Leadership in Medicine is a 4 year program, created and led by medical students, that aims to advance the culture of leadership at FSU College of Medicine. The program provides students with leadership competencies that help improve their leadership skills as well as mentorship in one of four areas: Executive Medicine, Community Medicine, Academic Medicine, and Health Policy. Students also complete a Leadership Development Project that addresses a community issue observed or experienced during his or her time in medical school. Some examples can be seen below.

Leadership in Medicine is important to us because it provides opportunity for unique interaction between specialized mentors and mentees which fosters knowledge about pertinent health related issues, increases personal growth, expands the student’s view of health related fields, and ideally cultivates new ideas targeting improving communities and or patient populations. With your support we will be able to recruit future participants, continue to make an impact in the community, and ensure the program’s future. Thank you for your consideration!

**You can double, or even triple, the impact of your gift to Leadership in Medicine if you or your spouse are employed by a company that matches the charitable contribution of its employees. Find out if your employer has a matching gift policy.

Example Projects:

Loneliness and Early Mortality in Seniors: Are Certain Groups Disproportionately Affected?

Loneliness is common among older people and has serious health consequences. Studies show consistent evidence linking loneliness to debilitating cardiovascular conditions, adverse mental health outcomes, and early mortality; making it a significant public health concern. In order to maximize efficacy of loneliness interventions, it is critical to understand if there are sociodemographic groups that are disproportionally affected by loneliness. In this study, I will use data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationally-representative longitudinal study of Americans aged 50 years or older and their spouses. Data is collected every two years from over 20,000 participants from all over the country. I will analyze whether the association between loneliness and mortality differ across gender, race, ethnicity, income, and other sociodemographic groups. I will employ the computer program SPSS and utilize Cox regression analyses to investigate whether the association between loneliness and risk of death vary across sociodemographic groups, while considering the role of social isolation and several covariates. This research will help physicians, public health professionals, and government officials close gaps in health inequities by more effectively identifying the most vulnerable individuals at risk for early mortality due to loneliness.

Addressing Weight Stigmatization in Health Care Settings: A Grassroots Approach

Weight stigma encompasses the negative stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination imposed on individuals due to their weight, and a concerning area in which it exists is health care settings. In order to address the issue of weight stigmatization in health care settings, I have designed an interactive small group presentation directed at first-year medical students. The presentation will consist of a patient panel and a debrief session following the panel. Through the patient panel, students will get the opportunity to learn about weight stigmatization in health care settings and its effects on those experiencing the stigmatization. In the debrief session, students will learn about how they can facilitate both a positive and productive physician-patient relationship with their patients with obesity that will result in better health outcomes overall.