Chats for Change | Mount Sinai
Activities that spark conversations.
Spring/Summer 2024 (March-August)
Chats for Change Schedule
The spring and summer Chats for Change schedule is here!
Each season we introduce new topics that are designed to spark critical dialogue and generate deeper understanding and insight.
We invite all staff, faculty, trainees, students and others within the health system to join us and engage in dialogue so that we can work towards a common understanding and contribute our best thinking, knowing that other peoples’ reflections help to improve our thinking rather than impair it. We are committed to dialogue to help us reveal our assumptions and biases for self-evaluation.
Chats for Change is built on the notion that responding to racism and bias requires engaging in dialogue, learning, and action.
You don’t want to miss this season’s chats. Here are some highlights:
- Series on Understanding Islamophobia and Antisemitism | Given the horrific increase in hate crimes against Muslim and Jewish people, it’s imperative for us to commit to deeper understanding and reflection.
- Antiracism Fellow Series | This year’s Institute for Equity and Justice in Health Sciences Education Antiracism Fellows will introduce new topics, challenging all of us to critically examine pressing contemporary issues and the role of medical students.
- Mount Sinai History Series | Pulling from resources in the Aufses Archives, we will uncover how Mount Sinai’s past shows up in our present, how equitable treatment regardless of the ability to pay is a relatively new concept, and how our patient populations have been recorded and reported at different moments in our hospitals’ histories.
- Rejuvenate and Restore (R&R) Series | With everything going on, we can still find time for joy, future dreaming, and collective care.
In addition to these series, we have one-off chats on decolonizing global health, cybersafety, the rural vs. urban divide, and much more. Register today and add Chats for Change to your calendar.
Are there topics that you want to see in future sessions? Let us know; we want to hear from you.
Chats for Change | Spring/Summer 2024
March 2024
Understanding Antisemitism
Examples of antisemitism in the US include Dutch Governor Peter Stuyvesant petitioning to have Jews removed from New Amsterdam in the 1650s; fear and resentment of Jewish immigrants; blatant quota systems in academia and corporate America; Nazi sympathizers leading up to WWII; and the recent resurgence of conspiracy theories, scapegoating, and mistrust. Join us as we strive to understand the root causes and consequences of antisemitism, in a nation where “all men are created equal” is considered a self-evident truth.
Facilitators: Jessica Fuzailof and David Muller, MD
Tuesday, March 5 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Saying ‘No’ to the Status Quo: An exploration of Student-led Initiatives to Enact Anti-racist Institutional Change
Students have often been cited as catalysts for change towards anti-racism in medical education, yet often feel like there are discrepancies between true transformational change and the reality of their environment. Join us as we explore examples of student–led initiatives that have transformed medical education towards anti-racism; how students, faculty, and staff can collaborate to center anti-racism in medical education; and how curriculum redesign can be central to this collaboration.
Facilitator(s): Anti-Racism Student Fellows | Francesca Silvestri (MS4), Rachel Kasdin (MS2), Wayland Chiu (MS2)
Tuesday, March 12 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Understanding Islamophobia
Fear, hatred and prejudice against Islam and people who are Muslim has a long history in the United States. It is often exacerbated by global events and has a profound impact on peoples’ safety, livelihood, and right to worship. Islamophobia has been rampant in recent months. What is at the root of the historical dehumanization of Muslims and Arabs, and what are its consequences? Join us for a deeper understanding of Islamophobia and how it is experienced by our colleagues and peers.
Facilitator(s): TBD
This session will be rescheduled.
April 2024
How Are You Finding Joy in Difficult Times?
We are managing the emotions that come with social and political conflict here and abroad, the Israel–Hamas war, the pandemic, the climate crisis, and more. At times it can feel like every day brings more troubling news. Given all that, it might seem impossible to think about making time for joy. But the fact is that finding joy is one of the most powerful ways we can survive—and even thrive—in times like this. Join us as we discuss how we experience joy even when grief and rage are present.
Facilitators: Leona Hess, PhD, MSW and Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH, MPH
Tuesday, April 2 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Beyond the Books: Navigating the Hidden Curriculum in Graduate and Medical Education
Discover the untold challenges faced by Black students aspiring to a career in medicine. Explore how the hidden curriculum, often unspoken and implicit, can create barriers and perpetuate inequalities. Gain insights into strategies for overcoming these obstacles and empowering underrepresented individuals to thrive in the medical field. Don’t miss this thought-provoking conversation that aims to dismantle barriers and foster inclusivity in healthcare education.
Facilitator(s): Anti-Racism Student Fellows | Tracy Okine (MP1) and Tsion Tmariam (MS3)
Tuesday, April 16 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Mount Sinai History Series
How Does Our Past Show Up in Our Present?
At Mount Sinai we often cite our origin story, the opening of Jews’ Hospital in New York in 1855, as a core element of our identity: to treat those who were refused treatment elsewhere (at the time, people of Jewish faith, and accident victims). As a health system, we are now multiple hospitals and a medical school. Pulled from resources in the Aufses Archives, we will consider how the histories of these institutions shape us. What parts of our legacies most resonate with you, and what would you want to know about how our histories impact our work today?
Facilitator(s): J.E. Molly Seegers, MSLIS, MS and Leona Hess, PhD, MSW
Tuesday, April 23 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Decolonizing Global Health
What does it mean to decolonize global health? Join us to explore how historical legacies of colonization continue to impact health outcomes, and discover strategies for promoting equity, inclusivity, and cultural sensitivity in the pursuit of truly universal healthcare access. Together, we challenge conventional paradigms and strive towards a more just and equitable future for global health.
Facilitator(s): Jenn Meyer, LMSW, MPH in collaboration with The Arnhold Institute for Global Health
Tuesday, April 30 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
May 2024
Can We Solve Food Insecurity?
An estimated 25% of New York residents are currently experiencing food insecurity and are unable to access sufficient food to meet their families’ basic needs. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, government safety programs and local grassroots organizations have struggled to keep up with the exacerbated need our neighbors and patients face. Join us for a conversation about mutual aid in NYC and how different hospital systems currently support food justice. What is and isn’t our responsibility as researchers and health care providers to address this issue for our patients?
Facilitator(s): Anti-Racism Student Fellows | Hope Lefebvre (MS1), Spencer Johnson (MS2), Jerrel Catlett (MP2)
Tuesday, May 7 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Future (Day)Dreaming
When the mind can wander and engage in spontaneous thoughts, it can make connections and generate innovative ideas. Daydreaming provides a cognitive space to explore alternative perspectives, simulate possible scenarios and events, and imagine future outcomes. Join us as we engage in “freedom dreaming” to visualize the future that we want to live, work, and learn in and harness the necessary resources to actively move that dream toward reality.
Facilitator(s): Leona Hess, PhD, MSW and Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH, MPH
Tuesday, May 14 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Evolution of the Anti-racism Student Fellowship: From Past to Present
Join us as we recap the life course of the Mount Sinai anti-racism fellowship program and dialogue about what comes next. What does agency and active anti-racism look like in today’s landscape for this work to continue?
Facilitator(s): Anti-Racism Student Fellows | Carina Seah (MP3) and Jennifer Dias (MS4)
Tuesday, May 28 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
June 2024
Mount Sinai History Series
Unified Care?
Equitable treatment regardless of the ability to pay is a relatively new concept. Hear about how hospitals historically divided patient populations, and how the advent of health insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid changed how services were delivered at Mount Sinai’s hospitals. How does this history resonate with the goal of unifying care and health equity?
Facilitator(s): J.E. Molly Seegers, MSLIS, MS and David Muller, MD
Tuesday, June 11 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Cybersafety in the Hyperdigital Age
As national legislation and social push back grows against racial equity work, how do we balance both our safety and using our voice? Join us for a discussion about cyber safety in the age of mass digitization, social media, and surveillance.
Facilitator(s): Jay Johnson, CHES and Jeff Cavalli
Tuesday, June 25 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
July 2024
Collective Care
For too long there has been a focus on self-care. In reality we work and learn in systems with groups of people; in community. Join us as we examine the ways in which collective care can move us away from putting the responsibility of self-care on the shoulders of individuals and shift the onus to the institutions, systems, and structures in which we work and learn.
Facilitator(s): Leona Hess, PhD, MSW and Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH, MPH
Tuesday, July 9 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Racism in the Patient Experience
Racism as a social determinant of health creates harm and poor health outcomes for patients, but what is the interpersonal experience of prejudice like for patients in everyday provider interactions? Join us as we discuss the preponderance of racism and microaggressions in health care through the lens of patient experiences.
Facilitator(s): Jay Johnson, CHES & Erica Rubenstein, MS, LCSW, CPXP
Tuesday, July 23 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Be Part of the Solution
This moment in history – with all its turmoil, controversy, and uncertainty – demands that we band together across our varied roles, identities, and lived experiences so that we can face the future with confidence, knowing that we are all motivated to be part of the solution: for our peers and colleagues, our patients, our communities, and the nation. Join us to learn more about how to get involved in the change efforts at the ISMMS and the role of the Institute for Equity and Justice in Health Sciences Education in addressing and mitigating all forms of racism, bias, and oppression in the school’s learning and work environment.
Facilitator(s): David Muller, MD and Leona Hess, PhD, MSW
Tuesday, July 30 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
August 2024
Mount Sinai History Series
Who Sought Treatment?
Today we are familiar with tracking patient outcomes by identities, such as race or gender–but this has not always been the case. As New York’s demographics have changed through time, so too have the data recorded about people seeking medical care. Carefully examining documents from the Aufses Archives, we will see how patient populations have been recorded and reported at different moments in our hospitals’ histories. Join us to reflect on how our practices have evolved.
Facilitator(s): J.E. Molly Seegers, MSLIS, MS and David Muller, MD
Tuesday, August 6 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Rural vs. Urban Divide: What It Means for the 2024 Election
Join us for an insightful exploration into the rural-urban dichotomy and its profound implications for the upcoming 2024 election. Delve into the socioeconomic, cultural, and political factors shaping this divide and uncover how it could sway electoral outcomes and policy priorities in the years ahead.
Facilitator(s): Jenn Meyer, LMSW, MPH and Pete Zweig, MPA
Tuesday, August 20 | 12-1 pm | Join us on Zoom.
Chats for Change is built on the notion that in order to respond to racism and be anti-racist we must engage in dialogue, learning, and action.
If you’ve attended Chats for Change in the past or if you are curious about the experience, we invite you to join us as we continue to engage in dialogue, work towards a common understanding, and contribute our best thinking, knowing that other peoples’ reflections will help improve our thinking rather than undermine it. We are committed to engaging in dialogue in order to reveal our assumptions and biases for self-evaluation.
These sessions are intended for the Mount Sinai Health System community of students, faculty, and staff. After registering for any of the sessions above you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting, including an option to add the invitation to your calendar. None of these sessions will be recorded.
If you are interested in participating in Chats for Change sessions that are open to the public, join us here.