learned about this process in their high school government classes, but far too many at this point feel disenfranchised and that the government is not going to do anything for them. We also know that after we vote the game doesn’t stop there we must hold the individuals that we place in office accountable.
At this point in time it is impossible to ignore how policy and legislation can advance our society. I am calling on all AMSA alumni to stand up and step out and use their voice not only to cast their vote, but to encourage others to cast a vote as well in 2022, and beyond. It would be wonderful if we could collectively support our Med Out the Vote Campaign (MOTV), along with VotER, to do this work. These two entities helped so many individuals get prepared to vote in 2020, we must utilize them again in 2022 and Med Out the Vote!
- Register to Vote &/or Request Absentee Ballots
- Find Election Dates & Deadlines to Request & Return Absentee Ballots
If you’d like to learn more or get involved email me at alumni@amsafoundation.org
Updates and opportunities. |
Stand Against Racist Threats Directed at HBCUs and Anti-racist Doctors
This year Black History Month began with over a dozen racially motivated bomb threats targeting Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Then, in Boston, neo-Nazis targeted two physicians working to make healthcare more equitable for people of color.
Please read and share this statement released by the AMSA Board of Trustees, AMSA Call to America: Stand Against Racist Threats Directed at HBCUs and Anti-racist Doctors.
Cyber self-defense training: Self-protection against doxxing and harassment
Threats, harassment and doxxing of medical students, our physician colleagues—now one in four are harassed on social media, and public health workers and health officers are facing at alarming rates for doing their crucial work must stop.
Join us for cyber-security training for physicians and medical students: Harm Reduction & Self-Protection: Doxxing & Harassment on Social Media, March 31 at 7:30pm Eastern.
RSVP FOR CYBER SELF-DEFENSE
AMSA Alumni Reunion, in person
We’ll be hosting an AMSA Alumni and OATs reunion in conjunction with AMSACon 2022 on April 9 just outside Washington, D.C.!
SIGN UP TO SAVE THE DATE
Alumni spotlight. |
In this Alumni Action Spotlight we highlight Richard Bruno, past AMSA Health Care for All Campaign Chair, and co-founder of AMSA’s new Advocacy Coaching program, is a Family & Preventive Medicine physician, Portland, Oregon.
Richard reminds us from 2015 to 2020, we saw a six-fold increase in the number of Americans dying annually of fentanyl overdoses (from 9,580 to 56,516 people), and shares today, in Portland fentanyl is frequently being cut into the heroin supply (fentanyl is 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin).
Some of Richards’ patients complain that they can quickly tell if their supply has been tainted because it hits them hard and wears off quickly. At his clinic, they started offering fentanyl test strips as a pilot in some of their most at-risk programs (like our Hepatitis C street outreach program that offers dried blood spot testing for HCV).
In the first month of rollout, they found that these fentanyl test strips were being distributed to dozens of people who wanted to inform themselves before using. Along with their messaging of going slow, not using alone, and testing their supply, they are implementing a successful harm reduction strategy to help save lives and make recovery services accessible.
They hope to help other clinics who are interested in distributing fentanyl test strips to their patients who may be at risk. It should be noted that fentanyl test strips are not considered approved for use in CLIA waived facilities (so we give them to patients to self-test their own drug supply), and that testing methamphetamine for fentanyl is not advised due to often inaccurate results.
Find Richard on Twitter: @richardbrunomd. (Have a suggestion for the AMSA Alumni Action Spotlight? Send info we can feature to Becky Martin at alumni@amsa.org.)
Explore art and appreciation. |
Explore the AMSA Art & Appreciation for Abortion Providers Project, marking 49 years of legal abortion in the United States. New art and expressions of appreciation will be posted each day until March 9, and be accompanied by facts about abortion and suggestions for actions you can take, and share, to help protect and expand abortion access.
Share your expertise. |
Please consider sharing your expertise with future physicians, via in-person or virtual opportunities. To do so, you can fill out a quick update form here.
