News

#IAMSE23 Registration is NOW OPEN

We are pleased to announce that registration for the 27th Annual Meeting of IAMSE, to be held June 10 – 13, 2023 in Cancun, Mexico is now open. At this annual meeting of the International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) faculty, staff, and students from around the world who are interested in health science education join together in faculty development and networking opportunities. Sessions on curriculum development, assessment, and simulation are among the common topics available at the meeting.

Featured plenary speakers include Professor Kara Caruthers (Meharry Medical College, USA), Dr. Michelle Daniel (University of California San Diego School of Medicine, USA), Dr. Anique de Bruin (Maastricht University, The Netherlands), and Dr. Ricardo Leon-Borquez (World Federation for Medical Education).

Additional meeting details and registration can be found at www.iamseconference.org.

#IAMSECafe Archives

IAMSE Cafe Virtual Sessions

9/2/2025 – IAMSE Virtual Forum Preview with Demidmaa Tuvdendorj & Amy Stone
8/19/2025 – Ambassadors Part 2 with Di Eley, Elisabeth Schlegel, & Sireesha Bala
7/15/2025 – How Educators Are Using AI with Youngjin Cho & Khiet Ngo
7/1/2025 – Foundations Course with Amber Heck & Aviad Haramati
6/3/2025 – Ambassadors with Di Eley, Surapaneni Krishna Mohan & Kevlian Andrew
5/20/2025 Conflict Management with Greg Pennington & Carolyn Humphrey
5/6/2025 Implementation of Self-Directed Learning with Fomba Kanneh, Alena Wade, & Jessica Milner
4/15/2025 Professionalism with Dr. Michelle Carroll-Turpin & Kristin Kassaw
4/1/2025 Coaching in Medical Education with Dr. Rachelle Curcio & Chris Burkett
3/18/2025 2025 Interprofessionalism with Jeevan Diwakaran & Lydia Aguilera
3/4/2025 2025 Conference Preview with Samuel Ikonne
2/18/2025 Academic Advising – Best Practices (Panel) with Tahnee Netro & Mercy Azeke
2/4/2025 Mandatory Attendance/Non-Mandatory Attendance with Chasity O’Malley
1/21/2025 ASME Introduction with Chasity O’Malley
1/7/2025 Career Pathway for Medical Educators with Katie Huggett
12/17/2024 End of Year Celebration with Tameka Clemons
12/3/2024 Medical Laboratory Science: The Profession that Supports Most Health Care Decisions with Deepak Sharma, Bei Zhang, John Gerlach, Kathleen Hoag, and Rachel Morris
11/5/2024 IAMSE Virtual Forum Wrap Up with Katie Huggett and Leah Sheridan
10/15/2024 IAMSE – Foundations Course with Chasity O’Malley and Amber Heck (RESCHEDULED)
10/1/2024 How to Support Struggling Students with Tameka Clemons and Dawn Shell
9/17/2024 Wellness for Faculty and Staff with Falicia Harvey and Jeff Fritz
9/3/2024 IM-REACH with Chasity O’Malley and Alice Fornari
8/20/2024 A Conversation IAMSE 2024 Career Awardees Dr. Leah Sheridan and Dr. Jorge Cervantes with Pushparaj Shetty, Leah Sheridan, and Jorge Cervantes
8/6/2024 Wellness for Students with Rakhi Negi, Samiksha Prasad, and Aishwarya Aiyer
6/4/2024 Third Party Resources – Who to Trust? with Chasity O’Malley, Atsusi Hirumi, and Harold Bell 
4/16/2024 Effect of Curricular Refresh and Renewal on Students with Jonathan Wisco and Anna Blenda
4/9/2024 Effect of Curricular Reform on Faculty with Kathryn Huggett and Gary Smith
3/26/2024 IAMSE 2024 Conference Promo with Rakhi Negi and Kim Dahlman
3/5/2024 It isn’t “self-directed” anymore if you have to direct it, or is it? with Jonathan Wisco
2/20/2024 Impact of Research on Undergraduate Medical Education with Tameka Clemons
2/6/2024 Do I need a mentor or a coach? Exploring faculty development resources to support professional growth with Kathryn Huggett
1/30/2024 Annual Goal Setting and Accountability Check-In Session with Rakhi Negi and Chasity O’Malley
1/16/2024 Winter Solstice Book Club with Chasity O’Malley
12/19/2023 End of Year Celebration with all Cafe hosts
12/5/2023 Clerkship Readiness After Step 1 P/F with John Folk
11/21/2023 Lessons Learned During the IAMSE Virtual Forum with Ian Murray
11/7/2023 A Futurist’s Perspective on Medical Education with Denise Kay
10/17/2023 Early Career Award with Rakhi Negi                                                                                      10/03/2023 Professionalism with Chasity O’Malley                                                                                          9/19/23 Accreditation Standards Around DEI with Rakhi Negi
9/5/23 Foundational Sciences vs. Basic Science Factoids with Wendy Lackey Cornelison and Neil Osheroff
8/15/23 How to Distinguish Students After Step 1 P/F with Dr. Dave Harris (chat description)
8/1/23 Tips for Getting Students to Buy in to Active Learning with Tameka Clemons
6/20/23 I23 Recap with Wendy Lackey Cornelison and Amber Heck
5/16/23  Overcommitement with Chasity O’Malley                                                                                          5/2/23  KNN with Dr. Dave Harris, Sarah Williams, Joelle Worm                                                                  4/18/23 Imposter Syndrome with Wendy Lackey Cornelison                                                                             3/21/23 IAMSE 2023 Annual Conference Preview with Amber Heck                                                                3/7/23 Curriculum Refresh with Jon Wisco  
2/21/23 What Does Research Mean to Undergraduate Medical Education? with Rakhi Negi
2/7/23 What are You Reading This Winter? with Katie Huggett
1/17/2023 Foundational Competencies with Lisa Howley and Eric Holmboe
*If you would like to give feedback on this initiative please fill out the form here or email CBME@aamc.org
12/20/2022 End-of-Year Celebrations with Jon Wisco
11/15/2022 Best Practices for Preparing a Successful Grant Proposal for the IAMSE Educational Scholarship and Curriculum Innovation Grants with Amanda Chase, Amber Heck, and Algevis Wrench
11/1/2022 Should I Stay or Should I Go? When Your Next Career Move is Somewhere Else with Katie Huggett
10/18/2022 The Aquifer Sciences Curriculum Database: A Collaborative Development between the IAMSE community and Aquifer with David Harris and Dr. Tracy Fulton
10/4/2022 Sharable Open Education Resources (OER) With ScholarRx with David Harris
9/20/2022 Mitigating Implicit Bias in Medical School Curricula with Jacqueline Powell and Jayne Reuben
9/6/2022 Early Career Award Winner with Jaya Yoda
8/16/22 Toolkits for Medical Science Educators: A Resource for Professional Development and an Opportunity for Scholarship with Nicole Deming, Amber Heck and Jon Wisco
8/2/22 Moving Up in MedEd with Christina DeLucia and Diana Lautenberger
7/19/22 Summer Reading with Chasity O’Malley – Chat Log
6/21/22 IAMSE 2022 Meeting Recap with Kelly Quesnelle
5/3/22 Mentoring in Health Professions Education with Alice Fornari and Darshana Shah
4/19/22 How to Make the Most of Conference Attendance with Heather Christensen
4/5/22 #IAMSE22 Annual Meeting Preview with Maria Sheakley
3/15/22 Third Party Resources with Kelly Quesnelle
3/1/22 Assessment Styles with Jon Wisco
2/15/22 What is the Optimal Timing of Course Evals? with Jon Wisco
2/1/22 Maintaining Professionalism Through Fatigue with Wendy Lackey
1/18/22 Practical Tips for Connecting With Students with Jon Wisco
1/4/22 The Changing Landscape of MedEd with Adi Haramati, Giulia Bonaminio, Frazier Stevenson, Amy Wilson-Delfosse, and Neil Osheroff
12/7/21 IAMSE New Member Meet and Greet with Kelly Quesnelle
11/16/21 Technology in Health Sciences Education During COVID-19: Gains, Losses, and Transformations with Poh Sun Goh and Sol Roberts-Lieb
11/2/21 IAMSE Fellowship and ESME at IAMSE with Adi Haramti, Amber Heck and Amanda Chase
10/19/21 IAMSE Ambassador Program: Global perspectives on medical and science education with Claudio Cortes and Joseph Grannum
10/5/21 Teaching and Incorporating the Health Humanities with Alice Fornari2/2/21 To teach, or not to teach (to the test), that is the question with Jon Wisco
9/21/21 Open Forum to Discuss Basic Science in the Clinical Years with Kelly Quesnelle
9/7/21 Meaningful, Sustainable Transdisciplinary Collaboration: What would it look like? with Atsusi Hirumi
8/17/21 Opportunities for Health Sciences Education in One Health with Margaret McNulty and Rebecca Lufler
8/3/21 Evaluations of Our Teaching with Wendy Lackey
7/20/21 Incorporating Telehealth Into Basic Science Education with Jon Wisco
7/6/21 Virtual Simulations with Jon Wisco
6/1/21 The State of Medical Educators in Developing Nations with Sylvia Olivares and Smart Mbagwu
5/18/21 Building bridges between health science educators from diverse programs with Jennifer Lamberts, Jayne Reuben, and Jonathan Wisco
5/4/21 Outreach Programs with Kelly Quesnelle
4/20/21 The New Horizon of (Medical) Education with Cafe Hosts
4/6/21 IAMSE 2021 Annual Conference Preview with Mark Hernandez
3/16/21 Career impacts of the COVID Year with Lisa Coplitt
3/2/21 Conducting and Disseminating Medical Education Scholarship
2/16/21 The paradigm shift implications on courses and curricula as a result of moving to pass/fail USMLE Step 1 with Doug Gould
1/19/21 The Basic Sciences and the Medical Humanities: An Integrative Approach with Hedy Wald. Suggested reading and faculty development opportunities discussed during the call.
1/5/21 Best Practices for Mentoring with an Eye and Ear Toward Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice with Heather Christensen
12/15/20 Unconventional Teaching Methods with Jon Wisco
12/1/20 Resiliency with the IAMSE Cafe hosts
11/17/20 Learning During and From a Crisis: The Student-Led Development of an online COVID-19 Curriculum with Abby Schiff and Katie Shaffer
Links from the conversation during this session can be found below.
11/3/20 Teaching Race and Medicine: Unlearning what we think we know with Staci Leisman
Links from the conversation during this session can be found here.
10/20/20 The future of education programs for residents and medical students with Lourdes Lopez
10/6/20 Technology and Education with Edgar Herrera Bastida
9/15/20 Team-Based Learning in the Virtual Environment with Drs. Raihan Jumat, Irene Lee and Peiyan Wong
9/1/20 Networking 102 – Networking Outside the Box with Kelly Quesnelle
8/27/20 Mentoring to Make a Difference with Katie Huggett – Literature references can be found here.
8/13/20 IAMSE Ambassadors – Pakistan, Australia, and Finland with Di Eley and Yawar Hyatt Khan
7/23/20 The Disappearing Pathology Instructor with Amy Lin and Regina Kreisle
7/9/20 Partnering with medical students to discover educational solutions for on-line learning with Emily Bird
6/25/20 The Future of Medical Education Conferences: What SHOULD it look like? with Bonny Dickinson
6/11/20 Communities of Practice in a Virtual World with James Pickering
5/28/2020 IAMSE Ambassadors – Mexico, China, Caribbean with Raul Barroso, Sateesh Arja and Zhimin Jia
5/21/2020 Faculty Development in the COVID-19 Era with Alice Fornari
5/14/2020 Evolving Anatomical Education during the COVID pandemic: What will this mean for the future of anatomy teaching? with Jon Wisco, Richard Gonzalez and Lane Fortney
5/7/2020 COVID-19 and the New Medical School with Amber Heck and Michael Lee
4/30/2020 MedEd Equity During COVID-19 with Heather Christensen
4/23/2020 IAMSECafe Welcomes Medical Science Educator EIC with Peter de Jong
4/16/2020 Q&A with the IAMSE President with Neil Osheroff
4/14/2020 MedEd Mailbag: Free Resources During COVID-19 with Kelly Quesnelle. Resources discussed and shared during this session can be found below.
4/9/2020 How Re-thinking and Re-designing Anatomy Instruction Into the Online Space Can Lead to Better Classroom and Cadaver Lab Learning Experiences with Jon Wisco
4/7/2020 MedEd Mailbag: Being Productive in Your Own Space with Kelly Quesnelle
4/2/2020 Leading by Example: Practicing Self-care in a Time of Crisis with Adi Haramati
3/31/2020 MedEd Mailbag: The Virtual Teacher with Kelly Quesnelle

 

Resources for Educators During COVID-19

Harvard Medical School Medical Student COVID-19 Curriculum
One of the greatest difficulties facing everyone nowadays is a lack of clarity about what is going on and what lies ahead. We students especially feel a need to deepen our knowledge of the situation, as we are often viewed as resources by our friends and family. However, it soon became clear how challenging it was to process the wealth of information coming our way. A team of us at Harvard Medical School set out to quickly collate and synthesize accurate information about the pandemic to share with those who do not have the time or resources to research it themselves.
Additional resources include Curriculum for Kids, an article written by the team discussing the curriculum, and an opportunity to give direct feedback to the developers.

AAMC COVID-19 Resource Hub
The AAMC continues to monitor guidance from federal, state, and local health agencies as it relates to the coronavirus (COVID-19). Find information and updates from AAMC on this emerging global health concern.

Acland Anatomy
Acland’s Video Atlas of Human Anatomy contains nearly 330 videos of real human anatomic specimens in their natural colors.

MedEd Portal Virtual Resources
This collection features peer-reviewed teaching resources that can be used for distance learning, including self-directed modules and learning activities that could be converted to virtual interactions. As always, the resources are free to download and free for adaptation to local settings. The collection will be reviewed and updated regularly.

BlueLink Anatomy
From the University of Michigan Medical School

Aquifer
Aquifer is offering free access to 146 Aquifer signature cases, WISE-MD (Surgery), and WISE-OnCall (Readiness for Practice) through June 30, 2020, to all current Aquifer institutional subscribers in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Kaplan iHuman
With i-Human Patients, students experience safe, repeatable, fully-graded clinical patient encounters on their devices anywhere, anytime.

Online MedEd
The unprecedented COVID‐19 crisis has upended the medical and medical education landscape. Our aim during this difficult and confusing time is to support you with what we do best—concise, high–yield videos to help you get up to speed efficiently and effectively—so you can feel confident with however you’re being called on to adjust.

ScholarRX Bricks
In response to a request for assistance from a partner medical school impacted by COVID-19, ScholarRx has agreed to make its Rx Bricks program available at no cost to M2 students for the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year. This comprehensive, online resource can assist schools in implementing contingency plans necessitated by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Osmosis
You can raise the line by training healthcare workers who don’t have experience treating COVID-19. Encourage healthcare workers you know to complete this free CME course on COVID-19 so they’re prepared to fight the virus.

AnatomyZone
Top-quality anatomy videos, all for free.

Harvard Macy
Crowdsourced List of Online Teaching Resources Collated by the Harvard Macy Institute (@HarvardMacy)

Anatomy Connected

Chronicle of Higher Education

Dartmouth SOM Interactive Rad/Anatomy

Firecracker
We understand some of the unique challenges you are facing due to the COVID-19 pandemic and, as a company, are putting together resources to help you keep up with your courses as well as stay up to date with the latest research and evidence-based practices for addressing this new coronavirus.

LWW Health Library

Bates’ Visual Guide

5 Minute Consult
Primary health care is important to everyone, and now more than ever it’s important that you have access to evidence-based diagnostic and treatment content. To help you with caring for all of your patients, we are offering 30-day free access to 5MinuteConsult.com. Use code 5MC30DayAccess73173 to sign up.

Say Hello to Our Featured Member 2019 Annual Meeting Site Host Rick Vari

Our association is a robust and diverse set of educators, researchers, medical professionals, volunteers and academics that come from all walks of life and from around the globe. Each month we choose a member to highlight their academic and professional career and see how they are making the best of their membership in IAMSE. This month’s Featured Member is our 2019 annual meeting site host, IAMSE President Rick Vari.



Rick Vari, PhD
Professor & Senior Dean for Academic Affairs
Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine
Roanoke, Virginia, USA

Why was the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine the right choice for the 2019 IAMSE meeting?
We are the right choice for the meeting this year because we did a fabulous conference several years ago and we were already in the queue for a future IAMSE meeting. We had some scheduling issues with our original site for 2019 and we were able to step in and fill the void. We have a wonderful hotel site (at the Hotel Roanoke), and the people who came from all across North America for the Collaborating Across Borders V: An American-Canadian Dialogue on Interprofessional Healthcare and Practice, in 2015 really enjoyed it. As a relatively new medical school, we are excited about continuing our growing success in medical education; hosting the IAMSE meeting is a real honor for us.

What opportunities will attendees see in Roanoke that they’ve not seen in years past?
Roanoke is a beautiful city to have a conference. We’ve localized the venue, which is a major goal for IAMSE. Attendees and exhibitors will appreciate the layout of the conference site. We are adjacent to the Roanoke Market Square with restaurants, breweries, and shopping featuring local items. There are just lots of opportunities for networking and entertainment. The program is outstanding with presentations and sessions on current and future challenges facing health sciences educators. International abstract submission is up, so more colleagues from other parts of the world may be attending. Increased student participation will be another highlight. This year, IAMSE is also hosting a Taste of Roanoke Street Fair which will replace the annual gala dinner. IAMSE 2019 is going to be a very easy conference to attend. If you can stay for the Grand Extravaganza on Tuesday afternoon it is going to be very special with a hiking trip to a beautiful location on the Blue Ridge Parkway and a visit to the Ballast Point brewery (East Coast operation) for dinner. 

Can you tell me more about this new event?
We are blocking off the Market Square in downtown Roanoke. We will have tastes of local food, beverages, and music. This is a chance to interact in a casual fun setting with lots of local food and a live band! It’s going to be a lot of fun.

What session or speaker are you most looking forward to this year?
I’m looking forward to, of course, the Board of Directors and Committee Chairs meeting.  I’ve enjoyed being president and interacting with the Board and Committee Chairs in this planning session provides IAMSE with a sense of solid direction.  The plenary sessions also look very strong. I’m interested in the Gen Z session (Generation Z: The New Kids on the Block) and How to Use Disruptive Technology to Make Education Better – Not Just Different.

It sounds likes there is much to look forward to this year. Anything else you’d like to share?
The local response from the other medical schools in the area in support of the IAMSE meeting in Roanoke has been very strong.  As a new school, this is a tremendous opportunity for us and the other medical schools in the area to get better acquainted.

To learn more about the 2019 IAMSE Annual Meeting, including the plenary speakers, workshops and networking opportunities, or to register, please visitwww.IAMSEconference.org.

Reserve your spot before March 15 to ensure the Early Bird Discount!

IAMSE at GRIPE 2019 in New Orleans

The IAMSE booth will be exhibiting at the annual winter meeting of the Group for Research in Pathology Education (GRIPE) in New Orleans, LA on January 24-26, 2019. IAMSE Association Manager Julie Hewett will also be delivering a pre-conference workshop titled, “Using Social Media to Disseminate Your Scholarly Work.” If you plan on attending this meeting, don’t miss this session and do not forget to swing by the IAMSE booth and say hello!

Information on the GRIPE Meeting can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there!

Registration for the 23rd Annual IAMSE Meeting is Now Open!

We are pleased to announce that registration for the 23rd Annual Meeting of IAMSE, to be held June 8-11, 2019 in Roanoke, VA, USA, is now open. At this annual meeting of the International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) faculty, staff and students from around the world who are interested in medical science education join together in faculty development and networking opportunities. Sessions on curriculum development, assessment and simulation are among the common topics available at the annual meetings.


Featured plenary speakers include Don Cleveland, Claudia Krebs, Craig Lenz and Geoff Talmon.


Additional meeting details and registration can be found at http://www.iamseconference.org.

IAMSE CoG Meetings – October 2025

IAMSE Communities of Growth (CoGs) are ongoing groups of like-minded individuals who want to informally get together to connect over an area or topic of interest. A Community of Growth is not directly connected to any Committee and is self-organized. For more information on IAMSE CoGs, click here.

Only the AI CoG will be meeting in October! Below are the details for the meeting.

AI CoG

The AI CoG meeting on Zoom will take place at Noon (12 PM) EDT on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. IAMSE AI CoG meetings take place regularly at 12 PM ET on the first Wednesday of each month. For information on how to join the AI CoG, email Doug McKell at douglas.mckell@gmail.com.

At the October meeting, Varna Taranikanti, MD, MS, PhD, Professor in the Department of Foundational Medical Studies at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, will present her research using a novel LLM to create a digital actor to improve patient interviewing skills. She will describe the development process, piloting of the AI tool, patient presentation, digital flexibility, feedback system, and her ongoing data collection. Dr. Taranikanti is also the Systems Director for integrating anatomy with clinical sciences, as well as being involved in teaching all disciplines of anatomy to M1/M2 students.

To join the October AI CoG Zoom meeting, click here.
Meeting ID: 897 1837 0101
Passcode: 511007

IAMSE #VirtualForum25 Welcomes Krishna Mohan Surapaneni

The International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) invites you to join us for our fourth annual Virtual Forum! Join us October 22-24, 2025, as we host ignite talks, lightning talks, and more. The virtual forum is designed for all interested in teaching, designing, and leading health professions sciences curricula around the world. Participants include students & trainees, basic scientists, providers, clinicians, and other faculty from across various healthcare and educational disciplines. We specifically encourage junior faculty, postdocs, and students to participate in the forum! This year’s theme is A Global Vision for Health Education: Empowering an International Community of Educators.”

Below, we look at one of our Virtual Forum Ignite Speakers, Krishna Mohan Surapaneni, Vice Principal and Professor at Panimalar Medical College Hospital & Research Institute, who will be presenting “Globalizing Medical Education: An Imperative for Change, Adaptation & Transformation” from 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM EDT Thursday, October 23, 2025.

Explore the Full Schedule

Globalizing Medical Education: An Imperative for Change, Adaptation & Transformation

Krishna Mohan Surapaneni,
Panimalar Medical College Hospital & Research Institute

Thursday, October 23, 2025
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM EDT

Medical education is at a crossroads. Rapid advances in AI, digital technologies, and global interconnectedness are reshaping how we teach and learn medicine. While these shifts bring opportunities for innovation, equity, and collaboration across borders, they also expose paradoxes like widening digital divides, challenges to access, and the erosion of the human touch in healthcare. This Ignite Talk will explore how medical education can no longer remain confined to local contexts, but must adapt to a shared global framework. It will highlight the promise of cross-border collaboration, the risks of neglecting compassion and humanism, and a vision for restoring the heart of healing in a technology-driven era. Ultimately, it calls on us to cultivate globally connected, yet deeply human-centered medical education that prepares tomorrow’s leaders and healers.

To read more about Krishna Mohan Surapaneni, click here.

Register Today!

Mishra, Teherani to Present for Week 4 of IAMSE Fall 2025 Webcast Audio Seminar Series!

Educating for Change: Education’s Role in Addressing the Climate and Health Crisis

By Jyoti Mishra, PhD, MBA
Arianne Teherani, PhD

We are excited to welcome Dr. Jyoti Mishra, Associate Professor at the University of California San Diego, and Dr. Arianne Teherani, Professor at the University of California San Francisco and Founding Co-Director of the Center for Climate Health and Equity, who will present Educating for Change: Education’s Role in Addressing the Climate and Health Crisis. The session will take place at 12:00 PM EDT Thursday, September 25, for the fourth week of the IAMSE 2025 Fall Webcast Audio Seminar Series titled “Environmental Disasters Affecting Health Professions Education…Surviving the Storm and After.”

Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to explore actionable strategies, share emerging scholarship, and learn how to educate future clinicians who can diagnose, manage, and prevent health consequences of environmental disasters.

Learn More About the Fall 2025 Series

The full IAMSE Fall 2025 WAS schedule can be found on the website.

Jyoti Mishra, PhD, MBA

Arianne Teherani, PhD

Educating for Change: Education’s Role in Addressing the Climate and Health Crisis

Presenters: Jyoti Mishra, University of California San Diego
Arianne Teherani, PhD, University of California San Francisco, Center for Climate Health and Equity
Session Date &Time: September 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM EDT
Session Description: This session will focus on addressing the critical role of education as a core solution to the climate and health crisis. The session will discuss the role of the health sector in climate action, the practical and evidence-based ways for educating health professionals about and how to teach students about the climate crisis and health, and the future directions for education about climate change and health.

Register Today!
IAMSE 2025 Fall WAS FAQ

As always, IAMSE Student Members can register for the series for FREE! 

If you are an IAMSE student member, please contact support@iamse.org for information about registering at no cost.

A Medical Science Educator Article Review From Dr. Monzurul Roni

This month, the IAMSE Publications Committee review is taken from the article titled The Impact of Changing Step 1 to Pass/Fail Reporting on Anxiety, Learning, Approaches, and Curiosity, published in Medical Science Educator (September 18, 2023). The study was conducted by LeClair, R.J., Binks, A.P., Gambala, C.T., Brenner, J.M., Willey, J.M.

In 2022, the USMLE Step 1 exam transitioned from numerical scoring to pass/fail reporting—a decision aimed at improving student well-being and reducing the weight of Step 1 scores in residency selection. While the intent was clear, the broader consequences of this change are still unfolding across medical education. Early national data suggest some unintended ripple effects: a notable drop in Step 1 pass rates and a growing number of students choosing to defer the exam.

LeClair and colleagues set out to explore how this change impacted medical students. In this multi-institutional study across three U.S. medical schools, the authors examined how the shift to pass/fail scoring influenced pre-clerkship students’ anxiety, curiosity, grit, and learning strategies. They used validated survey tools to compare two cohorts—students from the Class of 2023 (who received numerical scores) and the Class of 2024 (who received pass/fail reports).

The findings challenge some early assumptions. While many expected a less stressful learning environment under the new system, the reality was more nuanced. Through careful statistical analysis, the study revealed a significant connection between the scoring format and students’ approach to learning.

One clear trend emerged: as Step 1 scores became irrelevant for residency applications, students began redirecting their focus to Step 2 CK, clerkship performance, and extracurricular achievements like research. This shift may have implications for how students engage with foundational sciences in the preclinical years.

For educators and curriculum leaders, this study offers important food for thought. As we strive to balance student wellness with academic rigor, it’s crucial to monitor how major assessment changes shape learning behaviors. This work serves as an early reminder that even well-intentioned reforms must be continually evaluated for their real-world impact.

Monzurul Roni, PhD
Teaching Associate Professor
Department of Health Sciences Education and Pathology
University of Illinois College of Medicine

Say Hello to our Featured Member Snehal Mehta!

Our Association is a robust and diverse set of educators, students, researchers, medical professionals, volunteers and academics that come from all walks of life and from around the globe. Each month we choose a member to highlight their academic and professional career and see how they are making the best of their membership in IAMSE. This month’s Featured Member is Snehal Mehta.

Snehal Mehta, MD, CHSE®
Associate Professor
Clinical Foundations; Semester 5 MICR Module Co-Director
Ross University School of Medicine
St. Michael, Barbados

How long have you been a member of IAMSE?
I have had the privilege of being a member of IAMSE since 2019. Over the past six years, my involvement has grown from attending conferences to actively contributing as a manuscript and abstract reviewer, finishing IAMSE Fellowship and most recently, serving as an IAMSE Ambassador. It has been a truly rewarding journey of growth and collaboration.

Looking at your time with the Association, what have you most enjoyed doing? What are you most looking forward to?
What I have move enjoyed is the sense of being part of a global community dedicated to a common purpose. Specifically, I cherish the opportunities for collaborative scholarships, such as co-authoring publications with international colleagues and the chance to introduce peers in their own scholarly activities, like onboarding them as reviewers for the Medical Science Educator (MSE) journal. 

Looking forward, I am incredibly excited about the potential for deeper regional engagement. My goal is to continue fostering connections among medical educators in the Caribbean, facilitating more collaborative research projects, and helping to highlight the unique perspectives and innovations from our region on the IAMSE platform. I am also keen to explore, with the Ambassadors team, how we can better involve students in health education research from the very beginning of their careers.

What interesting things are you working on outside of the Association right now?
Outside of my IAMSE activities, my passion lies in integrating simulation-based learning into clinical education. I have contributed significantly to developing and implementing several simulation and active learning clinical sessions for our pre-clinical students at the Ross University School of Medicine, Barbados. We are now designing a research study to measure how this early exposure of simulation helps build their clinical confidence and problem-solving skills. My interest in simulation and technology in healthcare education also led me to contribute to a major industry report. I authored a section on ‘Clinical Decision Support’ for the Society for Simulation in Healthcare’s (SSiH) White Paper, which explores the future of technology in medical training. I have also been involved in a collaborative research project, working with colleagues from the universities and academic hospitals in Barbados and around the world. It is a brilliant example of how academic medicine can directly contribute to public health understanding in our community.

As an IAMSE Ambassador, what do you most enjoy about being a part of that?
Being an ambassador is less of a title and more of a joyful responsibility. It has been both an honor and a genuine pleasure to collaborate with Professor Di Eley, our Ambassador Committee Chair, and my fellow Ambassadors. Their dedication and collaborative spirit have made the experience incredibly rewarding. 

What I most enjoy is the role of a connector – a bridge. I value being able to introduce my colleagues here in Barbados and the wider Caribbean to the incredible resources and networking opportunities IAMSE provides. There is a profound sense of fulfillment in helping to improve their voices, support their professional development, and integrate our regional experiences into the global conversation on medical education.

Anything else that you would like to add?
I would like to express my deepest gratitude for this recognition. My foundational training in both Clinical Biochemistry and Emergency Medicine has given me a unique lens through which I view medical education; it is about connecting the foundational science to the clinical bedside in a way that is meaningful for students.

Ultimately, everything I do is driven by a simple goal: to contribute to forming compassionate, and competent, 21st-century physicians. By advocating for global collaboration, innovative teaching methods like simulation, and supporting scholarly growth, we are not just improving education; we are investing in better and more accessible patient care worldwide. IAMSE has provided the perfect platform to live out my passion for this integration. Thank you for this incredible opportunity to be a part of this mission.

Taylor, Sorensen to Continue IAMSE Fall 2025 Webcast Audio Seminar Series for Week 3!

Challenges in Rebuilding: Lessons Learned after Major Storms

By Julie Taylor, MD, MSc
Cecilia Sorensen, MD

We are excited to welcome Dr. Julie Taylor, Associate Dean for Medical Education at Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, and Dr. Cecilia Sorensen, Associate Professor at Columbia University, who will present Challenges in Rebuilding: Lessons Learned after Major Storms. The session will take place at 12:00 PM EDT Thursday, September 18, for the third week of the IAMSE 2025 Fall Webcast Audio Seminar Series titled “Environmental Disasters Affecting Health Professions Education…Surviving the Storm and After.”

Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to explore actionable strategies, share emerging scholarship, and learn how to educate future clinicians who can diagnose, manage, and prevent health consequences of environmental disasters.

Learn More About the Fall 2025 Series

The full IAMSE Fall 2025 WAS schedule can be found on the website.

Below we look at the third week’s presentation:

Julie Taylor, MD, MSc

Cecilia Sorensen, MD

Challenges in Rebuilding: Lessons Learned after Major Storms

Presenters: Julie Taylor, MD, MSc, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Cecilia Sorensen, MD, Columbia University
Session Date &Time: September 18, 2025 at 12:00 PM EDT
Session Description: This session will focus on the challenges and opportunities that medical schools could face after being severely disrupted by a major weather event. The webinar will cover 1.) the immediate post-storm response, 2.) the strategic process and timeline of rebuilding, and 3.) lessons learned, including planning and preparation for future events.

Register Today!
IAMSE 2025 Fall WAS FAQ

As always, IAMSE Student Members can register for the series for FREE! 

If you are an IAMSE student member, please contact support@iamse.org for information about registering at no cost.

Ochsenbein to Present for Week 2 of IAMSE Fall 2025 Webcast Audio Seminar Series!

Environmental Crisis and Disasters…
Surviving the Storm and After

By Sean Ochsenbein, MD, MBA

We are excited to welcome Dr. Sean Ochsenbein, Chief Medical Officer at Ballad Health, who will present Environmental Crisis and Disasters…Surviving the Storm and After at 12:00 PM EDT Thursday, September 11, for the second week of the IAMSE 2025 Fall Webcast Audio Seminar Series titled “Environmental Disasters Affecting Health Professions Education…Surviving the Storm and After.”

Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to explore actionable strategies, share emerging scholarship, and learn how to educate future clinicians who can diagnose, manage, and prevent health consequences of environmental disasters.

Learn More About the Fall 2025 Series

The full IAMSE Fall 2025 WAS schedule can be found on the website.

Sean Ochsenbein, MD, MBA

Environmental Crisis and Disasters…
Surviving the Storm and After

Presenters: Sean Ochsenbein, MD, MBA, Ballad Health
Session Date &Time: September 11, 2025 at 12:00 PM EDT
Session Description: A first-hand perspective of navigating the Hurricane Helene disaster and it’s related distruption on healthcare in the Appalachian region.

Register Today!
IAMSE 2025 Fall WAS FAQ
As always, IAMSE Student Members can register for the series for FREE! 
If you are an IAMSE student member, please contact support@iamse.org for information about registering at no cost.

IAMSE CoG Meetings – September 2025

IAMSE Communities of Growth (CoGs) are ongoing groups of like-minded individuals who want to informally get together to connect over an area or topic of interest. A Community of Growth is not directly connected to any Committee and is self-organized. For more information on IAMSE CoGs, click here.

Three IAMSE CoGs will be meeting in September! The AI CoG, CORE CoG, and Nutrution and Health Promotion CoG will all meet on Zoom. Below are the details for each meeting.

AI CoG

The AI CoG meeting on Zoom will take place at Noon (12 PM) EDT on Wednesday, September 10, 2025. Due to the Labor Day holiday in the United States on Monday, September 1, this meeting will take place a week later than usual. IAMSE AI CoG meetings take place regularly at 12 PM ET on the first Wednesday of each month. For information on how to join the AI CoG, email Doug McKell at douglas.mckell@gmail.com.

To join the September AI CoG Zoom meeting, click here.
Meeting ID: 897 1837 0101
Passcode: 511007

CORE CoG

The Community Outreach, Research, and Engagement (CORE) CoG meeting will take place at 3:00 PM EDT on Monday, September 15, 2025. CORE CoG meetings then take place regularly on the second Thursday of the month at 3:00 PM ET, and the second Monday of the month at 11:00 AM ET every other month. The CORE CoG is led by Peter Vollbrecht and Natascha Heise.

To join the September CORE CoG meeting, click here.
Meeting ID: 878 6039 0726
Passcode: 159759

Nutrition and Health Promotion CoG

The Nutrition and Health Promotion CoG meeting will take place at 12:00 PM EDT on Wednesday, September 24, 2025. Nutrition and Health Promotion CoG meetings take place quarterly (March, June, September, December) on the fourth Wednesday of that month at 12:00 PM ET. For more information on the Nutrition and Health Promotion CoG and how to join, contact CoG leaders Jana Simmons (simmjana@msu.edu) or Kearney Gunsalas (gunsalus@uga.edu).

To join the September Nutrition and Health Promotion CoG meeting, click here.
Meeting ID: 826 5969 3840
Passcode: 994588

For more information on these CoGs and the other active IAMSE CoGs, click here.

Cois and Hampshire to Launch IAMSE Fall 2025 Webcast Audio Seminar Series!

Are We There Yet? Climate Change
and Health in Medical Education

By Adrian Cois, MD, MBBS
Karly Hampshire, MD

We are excited to welcome Dr. Adrian Cois, MD, MBBS, Assistant Professor at Oregon Health Science University, and Dr. Karly Hampshire, Resident Physician at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, who will present Are We There Yet? Climate Change and Health in Medical Education at 12:00 PM EDT Thursday, September 4, to begin the IAMSE 2025 Fall Webcast Audio Seminar Series titled “Environmental Disasters Affecting Health Professions Education…Surviving the Storm and After.”

Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to explore actionable strategies, share emerging scholarship, and learn how to educate future clinicians who can diagnose, manage, and prevent health consequences of environmental disasters.

Learn More About the Fall 2025 Series

The full IAMSE Fall 2025 WAS schedule can be found on the website.

Below we look at the first week’s presentation:

Adran Cois, MD, MBBS (left), and Karly Hampshire, MD (right).

Are We There Yet? Climate Change
and Health in Medical Education

Presenters: Adrian Cois, MD, MBBS, Assistant Professor, Oregon Health Science University
Karly Hampshire, MD, Resident Physician, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Session Date &Time: September 4, 2025 at 12:00 PM EDT
Session Description: Join us for an engaging session on the integration of climate health and sustainability content in medical education. We will trace the evolution of the climate and health movement within medical training over the past decade and explore strategies for embedding this content in undergraduate and graduate curricula. This session will also spotlight the transformative role of trainee advocacy in driving curricular change and shaping a more sustainable future for healthcare.

Register Today!
IAMSE 2025 Fall WAS FAQ
As always, IAMSE Student Members can register for the series for FREE! 
If you are an IAMSE student member, please contact support@iamse.org for information about registering at no cost.

Registration Now OPEN for the IAMSE 2025 Virtual Forum

The International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) is pleased to announce that registration for our fourth annual Virtual Forum is now open! Join us October 22-24, 2025, as we host lightning talks, ignite talks, and more! The theme for the Virtual Forum is:

A Global Vision for Health Education: Empowering an International Community of Educators

The IAMSE Virtual Forum is designed for all interested in teaching, designing, and leading health professions sciences curricula around the world. Participants include students & trainees, basic scientists, providers, clinicians, and other faculty from across various healthcare and educational disciplines. We specifically encourage junior faculty, postdocs, and students to participate in the forum!

Additional details and registration can be found at www.IAMSEForum.org, as well as more information on speakers and sessions through your email. Keep an eye on your inbox. Looking forward to meeting you at the forum!

Thank you,
Demidmaa Tuvdendorj
Chair, IAMSE 2025 Virtual Forum
On behalf of the IAMSE 2025 Virtual Forum Program Committee

Register Today!

Last Call* #IAMSE26 Focus Sessions Due September 1, 2025

As a final reminder, the International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) is pleased to announce the call for Focus Sessions for their 30th Annual IAMSE Conference to be held at the Marriott Augusta Convention Center in Augusta, Georgia, USA, June 6-9, 2026. The IAMSE Conference offers opportunities for faculty development and networking, bringing together educators from across the continuum of health sciences education. The theme of the IAMSE 2026 Conference is Flourishing Through Change: Adaptability, Innovation, and Growth in Health Sciences.

The purpose of a 90-minute Focus Session is to “focus in” on a specific topic in a small group interactive discussion format. Based on previous years, group size might vary between 10-70 individuals. The exact format for the session is at the discretion of the session leader(s), as long as not more than one-third of the time is being used for formal presentation and the remainder of the time is used for interaction, active learning in small groups, and discussion. The Program Committee welcomes a wide spectrum of submissions, such as multi-institutional and inter-professional collaborations and presenter teams consisting of junior and senior faculty and students. 

All abstracts must be submitted in the format requested through the online abstract submission form found here.

Submission Deadline is September 1, 2025.

Abstract acceptance notifications will be sent by November 1, 2025. Please contact support@iamse.org for any questions about your submission.

We hope to see you in Augusta next year!

Thank you,
Will Brooks
Chair, IAMSE 2026 Program Committee

Submit a Focus Session Abstract

Check out the Free IAMSE Webcast Audio Seminar Series Archives!

The International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE) is pleased to announce that the archives for “Push and Pull: Navigating Strains in Health Professions Education,” the 2024 Fall series of the Webcast Audio Seminar are now online!

The Webcast Audio Seminar archives are located on the IAMSE website under the Events heading as Web Seminars. Here, you will be able to search the archives or browse by year and series.

View the Archives for FREE!

In addition, registration for the 2025 Fall series is OPEN! This series, entitled, “Environmental Disasters Affecting Health Professions Education… Surviving the Storm and After”, will begin September 4. For more information on the 2025 Fall series, and to register, click here.

If you have any issues accessing the archives, please let us know at support@iamse.org.