We are excited to announce the World Medical Studies Conference! AMOpportunities set out to launch the World Medical Studies Conference with the goal to resource the next generation of medical workers with the knowledge, tips, and materials to help them on their journey to physicianship. The conference will take place on August 18, 2022, from 8:00 a.m. through 12:30 p.m.
While the conference is designed to help resource medical trainees, we hope the conference is an environment open and engaging to everyone in the medical and medical education industries.
What to Expect at the World Medical Studies Conference
The WMSC will open and close with two featured speakers and follow a track-based schedule throughout the day. Sessions will run for 45 minutes and include both presentations and Q&As. Speakers will have the option to host breakout sessions for those interested in learning more following the session or those who were unable to attend the original session.
With more than 12 speakers already confirmed, sessions will cover a range of topics, including virtual rotations, the importance of research, the challenges IMGs face, professionalism and leadership in medicine, and more.
Learn more about some of our speakers below.
Learn more about the conference and register for free by clicking here.
Highlighted Speakers
The World Medical Studies Conference will feature speakers from across the medical education industry. Learn more about just some of the already confirmed speakers.
Dr. Malke Asaad, University of Pittsburg Department of Plastic Surgery
Dr. Malke Asaad grew up in Aleppo, Syria, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. He attended medical school at Aleppo University, continuously ranking first in his class and graduating valedictorian among 380 students. During the war in Aleppo, he witnessed firsthand the transformative impact of plastic surgery procedures on trauma patients, giving them back their function and quality of life. Following graduation, Dr. Asaad started his first research position at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, in the Department of Plastic Surgery. During his time at the Mayo Clinic, he worked on projects related to clinical outcomes of breast, pelvic, cranial, and thoracic reconstruction in addition to surgical educational research projects. In 2019, he moved to the number one cancer center in the world, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, where he worked as a research fellow in the Department of Plastic Surgery. Dr. Asaad was privileged to work under the mentorship of Dr. Charles Butler and other world-renowned microsurgeons leading multiple large clinical research projects to evaluate the clinical outcomes of abdominal wall, pelvic, breast, and head and neck reconstruction. Dr. Asaad’s company, The Match Guy, provides medical students and graduates with services and courses specifically tailored to help improve the chances of IMGs to match into a U.S. residency program.
Dr. Samuel Lin, Program Director at Harvard Plastic Surgery Residency Training Program
Dr. Samuel Lin is an Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School and holds appointments as an attending Plastic Surgeon with Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians at BIDMC and the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary inBoston, Massachusetts. He is board certified by both the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.
Dr. Lin graduated from medical school in 1998 and has been practicing plastic surgery in the Boston area since 2007. Dr. Lin also serves as Associate Program Director of the Harvard Plastic Surgery Residency Training Program and is co-director of the Harvard Aesthetic and Reconstructive Plastic Surgery Fellowship at BIDMC. He serves as an Associate Editor on the Editorial Board for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the main journal for plastic surgery. Dr. Lin, his team, and his collaborators have regularly published scientific papers in the literature to further knowledge about plastic surgery and other topics. Dr. Lin is an active Board Member of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Bright Pink Foundations. He is also an AMO preceptor.
Andrea Pakula MD, MPH, FACS Adventist Health Simi Valley Hospital, Simi Valley, California
Andrea Pakula MD, MPH, FACS, is the Medical Director of Robotic Surgery at Adventist Health Simi Valley Hospital in Southern California. The hospital is now recognized as a Robotic Center of Excellence. Following graduation from St. George’s University School of Medicine, Dr. Pakula completed her internship and residency at Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield, California, and a Fellowship in Trauma & Surgical Critical Care at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. She then went on to get additional training in minimally invasive and robotic surgery. Her clinical interests include all aspects of General Surgery with extensive expertise in Trauma, Critical Care, and Acute Care surgery as well as Laparoscopic and Robotic Bariatric and Hernia Surgery. She specializes in various open and minimally invasive and robotic techniques, including inguinal hernia and complex abdominal wall reconstruction and also uses robotics in all aspects of her acute care surgery practice. Dr. Pakula enjoys training surgeons around the country and educating on building a best-in-class Robotic Surgery program.
Tamar Frolichstein-Appel, Senior Employment Services Associate, Healthcare Sector Lead, Upwardly Global
Tamar is a career counselor and nonprofit leader with experience working with diverse students and clients in many fields. Her expertise is in working with immigrants, career changers, non-traditional students, first-generation college students, and international students and alumni at all stages of their professional development. She is dedicated to connecting with people and helping them make positive professional transitions.
