Setting The Scene

On our 49th overall episode and the 12th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by JR, a fourth-year medical student at the Mayo Clinic. While in college at Duke, he had a tragic injury but later won Comeback Athlete of the Year and became the senior captain of the Track & Field team. Since starting his YouTube channel in 2020, JR set out to help others grow through evidence-based strategies shared in his videos and a mentorship community called Teach As You Learn.

Join us to hear more about JR, where he draws inspiration, and his plans for the future!

On our 48th overall episode and 1st episode in our series "College Counsel", co-hosts Michael and Asma share their journeys in college and beyond. Michael graduated from college in 2022 and has since worked the night shift as a sleep technologist, continued to teach at a local literacy center, and helped with project development at a couple of nonprofits. He started college in Iowa and later transferred to graduate in Connecticut. Asma is a junior in college and is currently fast-tracking into an Applied Cognition and Neuroscience master's program.

Join us to hear them speak about their experience in college, what they wish they had known, and lessons learned!

On our 47th overall episode and the 2nd episode in our series the “Blog Scene,” we are joined by Ashby, one of the content writers at The Premed Scene. Ashby graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History from Rhodes College, and after two years out of college, she decided to pivot to medicine. Earlier this fall, she took the move to New York City to start her first year at Fordham University’s post-bacc program.

Join us to hear about why she switched to medicine and her blog’s take on how the humanities tie into medicine!

On our 46th overall episode and the 10th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by Ethan Liebross, a 1st-year medical student at UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine. Prior to medical school, Ethan has had a unique story, one filled with lots of adventure and ambition — he’s traveled all across Europe and America, studied at the University of Oxford for a period of time, became a freelance journalist in his gap year, and runs a YouTube account documenting his life experiences. Ethan has a strong drive for lifestyle medicine and working with underserved communities, and it’s quickly shaping his aspirations as he undergoes his medical school journey.

Join us to hear about his adventure-filled path towards medicine, his biggest takeaways from it, and his current outlook as a 1st-year medical student!

On our 45th overall episode and the 9th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by Melisa Rodriguez, a 4th-year medical student from Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Melisa has been through all the highs and lows of medical school, from USMLE Step 1 to Step 2 CK to finally reaching residency applications. She has documented this all on our YouTube channel while she currently applies for a residency in internal medicine. With the hopes of a fellowship afterwards and working for a nonprofit, Melisa strives to embrace the humanistic side of medicine.

Join us to hear about her medical school application cycle, her time at FAU, and how she started her YouTube channel!

Melisa's YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/@MelisaRodriguezS/about

On our 44th overall episode and the 8th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by Sarah Snyder. She is a fourth-year medical student at The University of Houston Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine and will be part of their inaugural graduating class. Before medical school, she spent several years as a physical therapist, working in acute care. During medical school, she founded Tourniquet, an online medical journal for Texas healthcare providers, giving them a platform for innovative expression. Sarah joins us to speak about the diverse perspectives she’s gained over the years from a non-traditional journey toward medicine, leaving us with insights into contemporary healthcare.

Join us as we hear about Sarah’s path toward becoming an ambitious leader in the field of medicine!

On our 43rd overall episode and the 7th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by Ishita Kopparapu. She is a rising senior in Hathaway Brown School planning to pursue a path in medicine with a combination of business. Ishita’s passion in the healthcare field lies in providing high quality patient care, notably through her work with an uninsured clinic. In addition, she does research at Case Western Reserve University, studying neurodevelopment using a 3D model known as organoids and even presenting at numerous conferences already. Ishita runs a non-profit organization known as stEMPOWERher, a workshop teaching and encouraging middle school girls to explore STEM.

Join us as we learn about Ishita’s journey as a high school student striding towards the field of medicine!

On our 42nd overall episode and the 6th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by one of the co-founders at The Premed Scene, Suhas. He is now a senior majoring in Biology and double minoring in Business and Public Health. With graduation in sight this upcoming May, Suhas joins us to speak about his takeaways from the past 4 years of undergrad. Networking propelled him to dive into opportunities on and off campus, including as a Project Manager of a healthcare startup at Texas A&M and as a Student Leader of The REACH Project.

Join us to hear about the spark that inspired Suhas towards choosing business and medicine, how his experiences branched into personal growth and the advice he has to offer!

On our 41st overall episode and the 5th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by one of the Content Writers at The Premed Scene, Ilana. She is a junior at St. John's University and majors in Biology. With her sights set on becoming a pediatric ophthalmologist, Ilana is putting her best foot forward to get involved in patient care, gain shadowing exposure and tackle the MCAT.

Join us to hear about Ilana’s journey so far, why she chose medicine and her advice to underclassmen for guidance on their journeys too!

On our 40th overall episode and the 4th episode in our series “Guest Spotlights,” we are joined by Nayiri, a 4th-year medical student who went through two application cycles as a prior applicant. Between her first and second cycles, she directed her focus to tackle the weaknesses she found in her application and interview. It proved well and she found great success in the end, landing 11 interviews and receiving an acceptance from each school!

Join us as we hear from Nayiri, who shares the timeline to her journey leading up to applying and her thought process behind making such a successful improvement!

On our 39th overall episode and the 2nd episode in our series “Gap Year Perspectives,” we are excited to bring forward another spotlight! This time we are joined by Aprile, the Newsletter Director here at The Premed Scene. Last summer Aprile tackled her applications. This past year has been a time for Aprile to focus on personal growth after graduating last May from Cornell. In her words, she says that even the first few months of her gap year seemed to be as full of personal growth as the last 5 years have been.

Join us as Aprile reflects on both her application cycle, personal growth during her gap year and thoughts on hopping into medical school which is just around the corner!

On our 38th overall episode, we are excited to bring forward a unique spotlight! We are joined by Dr. Janiczek, who is a cardiothoracic anesthesiologist, and a familiar face to some of you: Zakia Irfan, a high school senior from Canada. Together, Dr. Janiczek and Zakia collaborated on a book titled “The High School Pre-Med.” Having founded his own company to help pre-medical students as well as now completing over a decade of training in medicine, Dr. Janiczek brought years of experience with medical school admissions. Being a high schooler with accolades for her writing prowess, Zakia brought forward a skilled hand at writing. Together, their collaboration was a success!

Now being published, both of them join us for this episode to reflect on the journey to writing a book while living in different countries and share their thoughts on the preparation that current high schoolers have for the pre-med track ahead!

Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BMP5ZZ8P

On our 37th overall episode and our very first episode in our brand new series about articles written by our team’s own content writies, we are joined by Siri. Siri wrote an article revolving around community actions against pandemics. On this episode, we discuss her findings and reflections in writing about our society’s past as well as current pandemics. We talk or think about it almost daily! Yet with 2 years behind us during our current pandemic, there is still much to reflect on for students, professionals and the public alike.

Catch us for this episode that may open your ideas to new thoughts on the pandemic!

On our 36th overall episode and the 10th in our series “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Jessica Dong - a recent graduate from her internal medicine residency. Dr. Dong graduated from Dartmouth College with a BA in Biological Sciences and a minor in Environmental Studies. Before medical school, Dr. Dong worked at Close Concerns as an Associate. She was later promoted to the Head of Basic and Clinical Sciences. During her time at Close Concerns, she initiated the Dartmouth Fellows internship program to mentor and supervise projects for junior team members. She pursued the MD/MBA program at University of Pennsylvania to graduate in 2019.

Since graduating, she trained at UCSF’s internal medicine residency program. As a resident physician, Dr. Dong did not hesitate to initiate when opportunities arose. During the 2020 General Election, she coordinated inpatient voter registration initiative allowing 64 hospitalized patients to vote. She became a member of Health Equity and Advocacy Pathway along with helping out at the Richard Fine People's Clinic where all patients were either publicly-insured or uninsured. Half of these patients had limited English proficiency and Dr. Dong became a UCSF Certified Spanish Bilingual Provider to bridge this gap.

Join us as we hear from Dr. Dong’s journey as a striving, ambitious leader, her outlook on the MD/MBA route and what she intends to do as a MD/MBA!

On our 35th overall episode and the 3rd in our series “International Perspectives,” we are joined by Dr. Vidhu Anand - a physician who serves Senior Associate Consultant for the Department of Cardiovascular Diseases and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. Dr. Anand is trained in cardiology and multimodality cardiac imaging. After completing her MBBS studies in India, she did her residency at the University of Minnesota and her clinical residency in internal medicine there as well. She focuses on treating her patients with with valvular heart disease and pulmonary hypertension. She also does a lot of work in the echocardiography laboratory and performs stress, transesophageal, interventional and intraoperative echocardiography.

Apart from her clinical activities, she is also involved in research. She performs pulmonary hypertension, valve disease, apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and machine learning/artificial intelligence research.

Join us to gain insight into the journey behind a healthcare hero who has made her way to practicing in the US!

On our 34th overall episode and the 9th in our series “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Cancino - an MD/MBA physician who serves as the Director of the UT Health Physicians Primary Care Center and Senior Medical Director of Medical Management. Dr. Cancino trained in a Family Medicine residency at Mayo Clinic. Afterwards, he completed an Academic Medicine fellowship at Boston University School of Medicine where his research focused on hospital readmission, behavioral health integration, and quality improvement. Dr. Cancino later earned his MBA at UT San Antonio.

Following fellowship, Dr. Cancino assumed the role of Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of a federally qualified health center in Boston. In his current role as Primary Care Center Director at UT Health Physicians, Dr. Cancino oversees the clinical operations at 7 UT Health Physicians primary care locations.

Join us to gain insight into the career outcomes as a MD/MBA physician both inside and outside of academic medicine!

On our 33rd overall episode and the 8th in our series “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Timothy Judson - an MD/MPH physician who works in several leadership capacities with a focus on clinical informatics. Dr. Judson works as an informatics lead at UCSF's Center for Digital Health Innovation. In this role, he designed and led the implementation of the COVID-19 Testing and Care tool (formerly Symptom Checker), available on MyChart.

As Medical Director of Care Delivery Transformation and Medical co-Director of Adult Care Transitions, he oversees a range of innovative programs aimed at improving outcomes for large populations of patients, and optimizing the efficiency of care delivery.

Join us as we talk about Dr. Judon’s impact on issues as recent as COVID-19 through his focus on clinical informatics within the broader topic of public health!

On our 32nd overall episode and the 7th in our series “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Crystal Manohar - an MD/MBA physician who is the Associate Program Director of the Anesthesiology Residency for the Department of Anesthesiology at UT Health San Antonio. Dr. Manohar received her MD in 2009 from Loyola University’s Stritch School of Medicine. She completed her Anesthesiology Residency in 2013 and Critical Care Fellowship in 2014.

Prior to joining UT Health San Antonio, Dr. Manohar served as an active-duty Critical Care Anesthesiologist in the United States Air Force. She was stationed at the San Antonio Military Medical Center for 6 years. During her military service, she participated in a humanitarian mission to the Dominican Republic and deployed to Bagram, Afghanistan. In 2020, Dr. Manohar completed her Master of Business Administration Degree through Baylor University in Waco, Texas.

Tune in to hear Dr. Manohar’s goals as a MD/MBA physician and the inspiration behind her pursuits!

On our 31st overall episode and the 6th in our series “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Matt Pantell - a pediatrician who earned his MD and MS through the UC Berkeley - UCSF Joint Medical Program. Before attending the Joint Medical Program, Dr. Pantell worked at the Health Policy Center of the Urban Institute. He then completed his residency in pediatrics and was Chief Resident at the University of California, San Francisco. He was also a fellow in the Clinical Research Training Program at the NIH, where his work focused on biomarkers of social adversity.

Clinically, Dr. Pantell works is as a pediatric hospitalist at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital - Mission Bay and Washington Hospital in Fremont. He also works as an pediatric urgent care physician and runs the Tattoo Removal Clinic at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.

Tune in to hear Dr. Pantell’s pathway leading to his work as a clinician-researcher that started with his MD/MS and the story behind his Tattoo Removal Clinic!

On the 30th overall episode, we are joined by Andy Nguyen, or also known as ND MD, is a third-year medical student who has expanded his passion for videography to a growing following on social media platforms. Popular for videos including his “73 Questions” series, Andy has become a familiar face on social media. All the while, Andy balances his academic life as a BS/MD student on a 7-year track to graduate at the University of Georgia.

Tune into this episode where we hear Andy’s reflections as a BS/MD student and later discuss his passion for videography!

On the 29th overall episode and our fifth episode on our series: “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Elaine Khoong. Dr. Khoong is a MD/MS graduate involved in research to develop and apply interventions for chronic disease outcomes. She pursued an internal medicine residency along with a primary care research fellowship at UCSF.

Join us for this episode where Dr. Khoong shares her reflections on the MD/MS pathway and current work as a dual degree physician!

On the 28th overall episode and our second episode on the brand new series: “International Perspectives,” we are joined by Dr. Nandita Khera. Dr. Khera began her journey at a medical college in India before moving to the US for residency and fellowship while picking up her MPH along the way. Through all the hardship, Dr. Khera is now working at Mayo Clinic as a dual degree hematologist-oncologist!

Catch us for this inspiring episode with Dr. Khera where she shares her story as a physician with an international background!

On the 27th overall episode about “Lifestyle in Medicine,” we are joined by Medschoolboiz, a group of 10 medical students with a booming presence on social media platforms like TikTok. We’ll take you through the personal stories for each member from Medschoolboiz as well as their experiences before and during medical school- working hard to become tomorrow’s doctors while enjoying their friendship along the way!

Don’t miss us for this episode showcasing first-hand experiences from medical students and the story behind their success as a group!

On the 26th overall episode and our first episode of Setting the Scene’s new series: “The Community College Route as a Premed,” we are joined by Madeleine Babb, a recent graduate of UCLA and current medical school applicant. Madeleine began her journey as a premed at Santa Barbara Community College and completed her Bachelor’s degree at UCLA in 2019. During her time in community college and university, Madeleine explored her interest in a career in medicine, through first working with students with disabilities to then later working as a Lab Assistant at a dermatology clinic. On this episode, we go in depth into Madeleine’s experiences from transferring from one community college to another, the different kinds of resources and opportunities offered to premed students at community colleges, as well as obtaining clinical experience and the medical school application process for Madeleine thus far.

Join us as we’ll cover the journey towards medicine of a student who began in community college and has now made her way into being a current medical school applicant!

On the twenty fifth overall episode and our fourth episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Maya Kotas. Dr. Kotas is a graduate of Yale University, where she received her MD and PhD in immunobiology. After her residency training in Internal medicine at Columbia University, Dr. Kotas went on to complete a fellowship in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at UCSF.

On the twenty-fourth overall episode and our third episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Kim Rhoads. Dr. Rhoads received her BA and MS from University of California, Berkeley and her MD from University of California, San Francisco. She completed her General Surgery Residency at UCSF, after which she went on to obtain an MPH in Healthcare Policy and Management from Harvard University, School of Public Health. She also served as the inaugural UCSF Philip R. Lee Fellow in Health Policy from 2007 to 2008. Dr. Rhoads has formal training in community organizing at the Center for Third World Organizing in Oakland, California, and was a member of the first cohort of academic-community partnership teams trained by the California Breast Cancer Research Program.

Dr. Rhoads is currently an Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at UCSF. She is also the Director at the Office of Community Engagement and is an Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement at the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is heavily involved in both basic science research and clinical care as a colorectal surgeon through health services research in cancer disparities. Before joining UCSF as a member of the faculty, Dr. Rhoads founded the Community Outreach and Engagement program for the Stanford Cancer Institute. Through her research and public health background, Dr. Rhoads works to promote health equity and eliminate disparities.

On the twenty third overall episode, we are joined by Fatima, our Content Coordinator at the Premed Scene to talk about her experiences as a premedical student majoring in the social sciences and minoring in the humanities. On this episode, we explore how her major and minor have had an impact on her journey to medicine through her extracurricular interests, research, as well as the differences between her prerequisite sciences classes and classes pertaining to her major and minor.

Join us as we discuss the experiences of a pre-medical student majoring in the Social Sciences and humanities!

On the twenty second overall episode and our first episode on Setting the Scene’s series: “International Perspectives,” we are joined by Adaora Ezike, a second year medical student. Having moved from her home country to America to pursue her undergraduate and medical education, Adaora talks about what the transition was like and her own experience applying to medical school as an international student, as well as the challenges she faced along the way. She walks us through the requirements for an international applicant to US medical schools and what she believes made her successful in gaining an acceptance. She also discusses her Master’s degree in Public Health and how that contributed to her interest in medicine through the research she involved herself in and the clinical experience she obtained during that time. After medical school and residency, Adaora has plans to practice medicine in the US, while also building a practice back in her home country.

Join us as we’ll cover the journey of an international student who was able to gain admission to medical school in the US, and the experiences that led her to where she is now!

On the twenty first overall episode, we are joined by a new team member and the Content Coordinator, Fatima Makama to talk about our experiences prior to college and what our transition from high school to college was like. On this episode, we also talk through the things incoming undergraduate freshman should expect as premedical students from academic rigor, clinical experience and shadowing to how to go about obtaining letters of recommendation through our personal experiences.

Join us as we cover all the things to expect as an incoming or current premedical student!

On the twentieth overall episode, we are bringing back Tarun, one of our Executive Committee members at The Premed Scene, from our earlier episode. We will discuss, reflect and share some insight on the leadership as a student: our experiences and perspectives. On this episode, we also talk through a leader’s adaptability and impact, bringing some of our own stories behind each of these along and our own stories behind that.

Join us as we dive into how even students can exemplify leadership!

On the nineteenth overall episode, we are joined by Tarun, one of our own Executive Committee members at The Premed Scene. We will discuss the growth we have experienced through extracurriculars. Extracurriculars provide route to explore, define and fine-tune our interests. The interests that captivate us now can reflect the paths we take later on. If truly done well, it transitions from a “checkbox” to an activity we look forward to.

Join us as we cover extracurriculars as students and the growth we can take away from them!

On the eighteenth overall episode, we are joined by Aditi. Aditi is a high school student in her junior year with a strong affinity for healthcare. Since moving to another state during high school, she has taken on the new challenges of adjusting to a different environment while getting a head start on solidifying a career. From the Attorney General's Youth Conference to serving as Chief Administrative Officer at the nonprofit Aid2Day, Aditi has invested into gaining exposure. And her involvements don’t end at just medicine! These experiences have broadened her perspectives and built up resilience early on.

Join us as we’ll discuss the journey of one of our future leaders in healthcare, defying the odds and raising the bar for what high schoolers are able to accomplish!

On the seventeenth overall episode and our second episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we are joined by Dr. Lawrence Brass. Dr. Brass is a graduate of Harvard College and Case Western Reserve University, where he received his MD and a PhD in biochemistry. After residency training in internal medicine, he became a fellow in Hematology-Oncology at the University of Pennsylvania where he served as Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Medicine from 2004 to 2007, and is currently Professor of Medicine and Professor of Systems Pharmacology and Translational Therapeutics. He has led the NHLBI-funded Hematology Research Training Program since 1994 and became Associate Dean for Combined Degree and Physician Scholars Programs and Director of Penn’s MSTP in 1998.

On the sixteenth overall episode and our second episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Guest Spotlight,” we are joined by Alekhya, a high schooler. While still working through coursework in 10th grade, Alekhya has taken a leap in establishing her career early on. From gynecological research to being involved with internships across public health and policy, Alekhya has great ambitions and is already working towards them in high school. Alekhya has proved to be a young pioneer on the front of leadership with positions as her school’s Chair of the Judicial and Parliamentary Committee and a member of Pittsburgh Cares Youth Advisory Council. Her passions don’t just stop at medicine! Alekhya has invested herself across involvement in debate and learning more insight around business, two areas she plans to tie in her future career with.

Join us as we’ll cover the journey of a student who has proven “age is just a number” as we dive into the experiences, passions, and ambitions behind this young student that have led to immense success and early start to her medical career!

On the fifteenth overall episode and our second episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Exploring Ethical Dilemmas," we are joined by Dr. Ryan Nelson. Dr. Nelson is an Assistant Professor in the Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy at Baylor College of Medicine. He also works as an ethics consultant at Houston Methodist, providing expertise over dilemmas and contributing to top-notch care even in the most unsteady of times for patients. He received his Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Utah in 2019 and completed a clinical ethics fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine in 2021. Dr. Nelson’s research addresses the role of values in medical science and practice, with a particular focus on disability, psychiatry, and end-of-life care.

Join us as we’ll cover end-of-life decision making, futility, the challenge of tackling ethical dilemmas, and work as a clinical ethicist - all on this episode with Dr. Nelson!

On the fourteenth overall episode and our third episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Exploring Startups," we are joined by Dr. Duffy Casey. Dr. Casey completed his Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point in 2003, and received his Doctorate of Medicine from Eastern Virginia Medical School in 2009. He completed his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Hawai‘i John A. Burns School of Medicine in 2013 and works at the Malama I Ke Ola Community Health Center on Maui.

Dr. Casey is passionate about international development and creating holistic programs which focus on poverty alleviation. In 2003 he co-founded Global Brigades, Inc., and currently serves on the Board of Directors. Dr. Casey was a recipient of the Gold Medal for the United States President’s Volunteer Service Award in 2008 for his work with Global Brigades. In April 2021, Dr. Casey co-founded Angel Protocol, a decentralized autonomous nonprofit organization (DANO) focused on bringing the power of Endowment Accounts to charitable organizations around the world, empowering them to achieve financial freedom. He currently serves as Angel Protocol’s Chief Impact Officer.

Join us on this episode with Dr. Casey to explore how he did it all from starting up the Global Brigades, which has an international presence, in college to now leading its efforts across several countries while continuing to lead another nonprofit with Angel Protocol. We’ll dive into all of this with Dr. Casey!

On the thirteenth overall episode and the first episode of our new series: “Dual Degrees in Medicine,” we will cover the unique paths offered through dual degrees, aspects to consider over pursuing them, and what your career could look like if you do pursue one. We are joined by Dr. Sharona Hoffman. Dr. Hoffman received her B.A. from Wellesley College, her J.D. from Harvard Law School, an LL.M. in health law from the University of Houston, and an S.J.D. in health law from Case Western Reserve University School of Law. She is a Professor of Law and Bioethics at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. She joined the faculty in 1999 and is now the Edgar A. Hahn Professor of Law, Professor of Bioethics, and Co-Director of the Law School’s Law-Medicine Center. She teaches Health Law courses, Employment Discrimination, and Civil Procedure and was voted First Year Teacher of the Year in 2011, 2012, and 2019. She was elected to membership in the American Law Institute in 2017. She also served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs from 2006 until 2009 and won the 2014 Distinguished Teacher Award.

In 2013, Dr. Hoffman was selected by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for a scholar-in-residence fellowship in public health law. She has also twice spent a sabbatical semester as a Visiting Scholar at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2007 and 2014) and was a Visiting Scholar at Emory University in 2014 as well. Dr. Hoffman has published over sixty articles and book chapters on health law and civil rights issues. In 2021 Leiter’s Law School Reports listed her as 9th most cited health law professor for the years 2016-2020 (tied with two other academics). Dr. Hoffman has lectured throughout the United States and internationally and has been widely quoted in the press. She has developed particular expertise and a national reputation in the area of health information technology.

On the twelfth overall episode and our sixth episode of Setting the Scene’s series: “Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Dr. Christopher Loo. Dr. Loo is a surgeon, serial entrepreneur, investor, author, consultant, executive coach, and keynote speaker. He received his MD-PhD from the medical scientist training program offered jointly through the Baylor College of Medicine and Department of Bioengineering at Rice University. Dr. Loo achieved financial freedom by the age of 29, and F.I.R.E. in 2016 through his multiple passive investment income strategies. After traveling the globe for a year, Dr. Loo started his consulting company in 2017 to spread awareness about the importance of financial literacy among the physician community.

Dr. Loo is a 4x Amazon author including “How I Quit My Lucrative Medical Career and Achieved Financial Freedom Using Real Estate”, and is the Host of the Financial Freedom for Physicians Podcast. He has been a contributor to KevinMD (over 2k shares), Doximity, MedPage Today, SoMe Docs, SEAK, Passive Income MD, the White Coat Investor, Board Vitals, and FinCon in 2021. Dr. Loo has his own monthly career success membership program along with a rapidly growing 900+ member private Facebook group “Financial Freedom for Physicians”, and has been named by Board Vitals as one of the top 50 MD’s to follow in Instagram. Join us on this podcast episode to learn Dr. Loo’s journey and the experiences he’s gained behind it!

On the eleventh overall episode and our first episode of Setting the Scene's new series: “Guest Spotlight,” we are joined by Zakia. Zakia is an enthusiastic high schooler from Canada that has picked up several experiences to develop and foster her passions. Zakia has found a particular interest in writing. From being a write for the Hands on Health Magazine to receiving awards in essay competitions, Zakia has shown resilience in her journey to make use of her talents even during a global pandemic. Amongst her awards and distinctions are as 2021’s national winner of the grade 9-12 astrological essay competition for the NASA Scientist For A Day Competition. Her awards and distinctions extend back to 2019, when Zakia first took up this extracurricular. Zakia has also expanded her interests to music and has similarly seen exponential growth even during the pandemic. From essay competitions to practicing piano and a lot of practice in between, Zakia has made great accomplishments with fantastic ambitions and she knows that there is even more in store for her in the future! Learn more about how Zakia did this and more all during the pandemic as a high schooler!

On the tenth overall episode and our first episode of Setting the Scene's new series: “Exploring Ethical Dilemmas,” we are joined by Dr. Wesley Boyd. Dr. Boyd is a professor of psychiatry and medical ethics at Baylor College of Medicine. He also is a lecturer on Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Before his career as a psychiatrist and ethics expert, Dr. Boyd completed his medical degree at UNC Chapel Hill, a psychiatry residency at Cambridge Hospital, and a fellowship in Medical Ethics at Harvard Medical School. He has taught extensively in the humanities, bioethics, human rights and psychiatry. His areas of interest include social justice, access to care, human rights, asylum and immigration, humanistic aspects of medicine, physician health and well-being, the pharmaceutical industry, mass incarceration, and substance use, and writes for both academic and lay audiences in these areas.

On the ninth overall episode and fifth episode of Setting the Scene's episode series: "Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Dr. Cory Fawcett. Dr. Fawcett is an award winning author, speaker, entrepreneur, personal coach, and repurposed general surgeon. He completed his bachelor’s degree in biology at Stanford University, his doctor of medicine at Oregon Health Sciences University and his general surgery residency at Kern Medical Center. After completing his training, he returned to southern Oregon to practice for twenty years in a single specialty, private practice group in Grants Pass. Since 1988, he has shared his home with his lovely bride Carolyn. They have two boys: Brian, who graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in economics, and Keith, who graduated from Full Sail University with a degree in mobile development.

On the eight overall episode and our first episode of Setting the Scene's series: "Exploring Startups," we are joined by The Premed Scene's very own founders. In this episode, we cover everything from the start to now where the team has built up several programs and resources, including a blog, medical newsletter, virtual shadowing, a research journal club, mentorship program, and our very own podcast: Setting the Scene! The Premed Scene has brought together a team of over twenty who pitch in with each one of these flourishing programs. Altogether, The Premed Scene has grown to foster a collaborative environment amongst aspiring physicians, and during the episode, we will take you through each step of the process.

Find out more about The Premed Scene: thepremedscene.com

On the seventh overall episode and fourth episode of Setting the Scene's episode series: "Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Dr. Disha Spath. Dr. Spath is a mother, wife, and a primary care physician trained in internal medicine. Even with supposedly having everything, she found herself deep in student debt and poor well-being. Although reluctant at first, Dr. Spath found the utility of frugality, and she looks back on it as the best thing that happened for her family! In only a year and a half, $208k in student loans went completely paid off. Since then, her and her husband have quickly found their way to financial freedom. Dr. Spath also took initiative and created a blog to reflect on her journey and empower other physicians.

Check out Dr. Spath: https://www.thefrugalphysician.com/about-me/

On the sixth overall episode and our first episode of Setting the Scene's series: "Exploring Startups," we are joined by Chinmayi Balusu. Originally from northern California, Chinmayi is a third-year undergraduate student at Columbia University in New York City, where she is pursuing neuroscience and medical humanities. In May of 2019, Chinmayi founded the international student-led not-for-profit organization Simply Neuroscience, which works to foster students' interdisciplinary interests in the brain through neuroscience and psychology education, outreach, and awareness. In just over a year, Simply Neuroscience has grown to a team of over 300 volunteers involved in 25 departmental initiatives, including but not limited to the Humans of Neuroscience series, "The Synapse" Podcast, Action Potential Advising Program, and Brain Resource Creation. The broader Simply Neuroscience community spans approximately 50,000 individuals from 119 countries and 50 U.S. states and territories. Chinmayi is passionate about youth science communication and actively works to further neuroscience and interdisciplinary STEM outreach through public speaking, completing over 165 in-person and virtual speaking engagements to date.

On the fifth overall episode and third episode of Setting the Scene's episode series: "Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Dr. Jordan Frey. Dr. Jordan Frey AKA The Prudent Plastic Surgeon is a plastic and reconstructive surgeon. Despite being a plastic surgeon, Initially, Dr. Frey found poor financial well-being to further spread into affecting his overall well-being too. From there, Dr. Frey decisively took initiative to make a change. In just 12 months, he bounced back from being $520,000 in debt. Dr. Frey never looked back from there and has continued to further increase his net worth. Not only did his financial well-being bounce back, but also his overall well-being shot through the roof. In fact, Dr. Frey noticed that he became a better doctor to his patients too!

On the fourth overall episode and second episode of Setting the Scene's episode series: "Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Dr. Brent Lacey. Dr. Lacey is a gastroenterologist at Texas Digestive Disease Consultants in Southlake, Texas with a passion for financial management and career coaching. Dr. Lacey is a board-certified gastroenterologist and a Master Financial Coach through Ramsey Solutions. In this financial role, he helped his first 300 coaching clients pay off over $1.2 million of debt in just 2 months. Dr. Lacey is also the founder and CEO of The Scope of Practice, in which he helps mentor health care professionals on how to run a practice and manage finances. As well, after his fellowship, Dr. Lacey helped created a Financial Discipleship Ministry at his church and developed a personal finance curriculum for his hospital.

Learn more about Dr. Lacey: https://www.thescopeofpractice.com/

On Setting the Scene's third overall episode, we are joined by Parmin Sedigh. Parmin is a Canadian high school student who is enthusiastic over her research pursuits. Even before beginning college, Parmin took the initiative to get a head start on diving into research. Initially, Parmin found her enthusiasm for research with The Knowledge Society (TKS), a STEM program that trains students on emerging science and technology. From there, Parmin continued on with writing and presenting research. As her interest in research grew, Parmin started a blog on Medium and also shares more with her own Youtube channel! Additionally, she has not only excelled in extracurricular research pursuits but also with much more outside of this. In 2020 alone, Parmin was awarded with first place for academic excellence in her grade and an honorable mention for best delegate at the Distance Model United Nations. Despite the obstacles during the pandemic, Parmin thrived and made the most out of an otherwise negative situation, proving that success is achievable even in the midst of a pandemic!

Check out Parmin's Blog!: https://parminsedigh.medium.com/

Check out Parmin's Youtube Channel!: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHCv6JNpw5oNrf6bAtdA05Q

On the second overall episode and first episode of Setting the Scene's episode series: "Money Management & Independence," we are joined by Drs. Kate and Victor Mangona. Drs. Kate and Victor Mangona launched their podcast, "Medicine, Marriage and Money," to spread the word and share their story of financial independence as physicians.

Dr. Kate Mangona is a practicing board-certified pediatric radiologist, mother of two. With her husband Victor, she is an active and passive real estate investor with a portfolio worth over $5 million and will reach financial freedom at just five years out of training. Kate is also a relationship coach who helps physicians find peace and joy in their marriages and live a purposeful, meaningful life.

Dr. Victor Mangona is a board-certified radiation oncologist, specializing in pediatrics and protons. He has a passion for real estate investing and is a tax code enthusiast. In 2015, Victor became a financial expert during his last year of training in preparation for managing finances as attending physicians along with his wife.

Feel free to check out their website to listen to their podcast: https://www.medicinemarriageandmoney.com/

On today's episode of Setting the Scene, the leadership of The Premed Scene, Diya, Michael, and Tarun, go into detail about what the podcast is about and introduce exciting new topics they will cover!