From
The Board - External Affairs
AMSA
Meeting
In
March, Bethany DeKoning, Special Projects Coordinator, Jacey Wright,
Director of External Affairs, Sr., and Paul Snow, Director of External
Affairs, Jr. were granted the opportunity to attend the 58th Annual
American Medical Student Association convention in Houston, Texas. Below
is a description of the experience.
I
had the opportunity to listen to Dr Jill Stein from the Physician's
for Social Responsibility discuss the potential global warming crisis.
She discussed the accelerated ice melt of Larson B ice sheet as well
as the Greenland Ice sheet which melts at a rate of 1 acre every 42
minutes. She presented an excellent summation of the current data and
the urgency advocated by many environmental experts.
The
second speaker was Jerome Ringo founder and president of the Apollo
Alliance. Jerome's background is extremely diverse. A former petroleum
plant worker, he blew the whistle on his company as it polluted poor
Louisiana neighborhoods. He led a grassroots campaign to block his company
from receiving a water permit and began to learn the process of leading
people in environmental social responsibility. He discussed Cancer Alley
and the disparity of illness caused by petroleum and chemical companies
on the poor. He has worked with Al Gore and has become an important
figure in the environmental grass roots movements. He became the first
African American to be a member of the Louisiana Wildlife Association
and went on to become the Chairman of the National Wildlife Federation.
Now he speaks both nationally and internationally as a voice for environmental
responsibility.
Some
interesting facts affecting our nation:
- National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration's top 4 most vulnerable cities to the
effects of global warming: New Orleans, Houston, Tampa and New York
City
- The United States
constitutes 5% of the Global Population yet contributes 35% of the
global Carbon dioxide emissions.
- Renewable portfolio
standard (alternative energy): This is the initiative to research
and implement renewable energy sources such as wind water solar etc.
Brazil has pioneered this and now declares energy independence.
I
attended an informational brief from a Medical Student at Tulane sharing
her experiences with Hurricane Katrina and the continued hardships and
ongoing governmental and societal issues that continue to challenge
the people of New Orleans and surrounding areas. The issues of access
to healthcare for the poor with the closing of Charity Hospital and
the slow rebuilding of infrastructure in the area and the effects on
the people of New Orleans. The speaker discussed the response provided
by medical students at Tulane and how to organize and prepare to get
involved in the event of natural disaster and emergency contingencies.
Jacey
and I set up the exhibit booth on Wednesday and on Thursday we began
meeting students. I flew out on Thursday afternoon and Jacey and Bethany
took over. It was a great experience and the conference administration
was willing to allow us attend and participate in the conference workshops.
I definitely appreciated gaining experience from Jacey and would recommend
that the External Affairs attend a conference as early as possible to
gain confidence and experience to allow both directors to have the highest
level of efficacy on travel and locally.
Respectfully
submitted,
Paul
Snow
Physician
Assistant Student
Director
of External Affairs Jr. 2007-2008
Student
Academy of the American Academy of Physician Assistants
Thursday
officially started the conference. The keynote speaker was the Houston
mayor, Bill White and Public Health Authority Dr. David Persse. They
specifically spoke regarding the way Houston responded to the Hurricane
Katrina disaster. They were great story-tellers and spoke of the medical
readiness of the city. The rest of the day was spent in the Exhibition
Hall speaking with medical students, residents, and pre-medical students
about the role of physician assistants. Thursday night we were able
to spend some time making poster and prepping for the city hall rally
on Saturday (more to follow about this).
Friday
started off with a presentation by Catherine DeAngelis, who is the Editor-in-Chief
of JAMA . She spoke on the tricks of the pharmaceutical companies
to promote their products. Friday afternoon was once again spent in
the Exhibition Hall speaking with students.
Respectfully
submitted,
Bethany
DeKoning
Physician
Assistant Student
Director
of External Affairs Jr. 2007-2008
Student
Academy of the American Academy of Physician Assistants
