By Felipe on June 14th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
Read Leeore’s account of starting a chapter here. In this week’s blog, she talks about the activities her new chapter engaged in.
Curriculum Reform
My partner and I decided that as we started the chapter, we also needed to work on curriculum reform. If we could help it, the first time people heard the word abortion at this institution should not be at an optional extracurricular activity. We met with a block director who works with curriculum building to understand what the process to change or add curriculum looks like.
As we moved forward, I made myself two promises (these were important for me and guided the way I chose to navigate situations, but absolutely do not need to be universal and likely would not apply everywhere).
- I would not make enemies intentionally. This meant being discreet and minimizing resistance where we could.
- I wanted to fully understand all relevant policies. Knowing where the legal and institutional lines are would help me avoid resistance where possible and ensure that I was deliberate about my actions and pushing the right boundaries.
These goals meant understanding the laws, as well as school policy. I read legislative policies in place regarding abortion in the state and set up meetings with administrators to understand our institution’s policies regarding abortion care and education. We clearly informed them of our goals to enact curriculum reform and start the MSFC student group. We were fortunate that our administration assured us that we would personally be protected from any legislative backlash, but the process required persistence.In parallel, we were reaching out to doctors and professors we thought may be supportive to see if they would be interested in being involved. Many emails were never returned. We received some general support, usually followed by saying they did not have personal experience or knowledge to actively help. We found an advisor who, despite never having been trained to perform abortions, is supportive and passionate.
We started reaching out directly to block directors to discuss options to include curriculum. Though several seemed supportive of the idea, taking actual steps forward proved to be a challenge. We were able to add one lecture to our reproductive unit that touched on the sensitivity of pregnancy, how to counsel patients, and briefly included abortion. While there is so much more work to be done, this was an incredibly stride forward.
Chapter Events
While we were moving forward with the administrative pieces of starting a student group (filing to be an official student group, writing our constitution, etc.), we talked about events we wanted to have and our visions for the group. When the pandemic started, we held a virtual event with the MSFC medical director on the basics of abortion care. It was a small event, but we wanted to make sure that we closed the school year out with an event.
This spring, we built up to an incredibly successful event. Two of our board members organized a talk in conjunction with some law school groups. We found many of our students were curious about legal questions, and many law students had questions about the fundamentals and safety of abortions. Interestingly, the law school had a much easier time finding professors who were eager and excited to speak. The event (still virtual) had 1-2 speakers from each school and engaged about 130 people! We are hoping to continue a partnership with the law students and work on legislative advocacy with them in the future.
One of the biggest challenges we have faced (and continue to face) is finding speakers and folks to work with our group. We have few faculty members who have performed abortions in the past (our institution does not perform them). The institutional guidelines also are unclear and seem to vary between departments, which further complicates finding folks who want or feel comfortable working with us. We have had to rely mainly on folks from other institutions who are kindly willing to speak with us.
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By Felipe on June 08th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
At the end of my first year, having just finished my reproductive block, I realized I had yet to hear the word “abortion” in my medical school. Around the same time, my state signed into law a bill that made almost all abortions illegal after 8 weeks (it was partially blocked by a judge shortly after). Through conversations with friends at other schools and brief talks at my own, I heard about MSFC. Early fall of my second year, I connected with Rachel from MSFC. After confirming that there has been no activity on my campus, Rachel asked me, “How would you feel about starting a chapter?”
I have always firmly believed in reproductive care and justice. Like all healthcare, I believe that regardless of personal beliefs, providers must be knowledgeable and trust their patients to make the best choices for their lives and circumstances. At the very least, I figured all schools should introduce abortions to students and exemplify how to have compassionate discussions with our patients. However, I had no previous abortion advocacy experience and had only very basic knowledge surrounding the topics. Many exemplary activists working in the reproductive justice world and starting an MSFC chapter felt like skipping many, many steps. On top of feeling like I was overstepping and wholly underqualified, I had no idea how my peers or the faculty would receive an MSFC chapter. I did not even know what our school policies were and if a chapter would be allowed in our conservative state’s public medical school. Despite my overwhelming doubt, I figured I could try.
I started by individually approaching a few friends to ask if they (hypothetically) would be interested in being involved with an MSFC chapter. Once I had a couple of yeses, I branched a little more to other people I thought would be receptive. It was a simple “hey if we started a chapter of Medical Students for Choice, would you be interested in coming to events or being involved?” It seemed like there was at least a little interest, so I had some reassurance that moving forward might get us somewhere.
We started by compiling a list of students that would be interested in being involved. We decided on a date, ordered some pizza (thanks MSFC funding!), invited t he list, and sent out a school-wide email announcing we were starting a chapter. My goal was to find out what type of chapter folks would be interested in creating. About 30 folks show up. I threw together a quick presentation about the basics of MSFC and the recent anti-abortion legislation that had passed. We went around the room and asked people what type of programs they would be interested in attending. It became abundantly clear that there was a lot of interest. Still, like me, no one felt qualified to move towards legislative or curriculum advocacy because we did not have the background knowledge.
At the start of the following school year, we emailed everyone that had attended an event or expressed interest in the group and created an executive board with five members. To continue growing the group, we participated in the (virtual) student group fair to start recruiting first years. Shortly after, we planned a social event for the board to get together and encouraged younger students to meet us (outdoors in the summer, distanced). Our programming continued focusing on educational events about abortion and the legal status in the state, our average attendance increasing to the 30ish range. Especially due to the pandemic and Zoom fatigue, we were (and are) trying to focus on quality events and not overwhelming with quantity.
About halfway through the school year, we opened up applications for general board positions with no title or specific responsibilities. We intentionally geared this toward first-year students hoping that this would be an easy transition to get more involved, introduce them to the conversations we were having as a board, and help ensure continuity of our initiatives and the group. Being such a new student group with so little framework, we wanted to ensure that if someone new stepped into the role next year, they would not feel completely overwhelmed without direction. We ended up with 4 wonderful applications and expanded our board to 9. One goal has been to identify everyone’s interests and work on brainstorming our future goals, ensuring that our newer board members will have initiatives they feel passionate about pursuing.
While I often find myself wanting to focus on the big national initiatives and am frustrated with the seemingly slow progress we are making, I remind myself that we are building something brand new, and creating a solid framework takes time. Even our most engaged and passionate students need to have baseline knowledge and confidence before advancing toward the community outreach and legislative advocacy initiatives that I would love to see our group participate in sometime in the future. I have high hopes for what this chapter can accomplish, and I feel grateful for the growth we have seen already.
If I could offer advice to anyone that is trying to start a chapter, it would be:
- Trust yourself to learn along the way. Do not wait to become an expert before starting. You will learn what you need to as you go. You are more powerful than your imposter syndrome.
- Find at least one person that will go on this journey with you. It makes all the difference. After I did that, everything felt so much easier. We absolutely faced challenges and bumps, but they all felt so much more manageable. Two people meant we had more time and capacity. It also widened our circles to do the work. We also started sitting in on some of MSFC’s webinars which helped us gain knowledge and feel more confident in speaking to others about these topics.
- Start where you can with what you need. That will look different everywhere but let your community’s needs guide what you do. If you have an incredibly knowledgeable group that feels confident, powerful, and ready to enact change in the legislature on day 1, go do that! If your larger community needs lots of contraception counseling, get on that. If your group wants to make lasting changes to the curriculum, start toward curriculum reform action. If all you feel safe and comfortable with is inviting 5 people to watch a documentary, that is world-changing.
Read here the part two, where Leeore talks about the activities her new chapter engaged in.
By Felipe on June 01st, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
Welcome to the second post of our new Student Leader Spotlight series, where we’ll be regularly featuring one of our amazing Student Leaders and hearing in their own words what they care about, and what fuels the work they do with their chapter. This time is Taylor Williams-Hamilton, 3rd year medical student at Morehouse School of Medicine and MSFC chapter President.
What drove you to get involved with MSFC?
I joined MSFC because I saw it as a chance to learn more about reproductive justice while also giving me the opportunity to become a leader and advocate for social change.
What has been your favorite event/chapter activity so far?
My favorite chapter event was when we hosted a sex-trafficking workshop. We invited a speaker in around the time the super bowl was in Atlanta. It was perfect because Atlanta is also one of the biggest hubs for sex-trafficking. We learned about how to identify and care for victims when they come in as patients. We heard some of their stories and learned of ways that we could better serve this community of people.
What have you gained during the time you have been part of your MSFC Chapter?
I have grown as a leader and advocate. Now, reproductive justice is a passion that will become an integral part of my practice as a physician. I have also gained a great group of people that I can learn from who share some of the same passions that I have.
What first inspired you to become a doctor?
My great-grandmother, Daisy, inspired me to become a doctor. She had some complications from her diabetes, including kidney failure, but when I was a child with dreams of becoming a super model, she told me that I would become her doctor. She later passed away when I was 13 years old, but I thank her for giving me the drive and determination to become a physician who cares primarily for the underserved.
What’s the last book you read?
The last book I read was “Killing the Black Body” by Dr. Dorothy E. Roberts
Taylor Williams-Hamilton, 3rd year medical student at Morehouse School of Medicine
By Felipe on May 24th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
On April 17, 2021, the second annual Canadian Symposium took place over Zoom! The first Canadian Symposium happened in 2019 after Canadian student leaders were inspired to plan a Canadian-specific conference after attending MSFC’s Conference on Family Planning in 2017. The first Symposium was a great success, leading to student interest in making it an annual event.
In fall 2019, a group of medical students across Canada assembled a planning committee and got to work to begin planning an in-person conference for March 2020. Due to COVID-19, we ultimately ended up postponing the Symposium so the student planners could decide in a few months if an in-person conference was feasible. In fall 2020, the planning committee reconvened and decided to move forward with planning an online conference for spring 2021.
The planning committee was able to rework the original schedule to suit an online format. Many of the speakers they had originally confirmed for the in-person Symposium were willing to participate virtually. It was very important to the planning committee to provide a hands-on learning opportunity, so they decided to include a limited enrollment virtual MVA workshop using supplies borrowed from MSFC HQ. Other sessions included The Impact of COVID-19 on Abortion Care, Trauma-Informed Care & Indigenous People, Trans Reproductive Health, and an abortion provider panel with providers across Canada.
Around 80 Canadian medical students registered for the conference, and over half of registrants attended at least a portion of the conference. We received positive feedback about the Symposium via email and through our feedback survey – one participant said “Thank you so much for organizing this, I really enjoyed it and learned a lot and it made me want to be an abortion provider!”
We are so proud of our student planning committee and look forward to the next Canadian Symposium!
By Felipe on May 17th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Medical Students for Choice congratulates Asha Lindsey and Karla Tytus on receiving the 2021 Elizabeth Karlin Early Achievement Award*. Both of these student activists are in their 3rd year from Meharry Medical College. Asha and Karla have worked in committee with other Black MSFC members to organize a continuing webinar series: “Unmuted: The Intersection of Race, Reproductive Justice, and Family Planning.“ This series explores the history of reproductive violence and oppression facing the Black community in the United States and examines how this legacy of racism endures today along the entire reproductive healthcare spectrum. One of the aspects that makes this series special is the inclusion of reproductive justice experts from both within and external to the mainstream medical system. Faculty have included doulas, midwives, nurses, physicians, sociologists, and nonprofit professionals. The webinars are open to MSFC members and the broader student community. Since its inception in May 2020, the webinars have educated hundreds of students on racial and reproductive injustices.
As leaders of their chapter at Meharry, Asha and Karla have done an incredible job growing the chapter and moving it toward sustainability. Despite the many disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Meharry chapter thrives and builds lasting connections with their community. To provide educational opportunities for their membership, they planned a virtual conference for pre-med and medical students at Meharry and Vanderbilt. The conference offered educational content not covered in either of the schools‘ curriculum, including Diversity & Equity in Abortion Access; and War on Drugs & Pregnant Women. They also included a manual vacuum aspirator (MVA) workshop for the conference attendees, delivering the equipment to each participant. Despite the online instruction, students had an opportunity to gain comfort and facility with MVAs. Asha and Karla have gone above and beyond to educate their classmates, their community, and the MSFC membership–at-large. Their work to raise racial justice issues in conjunction with clinical skills to the medical student community is necessary and vital to the future of abortion provision. We are so proud of the all that they have achieved and look forward to their future success in transforming medical care.
* The Elizabeth Karlin Early Achievement Award, first awarded in 1997 by the National Abortion Federation (NAF), recognizes and honors the commitment and accomplishments of a medical student who involves herself/himself/themselves in efforts to ensure that abortion remains a safe and viable reproductive health option.
By Felipe on May 13th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Emil Ekvardt from Great.com interviewed Pamela Merritt, MSFC’s Executive Director, as part of their ‘Great.com Talks With…’ podcast. This series is an antidote to negative news stories that aims to shed light on organizations and experts whose work is making a positive impact on the world.
My Body, My Choice: Changing the Landscape of Abortion Care
One in three people who experience pregnancy will have an abortion in their lifetime. With such staggering statistics, why do such barriers still limit people from engaging in open discussions and accessing professional health care? Pamela Merritt from Medical Students for Choice (MSFC) describes the medical and political landscape concerning abortion, and MSFC’s dedication to ensure adequate training and education for medical students.
Which Barriers Stand In the Way of Access to Adequate Abortion Care?
In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court deemed abortion legal in the landmark Roe v. Wade case. This by no means allows people the freedom of choice, however. A plethora of financial, logistical and socio-political factors stand in the way of access to health care for those seeking abortions. Pamela gives some insight by explaining that within the entire state of Missouri there exists only one abortion provider, as well a mandatory 72-hour waiting period. Many people have to travel to other states in order to access abortion care and it is often unaffordable.
On top of this, essential health services are forced out of existence by draconian laws and targeted regulations for abortion clinics. State authorities may specify how high the clinic ceiling must be, or how far away from a school it has to be, in order to be built. So we see how deep these restrictions run, that abortion clinics are literally halted before they can come into existence. Medical Students for Choice works to change this landscape by providing solutions for students who wish to train in abortion care; advocating for better education and more access to training.
“No matter what happens in the United States or any country, people will need access to clinic care… And no matter what happens to the legal framework, abortions will continue to be a necessary medical practice and a practice that people have as long as people experience pregnancy.” Pamela Merritt, Executive Director of Medical Students for Choice.
Listen to the whole interview to find out how you can oppose the stigma surrounding abortions and work to overcome the barriers in accessing health care. You can also join MSFC’s network of student leaders who are working to train themselves and their peers on abortion and family planning. Sometimes the solutions are simple: try having honest and open conversations with friends and family about why you support abortion access and the importance of bodily autonomy.
Great.com is a philanthropic project working to fix the global climate crisis. They believe this is the largest problem facing mankind and know that it will take quick and creative action to solve it. Erik Bergman is the founder of Great.com, and he made his name by building one of the most successful businesses in the online casino industry. He’s taking all his gambling knowledge and experience and putting it into Great.com, which is designed to generate profit as an online casino affiliate 100% of which will be donated to climate research.
By Felipe on May 11th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
Welcome to the new Student Leader Spotlight series, where we’ll be regularly featuring one of our amazing Student Leaders and hearing in their own words what they care about, and what fuels the work they do with their chapter. Kicking off the series is Ihuoma Igbokwe, 3rd year medical student at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and MSFC chapter Founding Leader.
What drove you to get involved with MSFC?
Ihuoma Igbokwe, MS3 at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Apart from Chicago most of Illinois has conservative views. We see patients who have misconceptions about reproductive justice and fear about the stigma around family planning. I wanted to make sure that I would be well equipped to care for these patients. In addition, being in the capital of Illinois I thought that we could help make a difference in advocating for policy change regarding reproductive justice and family planning.
What do you like most about being part of your MSFC Chapter?
Being able to advocate for better climate for my future patients. I have always been very interested in women’s health, family planning and reproductive justice. I truly appreciate the ability to come together with like-minded people to advocate for patients and ensure that they are treated fairly and have the tools need to make the best decisions for themselves.
What has been your favorite event/chapter activity so far?
My favorite activity so far is when we co-hosted Born after Roe with Planned Parenthood. It was amazing to speak with Chicago Abortion fund and ACLU. I was very thrilled to learn about what they do, what resources they provide patients and what I can do to help them. For me I was able to learn a lot for myself but also for the patients I may see on my rotations, during my sub-I, and my own future patients.
Do you have a favorite Reproductive Rights/Reproductive Justice/Social Justice quote?
“Reproductive freedom is not just the ability not to have a child through birth control. It’s the ability to have one if and when you want” – Pamela Madsen
If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?
If I could learn anything I guess it would be any language originating in East Asia or India. I speak English. I am conversational in Igbo and I learned Spanish and Latin for a number of years. But I have never studied/learned a language originating from an Asian culture.
By Felipe on May 05th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
When is the last time you felt hopeful? For many of us, the vaccine rollout has provided great comfort and helped us feel optimistic. Others have been encouraged by news that our favorite small businesses plan to reopen or by connecting with friends and family through creative, socially distant events.
I find hope from the opportunity to lead Medical Students for Choice (MSFC) as Executive Director, and I am inspired every day as I serve alongside a dedicated community of student leaders and partners organizing to create tomorrow’s abortion providers and pro-choice physicians. Our work isn’t possible without the support of individuals like you; please consider donating today.
My experience in the reproductive health, rights, and justice movement over the last twelve years has instilled in me a tremendous appreciation for the power that lies in community. At MSFC, we know that we cannot do this work alone. With your donation and support, we can provide medical students with the training and resources they need to achieve our mission.
MSFC seeks to center the most marginalized in our communities, and we are working to incorporate anti-racism training into our work to hold the needs of people of color front and center. We’ve increased outreach to reproductive justice leaders and organizations to create fluid pathways for collaboration. We are prioritizing expanding who reproductive healthcare looks to serve, centering equity, and reducing the stigma that trans folks often face when trying to access care.
Our community has grown to 235 chapters in 28 countries, broadening our mission’s reach worldwide. Medical students have led our organization’s work since its inception and will continue to inform how we move forward. This mobile force of dedicated student leaders makes our work to create tomorrow’s abortion providers and pro-choice physicians possible.
We continue to expand access to training for student leaders and hope to offer a hybrid of in-person and online training in 2021. While increasing access to training, we remain cognizant of the threats to legal access to abortion that loom. We are actively exploring new opportunities for student leaders to add their voice to defending access to the full range of reproductive healthcare, including abortion care.
I am hopeful about the future because I believe in the power of our advocacy and activism. There’s no stopping us, but to keep the momentum going, we need your support. Donate now to help us dream bigger, increase access to abortion, and connect the dedicated community of pro-choice physicians, abortion providers, and student leaders worldwide.
In solidarity,
Pamela Merritt
Executive Director, Medical Students for Choice
By Felipe on May 03rd, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
Charlotte, Toronto:
The pandemic and the virtual pivot have changed a lot for my chapter, but we are lucky in that our existing leadership structure adapts well to our new circumstances. Below is a short summary of how we operate, what works, and what doesn’t.
At our school, many clubs employ the junior- and senior- director model. Essentially, the senior leaders are two second-year students. Early in the school year, they recruit two first-years for the role of junior director. Recruitment takes the form of social media posts, listserv announcements, and hosting a table at the (now virtual) clubs fair. The application is short and anonymized to promote equity. Once selected, the junior directors work closely with the senior leadership to plan, promote, and execute events. Junior directors then graduate to senior directors the following year, and the cycle repeats.
This structure is great because it eases the incoming leadership into the role; mentorship is built-in. Our foursome becomes a close-knit exec team and we all share the responsibilities pretty equally. There is also less pressure to get a ton of numbers – you just need two motivated people with an interest in reproductive justice. The downside of this model is that we don’t actually have membership. Our club is really just the executive squad, as all our programming is open to every student. Nearly every student group at our school is like this. But what we lack in community feel, we try to make up for with thoughtful and engaging programming. We also try to partner with other Canadian chapters where possible to increase participation. I hope this helps other MSFC chapters to consider a similar model!
Nora, Chicago:
We have been fully virtual since mid-March 2020 and all of our recruitment has been online. We have seen a decrease in attendees to our events as serving lunch or dinner on campus was always a major incentive in the past, but it has resulted in more intimate discussions during our events. This academic year, we participated in a virtual Student Activities Fair, our primary recruitment event for incoming M1s. The school held it via virtual Zoom rooms and we prepared a few slides with information on the types of events we have as well as contact information. We also write and send out a monthly newsletter to our members with information on current events, a brief history lesson on reproductive justice, and action items. It is fun to compile and allows our members to see us pop up monthly in their inbox as a reminder we are still here!
We are currently in the process of transitioning our e-board so that M2s can phase out of leadership and focus on Step 1 studying – this also allows us to have multiple e-board elections throughout the academic year (one early in the fall to recruit M1 reps and one in the winter to transition those M1 reps into leadership roles). Progressively transitioning M1 reps gives them the exposure to hit the ground running once they take over leadership roles. Our M1 rep this year in particular has been wonderful about coming up with creative events we can host virtually and spreading excitement about it throughout her class.
Recruitment and involvement are definitely down this year compared to last year, but without our M1 rep, it would be even lower than it already is. Our M1 rep has been crucial to our success this year.
By Felipe on April 19th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
IUD insertion training kit used at UWSOM-Seattle’s virtual workshop.
The University of Washington, School of Medicine (UWSOM) in Seattle recently hosted a completely virtual IUD workshop with 50 students and 10+ physician leaders participating. Our workshop was geared primarily towards MS1 and MS2 pre-clinical students with the goal of increasing their competency and knowledge in the field of reproductive healthcare and justice. We were inspired to host this workshop to increase medical literacy surrounding reproductive care and educate student physicians on barriers that our patients may face while attempting to receive adequate contraceptive counseling. As Roe v. Wade’s stability continues to be threatened, we feel it is important for us as future providers to learn how to protect our patients’ reproductive autonomy.
To plan and host this event, we joined forces with the OB/GYN and Family Medicine Interest Groups on our campus. In creating a collaborative committee of around 10 medical students from each group, we were able to access increased funding, resources, and physician connections. We also utilized workshop supplies from organizations outside of MSFC, since it wouldn‘t have been financially feasible for us to send out supplies with return shipping. We reached out to several clinics, pharmaceutical companies, and OB/GYN and Family Medicine residency programs within the University of Washington system to ask for supply donations. We acquired a total of 30 Paragard and 30 Mirena practice IUDs, as well as 35 uterus models through the UW Family Planning Clinic. We utilized MSFC Student Activism Funding and Family Medicine Interest Group funds to send out materials to participants.
The event was approximately 60 minutes. The first 30 minutes consisted of a presentation from two of UW’s wonderful Family Planning physicians who spoke about contraceptive options, barriers to access, our role as providers, and best practices for inclusive contractive counseling (including for LGBTQ+ patients, homeless patients, and patients without insurance). The second 30 minutes were conducted in Zoom breakout rooms with one physician assisting 4-5 students with proper IUD insertion and answering questions surrounding contraception, reproductive justice, and lived experiences while working with patients. After the workshop, we sent out a feedback form for student and physician participants to complete to better help us structure workshops in the future.
As UWSOM is a regional medical school, comprising the five states of the WWAMI region (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho), our next goal is to expand this workshop throughout our entire region. As reproductive access looks much different in Wyoming vs. Alaska vs. Washington, it is imperative that all student physicians within the UWSOM system are given the same opportunity to increase their knowledge surrounding inclusive contraceptive care. Next steps for our collective at the UWSOM Seattle cohort look like understanding the nuances and challenges of hosting this event on a broader, five-state scale.
The best suggestion we have for hosting a large event virtually that requires heavy physician presence and materials to be dispersed (while enforcing social distancing guidelines) is to collaborate. Expanding our team beyond our MSFC leaders directly led to the success of our virtual workshop. We were only able to host this event through our collaboration with the Family Medicine and OB/GYN Interest Groups. In bringing together more medical students passionate about reproductive justice and access, we were able to leverage a collective of resources, brain power, and student ingenuity, as well as build a stronger community of medical providers passionate about upholding reproductive autonomy. We look forward to our continued collaboration as we work to provide this educational opportunity to medical students across the WWAMI region!
