Tag: Medical

  • Volunteer EMTs Provide Medical Response Support on Campus

    Volunteer EMTs Provide Medical Response Support on Campus

    On a normal day on the Florida State University campus, it’s not unusual to see a student drive by in a vehicle equipped with sirens and the name “Medical Response Unit” plastered to the side.

    “I saw everybody driving around in the golf carts and I really wanted to know what was happening,” said neuroscience major Anakha Vargheese.

    The vehicles are part of a student-led emergency medical response unit, connected to the student health center, that trains student volunteers to provide health care and assistance to their peers.

    For the university, the unit provides emergency response support and health education to all students. For volunteers, the experience gives them needed work-based learning and professional development for future careers as medical professionals.

    In action: FSU’s Medical Response Unit includes more than 150 trained student volunteers on staff, including Vargheese, who serves as director of administration for the unit. Volunteers are certified in various roles, including emergency medical technicians and paramedics.

    To be eligible, students must be empathetic and committed to improving campus health and welfare. All volunteers agree to participate for four semesters including training, so students are primarily admitted in their first or second year of college.

    The unit is well-known on campus, and the competition to earn a spot on the crew is fierce. In the most recent application cycle, MRU received 350 applications for 50 positions, said Bryce Couey, a senior biology major who serves as executive director for the MRU.

    At the start of the term, students accepted to the program are assigned to a crew of three or four people, including one trainee who shadows the crew for the semester. Crews serve two-hour-and-fifteen-minute shifts between 7:45 a.m. and 6 p.m. and may be called on to help bandage a sprained ankle, provide transport to the campus health center or address whatever other issues may arise.

    MRU volunteers provide care for campus community members at campus events, including football tailgates and an annual carnival.

    During the academic year, volunteers cover various campus events, including football tailgates, baseball games, student organization events, intramural sports, the homecoming parade and an annual circus event, which is Vargheese’s favorite.

    “One thing coming into the MRU that I really wanted to gain was clinical experience,” Vargheese said. “But another additional thing that I got out of it was the community and the people. So just being able to spend time with your friends and your crew at these really special events, it’s really fun.”

    The unit has an assortment of vehicles to perform emergency responses, including SUVs, electric carts and a mobile first aid trailer, each equipped with emergency lights, sirens and medical equipment.

    The unit also provides educational training sessions and certification for other students, including Stop the Bleed, which provides a national training certificate for bystanders to control a bleeding emergency before professionals arrive.

    In addition, the unit leads two trainings developed in house for FSU students to recognize and respond to emergency situations, said program director Michael Stewart-Meza; one is tailored for students in fraternity and sorority life and another for the general campus population.

    The impact: The unit is one way FSU hopes to destigmatize receiving help among the campus community.

    “Before and after their shifts, [volunteers] are roaming around campus and attending class in their MRU uniforms,” Stewart-Meza said. “It develops a comfortability that other students will have with them. They’re their classmates, they’re their friends and they’re in the sororities and fraternities with them.”

    Both Couey and Vargheese initially joined MRU to gain clinical experience for their premed education, but the experience has also taught them personal and professional skills, as well as helped them create a sense of connection on campus.

    “It has made me a better person,” Couey said. “I was very introverted when I joined the unit, and I feel as if the people in the unit and the unit itself have gotten me out of my shell and allowed me to grow into the best version of myself.”

    “Being out there in the field and treating patients, caring for them in whatever way that we can, it’s really affirming and rewarding,” said Vargheese. “Without MRU here at college, I don’t know what I’d be doing. I really found my place.”

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  • The Ultimate Guide to Careers in Medical Research

    The Ultimate Guide to Careers in Medical Research

    Today’s medicine is deeply rooted in the advancements of methods and technology in the field of medical research. From uncovering the causes of diseases to developing new therapies and preventive strategies, medical researchers connect the curiosity of science with the compassion of medicine.

    Alvin Pham

    Pre-Medical Committee, American Physician Scientists Association

    Behind every statistic is a patient, and behind every breakthrough is a team of scientists, physicians, and participants working toward a healthier world. These diverse goals of medical research give rise to a range of specialized careers, each contributing to health innovation in unique ways. The following are some of the most impactful paths within the field.

    Physician-scientists

    Physician-scientists combine clinical care with laboratory or clinical research. They investigate disease mechanisms, develop therapies, and translate discoveries from the bench to the bedside.

    It requires an M.D./D.O. and Ph.D. (about 8 years), followed by 3-7 years of residency and fellowship training, or an M.D./D.O. (4 years) with residency and research experience.

    Physician-scientists bridge the gap between science and medicine by turning laboratory findings into real treatments. Their dual expertise enables them to identify and resolve clinical needs and lead interdisciplinary teams that directly improve patient outcomes.

    Clinical research scientists

    Clinical research scientists design and conduct studies to evaluate new treatments, diagnostics, and interventions in human subjects. They often work in hospitals, universities, or pharmaceutical companies, focusing on the safety and efficacy of medical innovations.

    To become a clinical research scientist typically requires a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences or clinical research (about 4–6 years) or an M.D./D.O. (4 years) with research experience. Postdoctoral training may add 2–4 years.

    Clinical research scientists advance evidence-based medicine by generating the data that guides clinical decisions. Their work ensures that new drugs, devices, and therapies are both safe and effective before reaching patients.

    Public health researchers

    Public health researchers investigate population-level health trends, disease prevention strategies, and policy impacts. Their work informs public health programs, pandemic response, and health equity initiatives.

    This role typically requires a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) (about 2 years) or a Dr.P.H./Ph.D. in public health or epidemiology (about 4–6 years).

    Public health researchers shape the health of entire populations through data-driven research and public policy. Their work reduces disease burden, addresses health disparities, and guides interventions that save lives on a global scale.

    Medical anthropologists

    Medical anthropologists study how culture, society, and behavior shape health and illness. They often work in global health, public policy, or academic research, analyzing medical practices across different populations.

    This job typically requires a Ph.D. in anthropology or medical anthropology (about 4-6 years), sometimes preceded by an M.A. in anthropology (about 2 years).

    Medical anthropologists link social and cultural factors and show how those influence health behaviors and care delivery. Their insights improve communication between healthcare providers and patients, fostering culturally sensitive and effective medical practice.

    Biotechnology researchers and engineers

    Biotechnology researchers and engineers develop and test new biomedical technologies such as genetic therapies, diagnostic tools, or drug delivery systems. They work in academic, corporate, or government research labs, bridging biology and engineering.

    This role typically requires a Ph.D. in biotechnology, molecular biology, or bioengineering (about 4-6 years), although Master’s-level researchers (2 years) can enter industry positions earlier.

    Biotechnology researchers drive innovation in medicine by developing new tools and technologies that transform diagnosis and treatment. Their discoveries enable personalized medicine and accelerate the development of next-generation therapeutics.

    Medical research is not a single path or person but a network of disciplines united by a shared goal: to improve human health through discovery and innovation. Whether exploring cultural influences on health as an anthropologist or translating lab findings into clinical care as a physician-scientist, each role contributes a vital piece to the puzzle of modern medicine. Together, these careers form the foundation of scientific progress, turning questions into cures and curiosity into compassion. 

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  • Physician-Scientists Are Solving Medical Mysteries

    Physician-Scientists Are Solving Medical Mysteries

    Every field has its detectives. In medicine, some of the most skilled professionals are physician-scientists: individuals trained in both medicine and research, caring for patients while investigating the biology behind their illnesses. 

    A physician treats. A scientist discovers. A physician-scientist operates in both worlds, identifying patterns in the clinic that can lead to breakthroughs in the lab, and then applying those discoveries to patient care. They don’t work alone — advancing against disease is always a team effort  —but their training and expertise help them connect the dots. 

    One of the biggest medical mysteries of the past 50 years has been HIV. The story of our progress, and how close we are to a cure, shows why physician-scientists are vital.

    The early days of HIV

    When AIDS first emerged in the early 1980s, it was a frightening, deadly, and poorly understood disease. An early breakthrough occurred when physician-scientist Dr. Robert Gallo, M.D. (in the United States) and scientists Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, Ph.D., and Luc Montagnier, Ph.D. (in France) co-discovered HIV as the cause of AIDS. 

    At a hopeful 1984 press conference, the U.S. health secretary announced that a vaccine would be available “within two years.” But it never materialized. HIV proved to be different, and traditional vaccination methods continued to fail. Nevertheless, physicians, scientists, and physician-scientists persisted. By 1987, the first drug, AZT, and the development of combination antiretroviral therapies offered a lifeline. They changed HIV from nearly certain death to a manageable chronic condition. This was a triumph of biomedical research, but it was not a cure.

    A genetic clue

    The next twist came from a curious observation: Some people exposed to HIV never got sick, even after repeated exposure. Physician-scientist Dr. Paolo Lusso, M.D., Ph.D., helped uncover why. The key was a protein on the surface of immune cells called CCR5, the very door HIV used to enter and infect cells. Around the same time, scientist Stephen O’Brien, Ph.D., found that the people who appeared resistant to infection carried a rare mutation in CCR5 (CCR5-Δ32), which essentially locked the door shut to HIV. It was a detective story in real time — a mystery observed from patients in the clinic that was solved in the research laboratory. It hinted at a direction for a cure. 

    The first cures

    The CCR5 breakthrough was a pivotal moment. In 2007, physician-scientist Dr. Gero Hütter met Timothy Ray Brown (the “Berlin Patient”), an individual with HIV who also had leukemia. Dr. Hütter recalled that the CCR5-Δ32 mutation was the key to HIV resistance. He and his team wondered: What if they treated Brown’s leukemia with a bone marrow transplant from a donor with the CCR5-Δ32 mutation? Could this also cure his HIV infection? The outcome was remarkable. Timothy Ray Brown was treated for his leukemia and was also cured of HIV.

    This wasn’t a one-time event, however, as physician-scientist Dr. Ravindra Gupta, M.D., Ph.D., reported on a second patient, Adam Castillejo (the “London Patient”), cured of HIV through a similar procedure a decade later. Curing HIV with a bone marrow transplant using cells resistant to infection was crucial. Today, about 10 people have been “cured” this way.

    What comes next

    Although bone marrow transplants have been a breakthrough in curing HIV, they are risky, costly, and not a practical solution for the 39 million people worldwide living with HIV. The key question now is, exactly how did the donor CCR5 mutation, or the transplant itself, lead to the clearance and complete resistance to HIV?

    At Oregon Health & Science University, scientist Jonah Sacha, Ph.D., and his team are working to answer that question. Supported by a new joint NIH grant, his team is studying these HIV-cured individuals to discover what truly happened inside their bodies, and how to replicate it into a safe, scalable cure. With the foundational knowledge and expertise from decades of observations, research, and clinical work by physicians and physician-scientists, the Sacha team is prepared for the next breakthrough.

    The ongoing story of HIV and AIDS highlights how crucial physician-scientists were in connecting patients’ experiences to scientific advances and transforming clues into cures.

    Medical mysteries still exist, and physician-scientists are here to solve them.

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  • How Osteopathic Medical Schools Make a Community Impact

    How Osteopathic Medical Schools Make a Community Impact

    Home » Careers in Healthcare » Training Future Physicians and Serving Communities: How Osteopathic Medical Schools Make an Impact

    Across America, communities are struggling with a critical shortage of doctors. One Pennsylvania city, working with osteopathic medical schools, may have found a solution.

    In Scranton, PA, an innovative partnership is offering a multifaceted approach where it’s needed most, providing quality care to underserved patients, training the next generation of physicians, and supporting the regional healthcare workforce.

    Last summer, nine passionate medical students from two osteopathic colleges helped launch the Northeast Pennsylvania Clinical Education Consortium (NEPCEC). Today, that effort has grown into a powerful partnership between three osteopathic medical schools, the City of Scranton, Lackawanna College, and local healthcare organizations.

    “It’s been a pleasure to work with our partnering physicians and healthcare providers to help build an osteopathic physician training network in Northeastern Pennsylvania,” said Frank Kolucki, M.D., Commonwealth Health System physician & NEPCEC medical director. “The students…have been eagerly engaged in their training and have brought an excitement and enthusiasm that is very refreshing and exciting to witness.”

    NEPCEC offers something rare: a clear path from clinical training to residency in underserved areas, where new doctors, especially family-practice doctors with community ties, are urgently needed. Through this program, students from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM), Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine, and New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine are gaining hands-on experience. 

    “We have long seen the value of purposeful community partnerships at Lackawanna College, and the NEPCEC is an opportunity that continues to be a natural fit for us, our students, and the community,” said Dr. Jill Murray, president and chief innovation officer of Lackawanna College. “This program has established a clear pathway for our osteopathic medical students to learn, grow, and build relationships within our community that will help them establish a strong footing for future careers in our region.”

    “One of the first things I noticed about Scranton was its small-town atmosphere, where people are always ready to lend a helping hand,” said Camryn Butera, third-year PCOM student rotating in Scranton. “I’ve seen healthcare staff consistently go above and beyond for their patients. Every attending physician has taken the time to work with me one-on-one, not only to teach their specialty but also to offer mentorship, life advice, and even recommendations for great local spots. When I first arrived, I was admittedly nervous about moving from a big city to a smaller town, but Scranton has truly offered the best of both worlds.”

    Expanding access to community-based care

    This kind of community-based clinical education is central to osteopathic medical training. A key part of that training happens outside major hospitals, in places like Scranton, that most resemble where the average American receives their healthcare, and where doctors are often in short supply.

    “This program provided the opportunity to participate actively in primary patient care, reemphasizing my passion and commitment to becoming a family physician,” said C. Veronica Ruiz, fourth-year PCOM student, Scranton Core Clinical Campus. “I am very grateful to the outstanding healthcare teams for allowing me a safe space to learn and grow as a future family doctor.”

    Programs like NEPCEC are a win-win. Students get high-quality training, and communities get the physicians they so urgently need. We believe that clinical education partnerships like these have the potential to meet challenges nationwide.

    The impact is growing. We are working with Congress to pass the Community Training, Education, and Access for Medical Students (Community TEAMS) Act, H.R. 3885, legislation that would expand programs like the NEPCEC, giving more medical students the chance to train where they’re most needed and help close the gap in healthcare access, bringing the osteopathic philosophy of whole-person, community-based care to more patients across the country.

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  • Can you get better medical advice online than from a doctor?

    Can you get better medical advice online than from a doctor?

    PCOS is a metabolic and reproductive condition. Although it’s the most common hormonal disorder in women of reproductive age, up to 70% of women affected by it never get diagnosed. Dr. Jamie Benham, an endocrinologist and principal investigatorat the EMBRACE Women’s Health Research Lab at the University of Calgary, said that because patients with PCOS can have a variety of experiences and symptoms, it can be challenging for doctors to diagnose. 

    For Joslin, it wasn’t until she began to struggle with infertility that she finally received a proper diagnosis. “When I saw the infertility doctor … he looks at me [and the] first thing he said to me was, ‘You are textbook PCOS’,” she said.

    Joslin said that if it weren’t for the online community, PCOS wouldn’t have been on her radar at all. Through treatments from her fertility doctor and naturopath, she was able to start a family.

    Taking symptoms seriously

    Jade Broughton, a member of the PCOS Patient Advisory Council at the University of Calgary, said she initially downplayed her own symptoms for years. She assumed they were stress-related from her shift work as a nurse and she was told her symptoms were normal.

    “I started noticing, quite a few years ago, my hair started falling [out] in clumps,” Broughton said. “I was just gaining weight so rapidly, I started having facial hair, all that stuff. I went to my doctor, and she was like, ‘You just turned 30, that’s just normal’ … So, I felt like I was just being gaslit for years and years.”

    Through internet searches and the PCOS Reddit page, she was finally able to understand what her symptoms might mean. After about seven years of advocating for herself, she finally received a diagnosis from her family doctor.

    “I feel like women’s health is still not taken seriously when it should be,” Broughton said. “Just stand up for yourself and trust your gut if you know something’s wrong.”

    Lisa Minaker, a legal assistant student in Winnipeg, Canada said that her irregular periods were concerning to her family physician, who referred her to an endocrinologist. Through blood work, her endocrinologist diagnosed PCOS. Although she received a diagnosis relatively quickly, Minaker said she felt that her doctors were not always “overly helpful” when it came to managing her symptoms. She thinks that doctors lack sufficient training in women’s health.

    “Not that it’s their fault,” she said. “Finding out how women don’t metabolize things like men, and how it’s dependant on where you are in your cycle … we’re still treated as basically a smaller version of men.”

    Why expertise matters

    Due to the complexity of PCOS and its diverse range of symptoms, a team of healthcare practitioners can be helpful. Joslin and Minaker both say that including other healthcare professionals, such as a naturopathic doctor and acupuncturist, helped with symptom management.

    “The [naturopathic doctor] was that complement to the medical world,” Joslin said. “My fertility doctor would prescribe me medication, and the naturopath would talk to me about my blood work [and supplements] … It was the hand holding and just someone talking you through [your results] to make sure you know what’s going on.”

    “I 100% credit the fact that I’m a mom to my naturopath,” Joslin said. “I would not be a mom without her.”

    Minaker said that in her own health journey she learned more from social media than from any doctor. “The girls in the [Facebook] group are pretty helpful,” she said. “I had to do my own research because I wasn’t really given a choice.”

    Although social media has played a big role in educating women about PCOS and other health problems, it can sometimes provide misinformation. A common misconception Broughton hears from patients is that they’re afraid to exercise, believing it’s bad for their health because of internet claims that it will raise cortisol levels — a hormone released in response to physical or emotional stress.

    “This is not consistent with what we know about the condition and exercise is recommended for all people with PCOS,” said Benham. “Unfortunately, we’re limited in that PCOS is not well studied. It’s not well understood. It hasn’t been funded from a women’s health research perspective. So there’s a lot of people that are profiting off nutrition plans or exercise plans or giving different advice around supplements.”

    Combatting misinformation

    Minaker said she found it difficult in the beginning to distinguish which resources were helpful and which were targeted marketing scams.

    “I wasn’t always that intuitive to be able to tell who was truthful,” Minaker said. “[I was] trying to find as many answers as possible.”

    In some Facebook groups, women share their symptoms, medications and diagnostic test results. Chats in these groups often involve consultations, advice and, sometimes, bullying.

    Joslin said that instead of lifting others up, some members of fertility groups for women with PCOS create guilt, embarrassment and shame around a vital aspect of life that PCOS can affect — being able to start a family.

    “In some groups, like the PCOS groups that focus specifically on trying to get pregnant, I had to leave right away,” Joslin said. “It was very toxic … where, truthfully, in this journey you need support. I’ve found much more success with smaller localized groups.”

    Information from medical organizations

    To combat misinformation, some medical organizations have created their online forums and portals. Broughton pointed to Monash University in Australia, which released new PCOS guidelines and launched a phone application called Ask PCOS.

    “They actually have an app that has tons of resources on weight management, food, insulin resistance, all of that stuff,” Broughton said. “And they’re actually one of the big players that’s trying to have it renamed as well.”

    Since PCOS affects more than ovaries, a new name would reflect that and might make it less confusing for women with symptoms to get the help they need.

    Other institutions are bringing women together in person to share experiences face-to-face.

    The EMBRACE Lab at the University of Calgary, for example, formed a PCOS Patient Advisory Council to conduct patient-oriented research earlier this year. The council, which meets monthly, is a space for community.

    “It’s such an amazing experience to sit in the room with all these women,” Joslin said. “Knowing all the struggles I’ve had … and sitting with people who are newly diagnosed or on their fertility journey … I’m able to share my advice and say, ‘You’re not alone.’”

    Community, whether found online or through research, has been an important part of the journey for these patients.

    Benham said that PCOS is a lifelong condition, whose symptoms can be managed although it cannot be cured. Joslin adds that it’s important to bring awareness to the condition. “Because there’s so many of us that have it, let’s make this more known.”

    Questions to consider:

    1. Why might someone trust a random person on an online forum over a doctor for medical advice?

    2. How can medical information you find online leave you more confused?

    3. If you felt unwell where would you turn for information about your condition?

     

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  • Better access to medical school shouldn’t need a deficit model

    Better access to medical school shouldn’t need a deficit model

    Patients benefit from a diverse healthcare workforce. Doctors, particularly those from disadvantaged and minoritised backgrounds, play a crucial role in advocating for what is best for their patients.

    The NHS recognises this, linking workforce diversity with increased patient satisfaction, better care outcomes, reduced staff turnover, and greater productivity.

    A promising start

    Efforts to widen participation in higher education began at the turn of the century following the Dearing report. Over time, access to medical schools gained attention due to concerns about its status as one of the most socially exclusive professions. Medical schools responded in 2014 with the launch of the Selecting for Excellence report and the establishment of the Medical Schools Council (MSC) Selection Alliance, representing admissions teams from every UK medical school and responsible for fair admissions to medical courses.

    With medical school expansion under government review, institutions face increasing pressure to demonstrate meaningful progress in widening participation to secure additional places. Although medicine programmes still lag in representing some demographic groups, they now align more closely with wider higher education efforts.

    However, widening participation policy often follows a deficit model, viewing disadvantaged young people as needing to be “fixed” or “topped up” before joining the profession. Phrases like “raising aspirations” suggest these students lack ambition or motivation. This model shifts responsibility onto individuals, asking them to adapt to a system shaped mainly by the experiences of white, male, middle-class groups.

    Beyond access

    To create real change, organisations must move beyond this model and show that students from diverse backgrounds are not only welcomed but valued for their unique perspectives and strengths. This requires a systems-based approach that rethinks every part of medical education, starting with admissions. In its recent report, Fostering Potential, the MSC reviewed a decade of widening participation in medicine. Medical schools across the UK have increased outreach, introduced gateway year courses, and implemented contextual criteria into admissions.

    Contextual markers recognise structural inequalities affecting educational attainment. Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds often attend under-resourced schools and face personal challenges hindering academic performance. Yet evidence shows that, when given the chance, these students often outperform more advantaged peers at university. Contextual admissions reframe achievements in light of these challenges, offering a fairer assessment of potential.

    Despite progress, access remains unequal. Although acceptance rates for students from the most deprived areas have increased, their chances remain 37 per cent lower than those from the least deprived areas. Research indicates that a two-grade A-level reduction is needed to level the playing field—an approach several schools now adopt. Other policies include fast-tracking interviews, test score uplifts, and alternative scoring for widening participation candidates.

    Not just special cases

    These processes, however, are often opaque and hard to navigate. Many applicants struggle to determine eligibility. With no single definition of disadvantage, medical schools use varied proxy indicators, often poorly explained online. This confusion disproportionately affects the students these policies aim to support; those without university-educated parents, lacking insider knowledge, and attending under-resourced schools.

    A commitment to transparency is vital but must go beyond rhetoric. Transparency means all medical schools clearly outline contextual admissions criteria in one accessible place, provide step-by-step guides to applicants and advisors, and offer examples of how contextual data influences decisions. Medical schools could collaborate to agree on standardised metrics for identifying widening participation candidates. This would simplify eligibility understanding, reduce confusion, and promote fairness.

    Tools like MSC’s entry requirements platform are a good start but must be expanded, standardised, and actively promoted to the communities that need them most. Genuine transparency empowers applicants to make informed choices, selecting schools best suited to their circumstances and maximising success chances. This also eases the burden on schools, advisors, and outreach staff who struggle to interpret inconsistent criteria.

    Ultimately, moving away from the deficit model toward an open, systems-based approach is about more than fairness. It is essential for building a medical workforce that reflects society’s diversity, improving patient care, strengthening the profession, and upholding the NHS’s commitment to equity and excellence.

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  • Federal officials open probes into Duke University’s law journal, medical school

    Federal officials open probes into Duke University’s law journal, medical school

    Dive Brief: 

    • The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday that it has opened a civil rights investigation into Duke University and its law journal, based on allegations that the institution racially discriminates to select the publication’s editors. 
    • Separately, the Education Department and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also sent a letter Monday to university officials saying they’re reviewing allegations that Duke’s medical school and Duke Health racially discriminate in their hiring, admissions, financial aid and recruitment practices. 
    • The probes come less than a week after U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon said officials hoped that Columbia University’s $221 million settlement with the federal government would be a “template for other universities around the country.”

    Dive Insight: 

    Like with the federal government’s previous Columbia probes, the Education Department has opened an investigation into Duke University to determine whether it has violated Title VI, which prohibits federally funded institutions from discriminating based on race, color or national origin. 

    The department said its probe is based on recent reporting that Duke Law Journal racially discriminates against students applying to be editors. It comes one month after The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative publication, alleged that Duke Law Journal potentially gave students applying to be editors an edge if they held leadership positions in affinity groups or if they explained how their “membership in an underrepresented group” would help them promote diverse voices. 

    Duke Law Journal shared this information only with the law school’s affinity groups, according to the Beacon. 

    The letter from HHS and the Education Department doesn’t provide the source of the allegations of racial discrimination against Duke’s medical school and Duke Health. However, it says Duke Health would be “unfit for any further financial relationship with the federal government” if the federal government determines they are true. 

    In their letter, officials suggested they want to cut a deal with the university.

    “Our Departments have historically recognized Duke’s commitment to medical excellence and would prefer to partner with Duke to uncover and repair these problems, rather than terminate this relationship,” McMahon and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote. 

    The two Cabinet secretaries demanded that the university review and reform policies at Duke Health to ensure they don’t include illegal racial preferences, including by making “necessary organizational, leadership, and personnel changes.”

    They also asked Duke to establish a Merit and Civil Rights Committee, which would be delegated authority from the university’s board, to conduct the review. 

    “The Committee must be made up of those members of Duke’s leadership and medical faculty most distinguished in and devoted to genuine excellence in the field of medicine, and the members chosen must satisfy the federal government as to their competence and good faith,” McMahon and Kennedy said in their letter. 

    McMahon and Kennedy threatened Duke with enforcement actions if the federal government and the Merit and Civil Rights Committee reach an impasse — or if they don’t change the “alleged offending policies” within six months. 

    Following Columbia’s controversial agreement with the federal government — which also included vast policy changes — law and free speech scholars warned that the Trump administration may attempt to increase their pressure campaigns against other universities to cut deals. 

    “The Trump administration has made clear that while Columbia is first in line, it intends to reach comparable agreements with other schools — to scale the Columbia shakedown into a broader model of managing universities deemed too woke,” David Pozen, a Columbia law professor, wrote in a blog post. “As has already occurred with law firms, tariffs, and trade policy, regulation by deal is coming to higher education.

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  • GAZA, GENOCIDE, AND THE GLOBAL MEDICAL RESPONSE (Saint Cecilia Parish, Boston)

    GAZA, GENOCIDE, AND THE GLOBAL MEDICAL RESPONSE (Saint Cecilia Parish, Boston)

    WEDNESDAY, JULY 30 | 6:30PM | PARISH HALL (Boston)

    Join us for a special presentation by Dr. Kuemmerle, a neurologist at Children’s Hospital and the co-founder of Doctors Against Genocide. Founded in 2023, Doctors Against Genocide is a coalition of healthcare professionals who seek to unite their voices in uproar against the genocide in Gaza. This presentation will be livestreamed on our Youtube channel. 

    Doctors Against Genocide is currently raising $737,000 to fund the construction of a 140-bed field hospital with 4 operating rooms on the grounds of Al-Shifa hosptial. Gaza’s largest hospital has been bombed, burned, and pushed past its limits. After the forced shutdown of the Indonesian, Al-Awda, and Kamal Adwan hospitals, Al-Shifa is the last major hospital left standing in North Gaza. 

    Right now, occupancy is at 200–300%. Patients are being treated on floors, in hallways, and tents. There are no more beds. No more space. But there is a way forward with your help. If you would like donate, please visit: https://doctorsagainstgenocide.org/donate.

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  • Harvard Medical School Faces Backlash Over Latest DEI Office Renaming

    Harvard Medical School Faces Backlash Over Latest DEI Office Renaming

    Harvard Medical School’s decision to rename its Diversity, Inclusion and Community Partnership office has sparked significant reaction from students and observers, marking Harvard’s latest move to reshape its diversity infrastructure amid shifting political pressures.

    The medical school will now call the unit the Office for Culture and Community Engagement, according to a letter from Dr. George Daley, dean of Harvard Medical School. The announcement comes as Harvard continues to navigate criticism over its earlier decision to rename its main “Office for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging” to “Community and Campus Life” — a move that drew considerable backlash when the university also eliminated funding and support for affinity graduations.

    “I hope it is abundantly clear that while we continue to adapt to the ever-evolving national landscape, Harvard Medical School’s longstanding commitment to culture and community will never waver,” Daley wrote in his letter to the medical school community.

    The renamed office will emphasize “opportunity and access” along with “collaboration and community-building,” according to Daley’s announcement. Additionally, the Office of Recruitment and Multicultural Affairs will be absorbed into the Office of Student Affairs as part of the restructuring.

    Harvard’s moves come as the Trump administration has intensified pressure on higher education institutions over diversity, equity and inclusion programming. An executive order signed by President Trump characterizes many DEI programs as “unlawfully discriminatory practices” and threatens to revoke accreditation from colleges and universities that maintain such initiatives.

    The timing has also created tension for Harvard, which became the first major institution to legally challenge the Trump administration when it filed a lawsuit in response to federal threats to withdraw billions in funding. However, the DEI office renaming has been viewed by some as contradictory to that stance of resistance.

    “It’s signaling that if they’re willing to capitulate on some demands, then they’re likely to capitulate in the future. This kind of sends confused, mixed signals to students,” Harvard junior and LGBTQ student Eli Johnson said about the university’s broader DEI changes.

    Harvard Medical School’s decision follows similar moves by other prominent institutions. Dr. Sally Kornbluth, MIT’s president, announced plans in late May to “sunset” the university’s Institute Community and Equity Office and eliminate its vice president for equity and inclusion position, though core programs will continue under other offices. Northeastern University has also renamed its diversity office.

    As part of the medical school’s transition, Daley announced the creation of a committee to “review and recommend updates” to the “principles and statements that guide our community and our values.”

    A Harvard spokesperson declined to provide additional comment on the medical school’s decision or the broader reaction it has generated.

    The developments highlight the challenging position many higher education institutions find themselves in as they attempt to balance longstanding commitments to diversity and inclusion with mounting political and potential financial pressures from the federal government.

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  • Harvard Medical Researcher Detained by ICE Faces Charge

    Harvard Medical Researcher Detained by ICE Faces Charge

    The Harvard Medical School research associate and Russian native detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement three months ago and sent to Louisiana now faces a criminal charge—for allegedly trying to smuggle frog embryos into the U.S.

    The Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the charge in a news release Wednesday, saying it could mean “a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a term of up to five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.”

    Prosecutors allege that after the researcher, Kseniia Petrova, arrived from Paris at Boston’s Logan International Airport, a law enforcement canine “alerted its handler to the defendant’s checked duffel bag on the baggage carousel.” The release said Petrova “initially denied carrying any biological material in her checked baggage.”

    Petrova’s lawyer, Gregory Romanovsky, said in a statement Thursday that “less than two hours after the Vermont judge set a hearing on Kseniia’s release, she was suddenly transferred from ICE to criminal custody. This is not a coincidence. It is an attempt by the government to justify its outrageous and legally indefensible position that this scientist working for the U.S. on cures for cancer and aging research has somehow become a danger.”

    The government said in court Wednesday that it intends “to deport Kseniia to Russia,” Romanovsky said, “where it knows she will face grave danger for opposing the Putin regime.”

    He said he expects Petrova will be transferred to Massachusetts in the next few weeks. Romanovsky has previously said Petrova was transporting “a non-hazardous scientific sample,” for which authorities could’ve merely fined her instead of detaining her and revoking her visa.

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