UAB MedCast hits a major milestone

Just over two years since becoming the first continuing medical education podcast in Alabama, the 100 episodes of UAB MedCast have reached thousands.

MedCastJoomlaThe first one was on bronchiectasis back in 2017. The 100th is on Parkinson’s disease. The other 98 have been on everything from cancer to wellness and just about every medical topic in between.

This is UAB MedCast, a continuing medical education podcast series presented by UAB Medicine. On May 13, MedCast will roll out its 100th episode, with David Standaert, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the Department of Neurology and a world-renowned expert in Parkinson’s disease. Each podcast in the series highlights the latest clinical and research innovations at UAB Medicine. The roughly 10-minute podcasts are ideal for physicians, nurses, technicians and other medical professionals interested in staying abreast of clinical and research developments at UAB while earning CME credit.

UAB MedCast was the first podcast in the region to offer continuing medical education. To date, the podcasts have enjoyed 63,261 interactions. The single most popular podcast was on spinal cord injury, with Amy McClain, M.D., chair of the UAB Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Others with high interaction include liver tumors, pancreatic cancer, uterine fibroids and hyperthyroidism.

The 100 episodes have covered 30 different clinical specialties, and there is a new episode each week. Each episode remains archived and available on the website.

UAB MedCast is an extension of UAB Medicine’s MD Learning Channel, an online medical information hub that enables clinical professionals worldwide to avail themselves of the knowledge and expertise of UAB Medicine physicians. The podcasts may be streamed directly from the website using most computers, tablets and smartphones, and they also may be downloaded and played using readily available third-party applications such as iTunes (pre-installed on all Apple devices), Stitcher (for Android devices, available from the Google Play store) and iHeartRadio.

“UAB MedCast has proved to be a great success, especially with younger medical professionals,” said Marissa Keppley, physician marketing manager for UAB Medicine. “We continue to develop new content in an effort to share important clinical and research innovations with health care providers across our community.”

Oh, and that first one? Bronchiectasis is defined as abnormal, irreversible, thick-walled dilatation of the bronchi and represents the end stage of a variety of pathological processes. UAB pulmonologist George Solomon, M.D., had the honor of launching the series Jan. 8, 2017.

Stay tuned. The next 100 begin May 20, 2019.