Strong showing

Two Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine earned top honors at the 5th Annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) and Graduate Student Showcase (GSS). 

Sama Ramo, M3, won the People’s Choice Award for her 3MT presentation, and Lauren Walkon, M3, took first place in the GSS. 

The 3MT and GSS competitions challenge students at Oakland University to distill complex research into concise and engaging presentations. Each participant has just three minutes to present their research to a panel of judges and a general audience, making their findings accessible to a broader public. The 3MT minute presentation emphasized academic research, while the GSS took a more creative approach. 

The Feb. 14 event consisted of a preliminary round followed by a championship round later in the day. While a panel of judges selected the winners, the People’s Choice Award, which Ramo won, was determined by audience votes. 

Ramo presented research on the differences between chronic opioid use and chronic pain after surgery, conducted through a fellowship at the University of Michigan. The research involved 338 participants and concluded that chronic opioid use and chronic pain should be treated separately, rather than being inherently linked. 

“We're still researching and trying to learn more about opioids and opioid use, and oftentimes especially in current research, chronic opioid use after surgery is thought to be intrinsically intertwined with chronic pain after surgery,” said Ramo. “Ultimately, the results of our study were that persistent opioid use after surgery and chronic pain after surgery are different entities, and they should be treated as such in treatment as well.” 

Ramo highlighted the challenge of condensing complex research findings into only three minutes while ensuring accessibility for a wide audience. 

“It was really amazing experience,” said Ramo. “It was really difficult trying to balance explaining the complexity and the really interesting parts of our research, while also at the same time, making sure that it's palatable to kind of like the everyday person.” 

Ramo’s interest in opioid research began during her gap year, where she worked at the University of Michigan’s Chronic Pain Research Center on NIH-funded research focused on reducing opioid use. Through the Medical Student Anesthesia Research Fellowship (MSARF), offered through the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER), she continued her research, leading her to present her findings at the 3MT. 

Ramo also presented her research at the 2024 American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) meeting, where it placed third place for the medical student abstract category. She credits the OUWB Anesthesiology Interest Group (AIG) for providing strong support and mentorship. 

“The primary point of support is through the anesthesiology interest group,” said Ramo. “Now that I'm leading it, we do a lot to support students that want to go into anesthesiology. We try to show opportunities to them.” 

Walkon won first place in the GSS for her presentation focused on two newly FDA-approved drugs for a specific subtype of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). She explored how these medications reflect the growing trend toward personalized medicine, offering more targeted treatments with fewer side effects. 

“My presentation was about these two drugs that were recently approved by the FDA to treat a very specific subtype of COPD,” said Walkon. “My presentation explained what happens within this specific subtype and how the drugs intervene, and also addressed this aspect of personalized medicine, where we're being more specific to addressing someone's specific subtype, as opposed to treating them broadly.” 

Walkon explained further that pharmaceutical companies and different health care entities are working toward finding much more specific treatments that can be more effective and reduce the side effects for people. 

Walkon was drawn to the topic because of the recent approval of these medications and their potential for immediate impact on patients. 

“What really brought me to this study was that these two drugs had been approved recently by the FDA. That is what led me to really get excited about this aspect of personalized medicine,” said Walkon. “If you have a rare subtype or even a rare illness, you often don't get the benefit of a specialized treatment. I really wanted to draw attention to that.” 

Beyond the competition, Walkon saw this as an opportunity to sharpen her communication skills – a crucial aspect of her future medical career. She highlighted the importance of clear communication in health care and the challenges of making complex medical information understandable. 

“People have the right to know what's going on with them and hear about in a way they can understand. I hate the idea of telling someone something and then having to go Google it or ask a friend to explain it,” said Walkon. “I really was interested in the idea of having some practice doing that.” 

Walkon also appreciated the support from both OUWB and Oakland University faculty. 

“This was my first time getting to know a lot of the Oakland University faculty members. They were supportive in terms of giving me constructive feedback that was helpful,” said Walkon. 

“It was my first time taking part in (the showcase), so I didn't know what to expect. I was able to hear a lot of really great presentations, and some well-thought-out ideas, and I learned a lot. I was honored to have won it,” said Walkon.