INSIDE WVSMA
Editor ’ s Letter
Medical Student Editorial Board Members
Linda S . Nield , MD
GUEST AUTHORS :
Skylar Cooper , PhD Kent Marshall , MS Lucas Wohler , MS
Readers are introduced here to three new medical student editors : Skylar Cooper , Kent Marshall , and Lucas Wohler . The West Virginia Medical Journal has included medical students on the editorial board since 2021 , and its inaugural student representatives graduated in June 2024 . Congratulations and much gratitude to Dr . Barbara “ Diane ” Gillis and Dr . Maninder Sohi for their service over the past three years . The benefits of having medical students involved in the editorial process was described in a Letter to the Editor in the journal Academic Medicine in 2022 . The authors highlighted the attributes of diligence and enthusiasm and the addition of novel perspectives that medical students bring to the editing table . 1 Our current student editors , one from each of the medical schools in West Virginia ( WV ) and each nominated by their dean , have already displayed these outstanding qualities in their first few months in their positions . A brief biography about each editor is included below .
Skylar Cooper is a third-year medical student at Marshall University ' s Joan C . Edwards School of Medicine . She grew up in Saint Joseph , Michigan , and has spent the past seven years in WV , where she obtained her PhD in biomedical research and is now pursuing her medical degree . Cooper ' s PhD research focused on the effects of vaping flavors on nicotine addiction , which sparked her passion for understanding the neurobiology of addiction . Cooper became a student editor to broaden her knowledge in clinical research , gain more peer-review exposure , form relationships with fellow physicians and scientists in WV , and help play a role in advancing the journal .
the major advances in medicine that are happening at the state ’ s institutions .
Lucas Wohler is a third-year medical student at the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine . He grew up in Fredericksburg , Virginia , before obtaining his BA in chemistry at the University of Virginia and his MS in pharmacology and toxicology at Virginia Commonwealth University . Wohler ’ s research interests include surgical outcomes , novel pharmacologic therapies , and unique case studies . In his student editor role , he is enthusiastically anticipating the opportunities to be exposed to research projects occurring around the state , to communicate with other clinicians that value the importance of research and to be better informed on advances in medicine .
The medical student editors volunteer their time in between their rigorous clinical and didactic schedules . A non-exhaustive list of their duties includes proofreading the entirety of each journal issue , assisting in the submission of the journal articles ’ metadata to the indexing platform Crossref , providing ideas for themed journal volumes , and offering their guidance about XML formatting , publication queries , and other topics that the editorial team has to address .
Enjoy this September 2024 issue , and as you read each feature , keep in mind the editorial efforts of these future physicians .
REFERENCES
1 . Shlobin NA , Garba DL , Wang A . A Call to include medical students on editorial boards of medical journals . Acad Med . 2002 ; 97 ( 2 ): 168-170 .
Kent Marshall is a seventh-year MD / PhD student at the West Virginia University ( WVU ) School of Medicine . He recently completed his PhD work in clinical and translational science studying new treatment paradigms for secondary brain tumors . Marshall holds a BS and an MS in exercise physiology from the WVU School of Medicine and is a lifelong resident of the state . He grew up in Tornado , WV , and has family throughout the state . He has witnessed first-hand the difficulty in accessing healthcare in these rural areas . As a student editor , Marshall hopes to promote and disseminate
6 • www . wvsma . org