Humanizing Geisel: The Podcast
Humanizing Geisel: The Podcast is produced by medical students at Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. This podcast aims to increase connections and facilitate sharing of wisdom between students, staff, and faculty through sit-down interviews. The overarching goal is to digitalize the sense of community and increase the sense of belonging within and outside our institution. Funding for this project is provided by the Kern National Network for Flourishing in Medicine. Credits: Art: Ryland’s Wheel by Walter Horak Host: Tamar Mosulishvili Podcast Editor: Willa Merrill
Episodes
Friday Sep 06, 2024
Student Spotlight: Conversation with Max Kutch, Class of 2026
Friday Sep 06, 2024
Friday Sep 06, 2024
Name (pronouns): Maximillian Kutch, but I go by Max
Hometown: Born in Houston and raised in Dallas, TX but I call College Station, TX home
Year at Geisel: MS3
Career interest: Still undifferentiated but I most like Emergency Medicine
The best thing about Geisel is: The genuine goodness of everyone I meet here
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: My little piece of land in Bradford VT
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Spending time trudging through the woods with my kids
Favorite book/poem: I can't narrow it down to just one favorite so I will give you a few.
Meditations -Marcus Aurelius, Gregory Hays translation
Blood Meridian -Cormac McCarthy
The War of Art -Stephen Pressfield
Favorite song/piece of music:
"Atlantic City" Hank Willians III
Favorite quote: I also have to give more than one here
“We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.” -Confucius
“There are more things, Lucilius, likely to frighten us than there are to crush us; we suffer more often in imagination than in reality.” -Seneca; Letter 13: on groundless fears
Most treasured travel: I can't narrow it down to just one because the act of traveling and the experiences gained is what is most treasured whether it's a small town in the midwest or an exotic tropical location. Everywhere is unique in its own right and everywhere can be amazing if you view it through that lens.
Guilty pleasure: raw cookie dough. It's one of the few places I can control myself and most of the time I will open the package in the store and start eating it before I check out.
Unknown fact about you: Most people don't know that I have had to relearn how to walk twice.
Short Bio: "My name is Maximillian and I go by Max. I am a 34-year-old father of two wild toddlers, and calling them a handful is an understatement. Cain is my five-year-old son and Scarlett is my four-year-old daughter. Elizabeth is not only the glue that keeps us together, but my best friend. We met at a Misfits concert in 2014 and married shortly thereafter. As a couple we love to travel, and I have visited 49 of the 50 states and 31 countries. I am originally from Texas, but our family now lives in Bradford, VT, about thirty minutes north of campus. Prior to my pursuit of medicine, I served over twelve years in the United States Marine Corps as a Special Operations Scout Sniper. I cross trained as a medic and enjoyed practicing both trauma and clinical medicine over the course of my six deployments. In 2018, I was medically retired from the military which opened the door for me to move to College Station, Texas and pursue my BS at Texas A&M where I studied Exercise Physiology and competed as member of the TAMU powerlifting team. I am a zealous gymgoer with powerlifting and strength sports being my passion outside of medicine. I am also an avid reader with a deep interest in both eastern and western philosophy."
Friday Aug 02, 2024
Friday Aug 02, 2024
Ila is an MS3 at Dartmouth, and member of class of 2026. She is currently on a OB-GYN in California. Though Ila is unsure what she wants to specialize in she is passionate about incorporating health literacy and integrative medicine in her research and eventual practice. In this episode, we hear about her experience during Geisel Pediatric Rotation:
- Inpatient service - 3 weeks at CHOC (Children's Hospital of Orange County)
- Nursery - 1 week at DHMC (Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center)
- Outpatient service - 2 weeks South Royalton Health Center
You can see the overview of Pediatric Rotation here: https://geiselmed.dartmouth.edu/ed_programs/clerkshipdb/view_clerkship.php/?cid=13
Friday Jul 19, 2024
Faculty Spotlight: Conversation with Dr. Nena Mason
Friday Jul 19, 2024
Friday Jul 19, 2024
Name (pronouns): Nena Mason She/Her
Hometown: Melba, Idaho
Year at Geisel: 2nd
Career interest: currently in my dream career
The best thing about Geisel is: work/life balance
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: the white mountains
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: ice climbing
Book/poem Recommendation: the stormlight archive series
Favorite piece of music/song: tough, changes often
Favorite quote: to paraphrase from the above mentioned book series: the most important step you can take isnt the first step, where you align your efforts towards your goal, or the last one where you finally arrive where you endeavor to be, it's the “next one”.
Most treasured travel: canyoneering trips in the southwest
Guilty pleasure: video games
Nena Lundgreen Mason is an Assistant Professor of Medical Education, Longitudinal Physiology Curriculum Leader, ultrasound educator, and gross anatomist at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth in Hanover New Hampshire. She earned her Ph.D. in Physiology and Developmental Biology from Brigham Young University. Dr. Mason spent 8 years prior to her appointment at Geisel teaching physiology and developing and directing clinical gross anatomy and ultrasound education programs at two newly opened medical schools. A celebrated educator, Dr. Mason has been honored with the “Faculty Member of the Year” award for excellence in teaching several times along with other teaching-related accolades throughout her career. She directs an innovative research program in medical education centered around the development of pedagogy in teaching clinical ultrasound skills to medical students using human cadaveric materials. Dr. Mason is also engaged in national service and currently sits on several committees with the American Association of Clinical Anatomists and the Point-of-Care Ultrasound Certification Academy.
Friday Jul 05, 2024
Faculty Spotlight: Conversation with Dr. Larry Myers
Friday Jul 05, 2024
Friday Jul 05, 2024
Name (pronouns): Larry Myers
Hometown: Waitsfield, Vermont (currently resident of Norwich, VT)
Year at Geisel: 24th
The best thing about Geisel is: The students!
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Teaching
Book/poem Recommendation: Gather by Kenneth Cadow released in October 2023 (Ken Cadow is a Norwich resident and co-Principal of Oxbow High School just a few towns north of us in Bradford, VT)
Piece of music/song Recommendation: Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi – The Four Seasons (as arranged and performed by violinist - Sayaka Shoji - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXxkiXi0T70)
Unknown fact about you: When I ‘accidentally’ took a year off from college, among other things I was the sound engineer for the largest Spanish language public radio daily news report (broadcast out of Fresno, CA) in the United States at the time.
Short Biography:
Dr. Larry Myers received his undergraduate degree in physics, where he conducted research in low-frequency vibrational modes in DNA. He then earned a Ph.D. in biophysics doing research on the structural biology, and bio-inorganic chemistry of DNA repair mechanisms. His post-doctoral research was directed toward using biochemistry to reveal mechanisms of eukaryotic transcriptional regulation. When he joined the Department of Biochemistry at Dartmouth, his laboratory research extended this work and applied it to understanding the transcriptional mechanisms that underlie virulence and drug resistance in human fungal pathogens such as candida albicans. In 2015, he expanded his already well-developed interest in teaching by joining the newly created Department of Medical Education at Geisel. Since then, he has focused on creating, through research and teaching, a positive environment for medical and graduate students to learn biochemistry and genetics. He endeavors to keep his teaching up to date with the fast pace of development in these areas by continuing his laboratory research through collaborations.
Friday Jun 21, 2024
Student Spotlight: Conversation with Michael Nguyen, Class of 2026
Friday Jun 21, 2024
Friday Jun 21, 2024
Name (pronouns): Michael Nguyen (he/him)
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
Year at Geisel: M2
Career interest: Undecided specialty
The best thing about Geisel is: Our close-knit community
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: On the Connecticut in the summer
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Skiing at the Dartmouth Skiway
Book/poem Recommendation: In Waves by A. J. Dungo
Most treasured travel: Camping on a remote beach on Kauai
Guilty pleasure: All dressed chips. Glad that Canadian treasure made it south of the border!
Originally from a suburb outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, Michael Nguyen graduated from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) with a degree in biology. As an undergraduate, he founded the Vietnamese Student Association, volunteered on an urban farm addressing Cleveland’s food deserts, and worked part time. After a year of working for a non-profit, he returned to CWRU to pursue a masters degree in bioethics and medical humanities. This program coincided with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which proved to be a timely reference for his interests in health equity, interdisciplinary healthcare, and research ethics. Michael further explored these while conducting research on the healthcare experiences of Southeast Asian Americans. His graduate studies helped him discern how, as a physician, he aspires to become a health change-maker for both individuals and the greater community. Now an M2 at Geisel, Michael continues his volunteer work addressing food disparities at the Upper Valley Haven and is a Global Health Scholar.
In his free time, he loves cooking, yoga, and spending time with friends. He also loves getting outside to surf, hike, and camp. Skiing has also become a new favorite pastime, which he picked up on the Skiway this past winter. Being from Ohio, he feels especially fortunate to have had the opportunities to pursue these hobbies while traveling, living in Southern California, and now calling the Upper Valley home.
Friday Jun 07, 2024
Staff Spotlight: Conversation with Kate Adams
Friday Jun 07, 2024
Friday Jun 07, 2024
Name (pronouns): Kate Adams (she, her, hers)
Hometown: Dennis, MA
Year at Geisel: 4
Career interest: Mental Health, Wellbeing, Coaching, Live Performance, Music, Dance, Yoga, Movement Therapy
The best thing about Geisel is: the small, tight-knit community
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: Putnam’s Vineyard for an indoor spot, the white river branch near South Royalton for an outdoor spot
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Searching for good finds at Listen
Book/poem Recommendation: Braiding Sweetgrass & anything by Mary Oliver
Favorite piece of music/song: To many to list but right now I’m into the band Palace
Favorite quote: “Precision is suffocating”. Also, anything uttered by Aldo Leopold or Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Most treasured travel: My 36 trips around the sun
Guilty pleasure: Reality TV- Real Housewives, anything on Bravo really
Unknown fact about you: I’m chainsaw certified, live in the woods for 8 months and can move big rocks with the correct mechanical advantage
Bio:
Kate grew up in Dennis, MA a small beach town on Cape Cod. She earned her BA at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in North Adams, MA (Berkshires) and pursued a career in performing arts and arts administration. She is also a registered yoga teacher, level III Reiki practitioner, Barre instructor, and will soon be a certified Health and Wellness Coach.
After a few years in Manhattan and a year in Maine, she moved to New Hampshire to work at the Hopkins Center for the Arts at Dartmouth College working on student engagement & marketing. She joined Geisel in February 2020 and is currently the Wellness Program Coordinator for the Office of Student Life.
When she’s not in the office Kate enjoys traveling, hiking (ask her about the NH 48), tending to her garden, and watching the Great British Baking Show. She is a dog Mom of a mini–Australian Shepard named Lola who is currently living with her grandparents on the cape.
Friday May 24, 2024
Student Spotlight: Conversation with Matthew Goff, Class of 2025
Friday May 24, 2024
Friday May 24, 2024
Name (pronouns): Matthew Goff (he/him/his)
Hometown: Plattsburgh, NY
Year at Geisel: 2025
Career interest: Triple Board (Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
The best thing about Geisel is: My classmates (of all years)!
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: Abracadabra Coffee in Woodstock, VT
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Trail running and cycling
Book/poem Recommendation: Medical History by Nicole Sealey
Favorite quote: I’m not sure I have a particular favorite quote, but one quote that has had an impact on me was when Yo-Yo Ma spoke at Dartmouth my senior year and said, “I am a human first, a musician second, and a cellist third.” I often rephrase this in the context of medicine to, “I am a human first, a doctor second, and a cellist third.” In medicine, we often put up barriers between ourselves and our patients, but I think it is important that in this physically, mentally, and emotionally grueling field we don’t let our job get in the way of our humanity.
Most treasured travel: Any chance to adventure in the mountains, but I am especially fond of a backpacking trip in the French Pyrenees following a study abroad program in college, which is where my now fiancé and I trace the beginning of our relationship.
Guilty pleasure: period/historical fiction movies and books
Unknown fact about you: In college I got to play Yo-Yo Ma’s cello!
"I am originally from rural, upstate New York and did my undergraduate degree at Dartmouth where I majored in Neuroscience and minored in Anthropology of Global Health. While at Dartmouth I also studied French and studied abroad for a term in Toulouse, France. I also spent a term working for a community health non-profit organization in rural Alabama. After undergrad, I spent 2 years working as an Admissions Officer for Dartmouth College, where I was a member of the Visitor Relations team working on redesigning the visitor experience, as well as the Communications team working on developing institutional branding and messaging around affordability and accessibility. I am now an MD/MBA student, so for the three years prior to Tuck I have been attending medical school. I am planning to complete medical residency following Tuck in a combined program of Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. I am still exploring options for applying my MBA to healthcare, but I am especially interested in improving healthcare delivery, particularly in the area of pediatric mental health."
Friday May 10, 2024
Faculty Spotlight: Conversation with Dr. Charles Hopley
Friday May 10, 2024
Friday May 10, 2024
Name: Charles Hopley (He/Him)
Hometown: Denver
Year at Geisel: 6th
Career interest: Im an Internist and I take care of patients with Kidney Disease and bad blood pressure
The best thing about Geisel is: Its setting.
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: Sunrise over Whaleback
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Being outside and watching my kids sports events
Book/poem Recommendation: The original Sherlock Holmes Stories. Holmes is a genius, and at the same time a deeply flawed character. There is method to his madness though, Holmes has an approach. I try to emulate that.
Favorite piece of music/song: Highway 61 Revisited
Dr. Hopley is from Denver, Colorado. He went to Colorado College, where he studied Biology, and Medical School at Ross. He received a Master of Public Health at Dartmouth (at the time, it was called the Center for Evaluative Clinical Sciences, but now it's The Dartmouth Institute or TDI). He did an Internal Medicine residency at the University of Illinois and a fellowship in Nephrology at the University of Colorado. He is in his 6th year on the faculty in the Department of Medicine, Section of Hypertension and Nephrology at Geisel/Dartmouth Hitchcock. He directs The Fluids, Electrolytes, and Renal Medicine at Geisel for the second year medical students. At Dartmouth Hitchcock (DH) he directs the Home Dialysis Clinics as well as the Advanced Hypertension Clinic. He is a husband and father of 3, and we like to be outside.
Friday Apr 26, 2024
Staff Spotlight: Conversation with Shawn O'Leary
Friday Apr 26, 2024
Friday Apr 26, 2024
Name (pronouns): Shawn O’Leary (he, him, his)
Hometown: Duluth, MN
Year at Geisel: ~22 years
Career interest: Health equity, student engagement with the underserved and wellness
The best thing about Geisel is: Our student’s commitment to service
Favorite book/poem: The Roundhouse by Louise Erdrich
Most treasured travel: Anywhere with my family
Guilty pleasure: Anything sweet
Unknown fact about you: I’ve run ten marathons
Shawn has been working to create innovative programs in the social justice field for thirty years. He is an enrolled member of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe in Northern Minnesota where his family has harvested wild rice for generations.
For over twenty years, Shawn has been the Director of the Office for Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. Shawn is responsible for overseeing the Geisel School of Medicine's diversity programs and executing its mission of promoting a climate of unity, respect and belonging. He is the academic advisor to the Urban and Rural Health Scholars Programs. He also serves as an advisor to minority students and student affinity groups, and works to ensure the success and retention of all minority students, faculty, and staff. Shawn was selected by medical students for induction into the Gold Humanism in Medicine Honor Society for Outstanding Mentorship in 2006, 2021 and 2024. In 2017, Shawn received the Holly Fell Sateia Award, a Dartmouth College social justice award that pays tribute to a faculty or staff member who is an enthusiastic and effective leader in advancing diversity and community. Most recently he received the Jack H. Lyons Humanism in Medicine Lifetime Achievement Award in June 2022.
Shawn came to Geisel from the University of Maine where he served as Assistant Director of the Native American Center. Prior to coming to New England, Shawn worked in his home state of Minnesota developing minority recruitment and retention strategies, based on an individualized student service philosophy, at the Center of American Indian and Minority Health, University of Minnesota Duluth School of Medicine. He chaired the Indians into Medicine advisory board and was the liaison between the medical school and the thirty-four reservation communities in Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa. Shawn also worked for the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe's Educational Talent Search Program where he worked to promote the educational needs of first generation American Indian students.
Wherever Shawn lives and works, he is actively engaged in the community. He served as a youth hockey coach and has coached over forty hockey teams the past nineteen years in Minnesota, Maine, New Hampshire, and Canada. While in Minnesota, he was appointed by Minnesota Governor Arne Carlson to the Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee for his work with high school and college dropouts in the correctional system.
Shawn has an open door policy and is always willing to speak to prospective or current students. You may stop by his office in Remsen 315E, reach him by phone at (603) 339-2686, or email at shawn.oleary@dartmouth.edu.
Friday Apr 12, 2024
Student Spotlight: Conversation with Nicholas Fuller, Class of 2025
Friday Apr 12, 2024
Friday Apr 12, 2024
Name (pronouns): Nicholas Fuller (He/Him/His)
Hometown: Centre Hall, PA
Year at Geisel: 3rd
Career interest: Palliative care
The best thing about Geisel is: The amazing hospital with wonderful people
Favorite spot in the Upper Valley: Lucky’s Coffee Garage in Lebanon, NH
Favorite activity in the Upper Valley: Going to trivia at Salt Hill Pub on Sunday nights
Book/poem Recommendation: Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
Favorite quote: “Truth is a locked room that we knock the lock off from time to time, and then board up again” - Donald Barthelme
Most treasured travel: Going back home
Guilty pleasure: Listening to podcasts probably more than is healthy
Unknown fact about you: I used to drive a big red pick-up truck in high school
At the time of this interview, Nicholas was a 3rd year medical student at Geisel. He is originally from Centre Hall, Pennsylvania, a small town in the Appalachian Mountains. He attended college at the University of Pittsburgh, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and a Bachelor of arts in Philosophy. Before medical school he worked as a nursing assistant in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the medical ICU of a community hospital. He really enjoys reading, writing, playing music, watching movies, going for walks and drinking coffee.
People Behind The Podcast
Host: Tamar Mosulishvili
Tamar is a member of class of 2025 at Geisel School of Medicine. She was born and raised at the edge of Europe, in the Republic of Georgia and moved to NYC with a primary goal to pursue education in the US. After graduating from Columbia University with BA in Neuroscience, she moved to the Northern woods to attend Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. She is passionate about medical education, practical wisdom, and creating equitable systems that help individuals fulfill their potential while caring for themselves and remaining human. She believes in the power of strong, interconnected teams and communities. Outside of medicine, Tamar enjoys hiking the peaks of the White Mountains, skiing the east, adventuring with her dog, Charlie, traveling abroad, and spending as much time as possible with her family and friends, locally and abroad.
Editor: Willa Merrill
Willa Merrill is a student at Hanover High School and the podcast editor for KNN. She was born in China but raised in Kansas City, Missouri before moving to the Upper Valley for high school. Outside of schoolwork and the podcast, she loves spending time with family and friends by watching movies, playing games and sports, or simply hanging out. Once she graduates, she hopes to move to a city and enjoy a bustling environment that isn’t exactly easy to find in Hanover!