American Medical Students Association Recent Events

Shahram Ahari is a former drug rep turned physician-in-training who has given a talk at Stanford for the past two years on the truth about how drug reps operate and how drug companies market drugs to physicians. He has served as an expert witness to several trials against drug companies in Vermont and New Hampshire and has testified before Congress on the PharmFree movement.

Talk for wellness and nutrition for students on the go who need convenient, healthy options to eat. This talk is done annually, every fall, and is very popular - 60 students usually attend each year.

Come hear about the American Medical Students Association, how you can get involved with leadership positions, student advocacy, mentorship, and health policy.

The kick off event will feature an informative discussion on SB810, California's Single Payer Healthcare Bill. The bill has passed in the senate for the past several years only to be vetoed by the governor. Every year, hundreds of medical students across California travel to Sacramento to lobby for health reform in January. Even if you don't know how you feel about the various models for health care reform (even more reason to come to this talk), this is a great opportunity to learn about how legislative advocacy takes place. California has long been a testing ground for federal legislation, and this is one of those ideas that is closely watched by the rest of the country.

Introducing first years to the projects they can get involved with and what AMSA can do for them! Recruiting new leadership also!

Can the New Health Care Legislation Fix Our Broken Health Care System?

Tuesday, September 28, 2010, 12 noon-1 PM

Stanford Medical School, LK 130

with

Dr. Arnie Milstein

Discussing major aspects of the current national health care system,
“Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”

Dr Milstein is Professor of Medicine, Director of the Stanford Clinical Excellence Research Center, nationally recognized policy maker for health system improvement

&

Dr. Margaret Flowers

Discussing “Advantages of Single Payer Healthcare”

Dr. Flowers is organizer of Mad As Hell Doctors, Pediatrician, Co-Chair Maryland Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Care Program, and one of the “Baucus 13” Single Payer activists jailed for an attempt to allow Single Payer supporters a seat at the table during the Congressional health care reform meetings.

This program enrolls 35 undergraduate mentees from Foothill Community College and 35 medical student mentors in a mentorship program with the purpose of guiding and educating undergraduates interested in pursuing a career in the health professions. As a part of this program, there are 5 lectures throughout the fall, winter, and spring with 1 introductory session, 1 lecture on admissions with Gabe Garcia, 1 panel on different fields within medicine, 1 workshop on suturing, and 1 concluding session. In addition, mentees have a formal, regular shadowing experience with a physician at Stanford throughout the spring quarter. Mentees also shadow their medical student mentor for a day in addition to several individual meetings between mentor and mentee.

Travel for Lobby Day, where hundreds of medical students around California gather in Sacramento to lobby for single payer health insurance.

Shahram Ahari is a former drug rep turned physician-in-training who has given a talk at Stanford for the past two years on the truth about how drug reps operate and how drug companies market drugs to physicians. He has served as an expert witness to several trials against drug companies in Vermont and New Hampshire and has testified before Congress on the PharmFree movement.

Every year, 65 Stanford students load a bus and head to SF to party with UCSF students at Gravity Room in the Marina. We will not be repeating this event in 2010 as it is too expensive and should be carried forward by SMSA Social Committee.

JB Felix is the Physicians for a National Health Plan medical fellow. He came to Stanford to discuss the single payer bill in California's state legislature in preparation for lobby day.

Dr. Clyde Wilson gives a very popular talk every fall on how to stay healthy on little time.

4 events will pair 35 community college students with 35 medical students to explore the health care profession throughout the year. Since mentorship programs are most successful when they actually support the relationship (it's not enough to simply introduce people to one another), we built a series of programs and events to promote career development for the college students and improve teaching/mentoring skills among medical students.

There are 4 events:
1 introductory event with keynote speaker Gabriel Garcia
1 workshop for writing a personal statement and putting together an application/resume
1 workshop for suturing
1 panel discussion on different careers within healthcare (closing event)

50 students showed up to our annual kick off meeting where we discussed all the projects AMSA is working on, the events that we have, and offered countless opportunities to get involved.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact SMSA through our website (http://smsa.stanford.edu).