EP 102: Nobility in Small Things with Cardiac Surgeon, Dr Craig R Smith
In this week's episode of Parallax, Dr Ankur Kalra's guest is Dr Craig R Smith, Cardiac Surgeon and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital.
In 2020, The Wall Street Journal called Dr Smith the pandemic's most powerful writer. Each day throughout the COVID-19 crisis, Dr Smith provided the faculty and staff with updates on pandemic response and priorities, offering both vital information and unwavering support. This month, Dr Smith released his book, 'Nobility in Small Things: A Surgeon's Path’.
In this inspiring episode, Dr Smith delves into the story behind his book and the motivating circumstances that led him to become an author. Dr Kalra asks Dr Smith about his experience as a leader during the pandemic as a surgeon. Dr Smith shares the story of his unconventional journey into medicine, emphasizing how hard physical labor built his resilience and prepared him for his residency. Dr Kalra also asks about Dr Smith's experience as a surgeon for President Bill Clinton in 2004. We learn more about some of the highlights of Dr Smith's book and his advice for listeners aspiring to become writers.
Nobility in Small Things is available for purchase here: us.macmillan.com/books/9781250278…ityinsmallthings
Questions and comments can be sent to “podcast@radcliffe-group.com” and may be answered by Ankur in the next episode.
Guest: Dr Craig R SmithHost: @AnkurKalraMD and produced by: @RadcliffeCARDIO.
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In the first Parallax episode of 2021, Ankur welcomed back Sukh Nijjer from Imperial College London to review the most impactful events and advances in cardiology from 2020.
Which COVID19 patients require risk stratification with a stress test? What are the take-home messages for physicians taking care of patients diagnosed with COVID19? What were the key trials of 2020? What can we learn from the negative results of the STRENGHT study? How have studies like STOP-AF influenced clinical practice?
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What makes Dr Martin B Leon tick? What is his message to cardiologists and/or researchers at the beginning of their careers? How did the pandemic and his work as a clinician in New York change his perspective?
This week Parallax welcomed its first non-physician/researcher guest: health advocate Lindsay Davis. Lindsay, ballerina with ambitions to study at Julliard, was experiencing the symptoms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) from her early teens, but she had not been diagnosed until she was 17.
In this episode Ankur asks Lindsay about her treatment path. Lindsay recalls her own journey to taking control of her condition and the important role of information in patient adherence. Lindsay, former Miss Ohio, talks how she used the pageant to create awareness. Lindsay talks about work in state legislation and her plans for 2021.
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In this episode Ankur asks Lindsay about her treatment path. Lindsay recalls her own journey to taking control of her condition and the important role of information in patient adherence. Lindsay, former Miss Ohio, talks how she used the pageant to create awareness. Lindsay talks about work in state legislation and her plans for 2021.
In 2020, women still only represent 16% of editorial boards.
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US Cardiology Review journal, has recently seen a 7-fold increase in female editorial board members in response to journal-based strategic initiatives and the stellar work of USC editorial board leadership, Ankur Kalra (Editor in Chief) and Bill Gogas (Deputy Editor in Chief), who were keen to drive this change. With thanks to Dr Anastasia Mihailidou’s tenure as a new board member and her suggested nominees, ten new female board members have recently joined US Cardiology Review’s editorial board.
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What does it mean to be fearless as a medical professional? How can you protect yourself from the emotional toll of the profession? What is Mike’s advice to early career cardiologists?
Sponsored by Edwards.
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In this episode, Mike opens up about his childhood in Stilwell, Oklahoma. Ankur and Mike discuss how the inductive quality of art can complement the deductive principles of science. Mike recalls earlier stages of his career and warns about the blinding effect of the ego-driven, competitive culture of cardiology. Ankur asks Mike about fatherhood and about his role as an educator.
What does it mean to be fearless as a medical professional? How can you protect yourself from the emotional toll of the profession? What is Mike’s advice to early career cardiologists?
Sponsored by Edwards.
In this week’s episode Ankur Kalra asks Dr Suzanne J Baron, Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Research at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center: How do we measure the value of a novel technology?
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In 2019 Dr Baron presented the results of her late-breaking trial, COAPT. Ankur invites Suzanne to discuss the economic analysis of the study and to give a short introduction to cost-effectiveness analysis. Suzanne provides an overview of the trial and they talk about the importance of understanding the value and benefits of new devices from both the patient and the health-economic point of viewpoint.
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During her interventional cardiology fellowship, Dr Baron became fascinated by the implementation of novel technologies. She earned her degree in Clinical Epidemiology and spent a year working at the FDA’s Device Evaluation unit.
In 2019 Dr Baron presented the results of her late-breaking trial, COAPT. Ankur invites Suzanne to discuss the economic analysis of the study and to give a short introduction to cost-effectiveness analysis. Suzanne provides an overview of the trial and they talk about the importance of understanding the value and benefits of new devices from both the patient and the health-economic point of viewpoint.
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How should you start building a research programme? What are Chuck Simonton’s thoughts on the relationship between doctors and the industry? What is Chuck’s message to young cardiologists?
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After the #MedBikini campaign provoked by a misogynistic study that scrutinized female doctors’ social media posts, this episode is about creating a safer environment for female healthcare professionals.
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The charity organisation, Women as One is an agent for women and men to be part of medicine that is built on talent, rather than a privilege. Roxana and Ankur discuss the role of mentorship and family-friendly work environment in mending the broken house of cardiology. Roxana talks about the practical tools that are available for women to take the next steps in their career and achieve their goals.
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Dr Kalra asks Dr Mauri about early influences and her traineeship with legendary interventionalists, the late Donald Baim and Richard Kuntz. Dr Mauri talks openly about her decision-making process and the importance of selecting your priorities and committing to them. Ankur asks Laura about her decision to go into industry. Laura shares her thoughts on medical innovations and meeting urgent needs with unique perspectives.
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Dr Kalra asks Dr Mauri about early influences and her traineeship with legendary interventionalists, the late Donald Baim and Richard Kuntz. Dr Mauri talks openly about her decision-making process and the importance of selecting your priorities and committing to them. Ankur asks Laura about her decision to go into industry. Laura shares her thoughts on medical innovations and meeting urgent needs with unique perspectives.
What is Dr Mauri’s advice for a young cardiologist? How did she balance research and patient care? What are the questions that helped her decision making? How does Dr Mauri think about innovations in medicine?
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They talk about AI assisted consultation, learning pathways incorporating simulators for early career practitioners and the Flying Eye Hospital. Dr Cherwek shares his experiences about working with local teams globally and the work that goes into setting up trials across the world.
In a 1-minute video, wearing scrubs, Dr Siyab, Md voices his concerns over the decision to end mask mandate on certain US airlines. “The people that are so intensely against these mask mandates, they are not the ones who are taking buses or trains to get to work and get back home every day because they are part of the privileged class.” Dr Siyab’s mission is to be a voice of reason and appeal to those who are hesitant or against getting vaccines. His plight goes out to his 405.3K followers on TikTok every day.
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Why are we talking about inclusion, diversity, and equity? Recent years have seen many studies on the inequalities in representation of women in cardiology and yet the needle has not been moved as much as we hoped for. What does the data on the authorship of the guidelines tell us and what can be done to balance the scale?
Dr Ankur Kalra’s guests this week are Dr Martha Gulati, internationally recognized cardiologist specializing in Women and Heart Disease, Heart Disease Prevention and Dr Devesh Rai, first year cardiology fellow at Rochester General Hospital.
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Dr Ankur Kalra’s guests this week are Dr Martha Gulati, internationally recognized cardiologist specializing in Women and Heart Disease, Heart Disease Prevention and Dr Devesh Rai, first year cardiology fellow at Rochester General Hospital.
In this engaging and constructive episode, Nadia recalls her journey to medicine and reflects on the life decisions she had to make along the way: What is the career path that will get us closer to our mission? When is the right time to start family planning? How can we develop resilience in face of rejection? Nadia recalls the conversations with her colleagues and mentors as she progressed in her career. She talks about the practical aspects of tenure track and grant application. Ankur and Nadia discuss the importance of goal setting and exercising a positive mindset.
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In this rich and candid episode, Dr Chakrabarti recalls the early stages of his career and the non-linear route that led to his transition from an interventional cardiologist to working on devices that focus on improving the treatment of deep vein thrombosis (DVT). This journey was paved by self-reflection, hunger for tangible results, and connections with mentors who dared to dream big and wished the same for their mentees.
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