The world today

• Science and technology are now moving faster than ever

• Medical advances are similarly ocurring at an incredible rate

• Hot areas in the last few years:• Designer drugs

• Genetic engineering

• Oncology

• Stem cell technology

• Artificial organs/prosthetics

• Implants/wearables

• Human lifespans are growing

Another reality…

• Aging populations around the world

• Record numbers of chronically ill people• Diabetes

• Hypertension

• Cardiovascular disease

• Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases

• Cancer and HIV

• Massive disparities in healthcare access and delivery

• Poor health literacy

What is health literacy?

• “the ability to obtain, read, understand and use healthcare information to make appropriate health decisions and follow instructions for treatment.”

• Estimated half the population cannot understand basic healthcare information

• Imagine if you were sick. Could you take care of yourself without knowing:• How a disease works• What the life-threatening symptoms are• What treatments are available• How to keep yourself as healthy as possible

The cost

• American healthcare is extremely costly

• Poor health literacy costs billions of dollars each year in unecessary visits, complications, etc.

• Also, a human cost in unecessary suffering

The cost

• Real world example: young patient with poor health literacy, multiple family members with breast cancer• No primary care provider

• Was not being screened for cancer

• Unaware of genetic testing

• Unaware of preventative treatments for breast cancer

• When she finally did see a doctor, she already had metastatic disease, estimated weeks/months to live

• Her life could have been saved – this could have been prevented.

Our goal

• To bring life-changing and potentially life-saving information to the world

• Make science and medicine more understandable by the average person

• A more well-educated public will be a healthier public

Why “Morning Sign Out”?

• Sign Out – a healthcare term• Process by which patients are transitioned to the next professional or team

taking care of them

• You don’t want to give too much useless info

• But you need enough info so critcal decisions can be made

• Most major medical decisions and procedures happen during the day

• Thus, morning sign out is often the launching point for the day

Why “Morning Sign Out”?

• As a society, there is a divide between the world of science & medicine and the public

• We aim to bridge that divide

• As with a sign out, we turn science and medicine into something easily understandable for our readers

• Humans can live longer, healthier, and more productive lives than ever, but they need the knowledge to do so

What do we do?

• We are an online publication performs a medical, public health, and community service role

• Admins, editors, techies, artists, and writers all collaborate together to simplify and present topics in medicine and science

• Future expansions:• Podcasting

• Video

• Social networking

• And other stealth projects

Why should I join?

• Apply your knowledge and skills to the real world and work to improve the public’s literacy in science and medicine

• Develop your interests in new areas of science and medicine that will play a key role in your future careers

• Gain leadership skills through developing short- and long-term strategic projects

Why should I join?

• Flexibility - all of our work is performed online, and our schedules give you lots of flexibility

• Develop potential references and letters of recommendation

• Gain exclusive access to pre-medical mentoring with Dr. Andrew Lee

Join us

http://morningsignout.com/recruitment/