The Docs With Disabilities podcast releases its 17th episode this month, with a conversation with resident physician and Detroit-native, Justin Bullock, MD, MPH. Podcast host and creator Lisa M. Meeks, PhD., assistant professor, interviewed Bullock about living with bipolar disorder. Bullock published a 2020 essay "Suicide — Rewriting My Story" in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The Docs With Disabilities podcast launched its first episode less than a year ago, in July 2019. The project was created and fostered by MDisability faculty and family medicine assistant professor Lisa M. Meeks. Recent guests on the podcast have included Arghavan Salles, MD, PhD, Cheri Blauwet, MD, Michael Argenyi, MD MPH MSW, and University of Michigan Medical School graduate Molly Fausone MD.
About the series, Meeks recently noted, "The #DocsWithDisabilities podcast is new, but powerful. Each interview pushes the envelope, redefining our construct of healthcare professionals, as doctors with disabilities disclose and embrace their disability, offering insight into why DWD are valuable—needed members of the health care workforce."
The podcast is produced, in large part, by former MDisability intern and medical school-bound research assistant Kate Panzer. Panzer recently published a commentary piece entitled "Podcast possibilities: Asynchronous mentoring for learners with disabilities" in Medical Education with co-authors Ioanna Maraki, Tanita Cross, and Meeks.
They write, "Storytelling is a powerful mechanism for providing access to mentorship. Several medical professionals contacted the podcast producers hoping to share their insight with potential mentees, medical colleagues and academic facilitators. In fact, these podcasts are only limited by the production bandwidth and funding rather than interviewee supply. The overwhelming interest from medical professionals with disabilities and listeners serves as a proof of concept that podcasts are an effective form of asynchronous mentorship by virtually connecting mentors and mentees."
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