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Liliana Cruz, MS4, Drexel University College of Medicine Many new moms are hesitant to see lactation consultants if they are not choosing to breastfeed their newborn, thinking that they will be shamed for formula feeding or that we only want to help breastfeeding moms. However, paced bottle feeding is a useful technique that breastfeeding and formula feeding moms alike can use to help prevent overfeeding and improve digestion for their baby.   When using the paced bottle feeding technique, babies are positioned in an upright sitting position, and the bottle is held horizontally to their m ..read more

 Leila Hilal, MS4, Drexel University College of Medicine As healthcare workers, we have a unique privilege in society; patients trust us at their most vulnerable moments and rely on us to help them reach their greatest potential in terms of their health.  Patients who have experienced sexual assault are at an even more vulnerable position when it comes to routine gynecologic exams to for cervical cancer prevention.  Trauma acts as a barrier to accessing healthcare. However, by providing patient-centered care with a trauma-informed approach, we can support our patients while prov ..read more

When people think about racism, they often think about Jim Crow laws, red lining, the time of the Civil Rights movement, and, currently, many are also thinking about police brutality and the criminal justice system. We tend to place the blame of racism on those we think condone it; your neighbor who voted for Trump, or some police officers, the government, or anyone in power. But the general public often misses one arena where race still plays a significant role through which it can be associated with significant mortality: medicine. The community looks to doctors as people who can heal and ca ..read more

 Since the age of 17, I have been curious about autoimmune conditions. I had experienced drug lupus in the past. I was told that it was due to my acne medication at the time; however, I always wondered if maybe there was a correlation to my biological sex. Furthermore, in medical school we were told that women were more predisposed to autoimmune diseases. But why? Why did having two XX chromosomes make you a risk factor for conditions like RA or Lupus?   Well.. did you know that researchers have speculated a correlation with having two XX chromosomes and autoimmune diseases? There ar ..read more

I remember like it was yesterday. The tiny fingers that curled up into fists, fists literally clinging onto life. The tiny baby was delivered at 22 weeks, a stillborn. I was helping with the delivery and was able to cut the umbilical cord. Never would I imagine my first time cutting the cord would be in this situation. I remember hearing the mother’s pain through her screams and tears. As the healthcare providers, we helped in the delivery and aftercare of the labor. Afterwards, I was struck how there was no discussion or conversation with the mother who just lost her child. We closed the door ..read more

Intimate partner violence is characterized by behavioral patterns that include physical abuse, emotional/psychological abuse, sexual abuse, threats, intimidation, stalking and deprivation5. These behaviors are normally perpetuated by one’s former or current intimate partner. According to the national coalition against domestic violence, an average of 20 people are physically abused by their intimate partners every minute. This means that approximately 10 million people in the US experience some form of intimate partner abuse annually3. Statistics shows that 25% of women and 7.6% of men ..read more

 March 25, 2021 marks the 35th anniversary of the first organization created to support and empower survivors of domestic and intimate partner violence within the Deaf community. Abused Deaf Women’s Advocacy Services (ADWAS) started in the basement of Marilyn J. Smith, a hearing survivor of rape, following the murder of a local d/Deaf woman by her spouse. Smith was inspired to act after learning that many in the Deaf community had known of this woman’s abuse but had not known how to get help or report it. Since then, ADWAS has grown into a nationwide model to address the needs of male and ..read more

 As a fourth year medical student pursuing OB/Gyn, I had the opportunity to do a lactation rotation. I was given one-on-one training from two incredibly knowledgeable IBCLCs. The main take away from this rotation is that something as natural as breastfeeding does not come naturally for many. Here are some useful tips for new breastfeeding parents:  Be patient! You and your baby are both learning something new. It may take a couple of days before you feel confident with breastfeeding. Be prepared — your baby will want to feed a lot! Breastmilk is digested easier than formula, so br ..read more

“Quick, cover his eyes! There’s S-E-X on the screen,” shouted my father upon seeing Jack and Rose kissing in the backseat of a station wagon in the movie Titanic. An 18-year-old at the time, I groaned, as once again, the panicky, familiar hands of my mother came down like a curtain of darkness. Being immigrants from Iran who married at a young age, my parents felt it best that I kept my “innocence” until I married. If I hadn’t been privileged enough to learn about these topics at school, I would have known nothing about sexual health or anything related therein. For years, I thought of my pare ..read more