Class of 2029 Medical Student Leaders Bring Wellness Into Focus at NYMedTalks
The Student-Organized Conference Examined How Prioritizing Physician Well-Being Supports Resilience and Improves Patient Care
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Members of the School of Medicine (SOM) Class of 2029 learned about the vital role of wellness practices in medicine and how physicians integrate them into their work during the 12th annual NYMedTalks on March 13. Held annually since 1986, the interdisciplinary conference, which was renamed NYMedTalks in 2014, exposes students to topics beyond the traditional academic curriculum.
This year’s NYMedTalks, which was sponsored by the SOM Student Senate, was organized entirely by the M1 student senators—Agam Singh, Isha Das, Kathryn Jano, Kevin Cutler, and Suhana Patel.
According to the five student senators, "The theme of Wellness in Medicine and Translation to Preventative Care is especially meaningful in today’s healthcare landscape. In the wake of the pandemic, the importance of physician well-being and proactive, preventative approaches to health has never been clearer. Hearing directly from experts on themes such as community health, wellness, burnout, and communication was a true highlight of the event and an invaluable part of our medical education, inspiring us to think more deeply about how we care for both our patients and ourselves as future physicians."
The half-day program began with a welcome by Neil W. Schluger, M.D., SOM dean. Several speakers representing diverse backgrounds in medicine then went on to share how wellness care can support the well-being of clinicians—helping them manage stress, build resilience, and sustain long-term careers—while also strengthening the quality of care they provide to patients. Speakers included Sherlita Amler, M.D., M.S., Ed.S., RN, commissioner of health for Westchester County and clinical associate professor of pediatrics, and adjunct professor of public health at New York Medical College (NYMC); Roger Chirurgi, M.D., chair and associate professor, Department of Emergency Medicine at NYMC; and Paul Tran, M.D., a pediatric gastroenterologist at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.
Zarya Rubin, M.D., a Harvard-educated functional medicine physician and host of The Outsmart Burnout Podcast, delivered the keynote address, using her own story to address physician burnout awareness and prevention. After pursuing a neurology fellowship at Columbia University, Dr. Rubin found herself in a burnout crisis, which caused her to step away from clinical medicine and begin a deep journey of self-discovery, healing, and transformation. She went on to study at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and complete advanced functional medicine training at The School of Applied Functional Medicine — blending her medical expertise with a whole-person lens on health and resilience.
