This fall has been busy and bustling for emergency medicine interest groups (EMIG) around Florida. FCEP’s Medical Student Council held its quarterly conference call, gathering eight EMIG student leaders from around Florida to reflect on fall activities.

Students at Florida International University (FIU) were exploring disaster medicine and took initiative to engage students in conversation about pre- and post-disaster management. Additionally, Florida State University kick-started a new event, “Women in Emergency Medicine Night,” where local emergency physicians gathered with students over a shared a meal for a relaxing evening of conversation and connection.

We also saw the trend of celebrating women in medicine at Nova Southeastern University Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine (NSU-KPCOM) as they hosted the Region 4 AMWA conference with the theme, “My Body and I.” Speakers explored topics related to protecting female bodies and positively promoting and supporting other women. One of the coolest parts? The two keynote speakers were emergency physicians. Dr. Laurie Boge, Clerkship and Wilderness Medicine Director at Mount Sinai South Beach and Dr. Jenna Varner, PGY-2 at Mount Sinai South Beach both gave inspirational keynote speeches. “I knew they would be a perfect start for our conference,” stated Courtney Hundzinksi, OMS-III at NSU-KPCOM and the AMWA Region 4 Director. “Dr. Boge has been breaking down gender barriers and fighting for equal treatment of women physicians in her field… hearing from two EM physicians that are in varying stages of training, and while dominating in their careers, was motivating and inspirational.”

Continuing with the fall excitement, we had students from all over Florida representing medical students at ACEP19 in Denver, CO. Student leaders were able to take advantage of the student-focused day on Saturday as EMRA hosted an intern panel to continue inspiring M1-M4 students about the excitements to come. There were also several breakout sessions to learn from, ranging from M3 students navigating the match, or how as an M1 and M2 student you should be positioning yourself for success, all the way to M4’s learning how to present your best self for interview day.

A student favorite is always the Residency Fair as there are program directors from all over the country connecting, networking and allowing students the opportunity to find the best fit program for themselves. NSU-KPCOM’s Emergency Medicine Club coordinated the attendance of 12 very fortunate second-year medical students to ACEP19. “This was an absolutely incredible experience that not only facilitated learning all about the multiple EM residency programs throughout the county, but also allowed us to attend multiple educational talks about a wide variety of specialties within the world of emergency medicine,” said Patrick Anderson, OMS-II, President of the Emergency Medicine Club.

Overall, students have been hard at work immersing themselves into the field this fall, and whether it’s school-sponsored events or a national conference, the vibrant personality and tight-knit community of emergency medicine shines through! ■