The Doctor’s Doctor Will See You Now: Students Learn the Role of the Pathologist Is Much More Than What You See on TV
More than 60 students representing the medical and graduate schools of Icahn Mount Sinai recently toured the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner to gain a better understanding of the role of pathologist, often called the doctor’s doctor. Photo credit: Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
You may think you know all about the work of a pathologist from all the television shows and films that focus on forensic pathology and solving crimes.
Barbara Sampson, MD, PhD, has a slightly different view. She refers to pathologists as the doctor’s doctor. That’s because these doctors are the experts upon whom other doctors routinely rely when trying to reach a diagnosis for their patient.
Before joining Mount Sinai’s Pathology Department in December of 2021, Dr. Sampson served as New York City’s Chief Medical Examiner, the largest medical examiner’s office in the United States, for almost a decade. Now she is working with medical students to help them gain a better understanding of the role of pathologist.
“My mission is to enlighten first-year and second-year students about the fascinating field of pathology before they differentiate into other areas of medicine,” says Dr. Sampson, Vice Chair for Strategic Laboratory Initiatives and Academic Affairs in the Department of Pathology, Molecular, and Cell Based Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
So far, her efforts seem to be paying off. Dr. Sampson recently organized a field trip to the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner to give medical students a window into the cutting-edge science of pathology and forensic biology. The event was attended by more than 60 students representing the medical and graduate schools of Icahn Mount Sinai.
Students learned about DNA crime evidence analysis, the ongoing effort to identify victims of the 2001 World Trade Center attacks, and molecular autopsies that can identify genetic mutations responsible for sudden natural deaths and alert family members about inherited medical conditions. They also toured the Medical Examiner’s DNA training lab facilities and learned about its history of innovations to analyze the most challenging items of evidence.
“My mission is to enlighten first-year and second-year students about the fascinating field of pathology before they differentiate into other areas of medicine,” says Barbara Sampson, MD, PhD.
For second-year medical students Walter Jacob and Lucy Greenwald, who lead the Pathology Interest Group for students, the visit was an eye-opener.
“The thing that stood out the most for me was the emphasis on the World Trade Center disaster and learning that they are still working on identifying multiple hundreds of people who have yet to be identified. It was just amazing to think that this office is still working tirelessly,” he said.
She added, “When they started telling us about their WTC work, the mood was intense. We were listening intently, with awe. It was inspiring to hear the personal relationships they had developed with families over the years and how they meet with families annually, around the time of the anniversary, to provide an update and to let families know they are still searching for answers.”
Since taking over as leaders of the Pathology Interest Group, the two have organized several events to introduce students to pathology. They recently invited students to a tie-dye T-shirt workshop to celebrate the work of pathology, which uses a variety of stains to enhance the appearance of cells under a microscope.
“In a similar event, we set up shadowing for pathology specimens that come in mid surgery, allowing students to see up close how a pathologist plays a critical role during an oncological surgery. The pathologist makes the final call on whether the surgeon has successfully cut out the cancer with clean margins,” she said.
“Most specialties are patient-facing but, for the most part, pathology aids clinicians in the diagnosis of disease, like a doctor’s doctor.”
The Pathology Interest Group has organized several events to introduce students to pathology, including a tie-dye T-shirt workshop to celebrate the work of pathology, which uses a variety of stains to enhance the appearance of cells under a microscope.
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