Phicil-itating Change with Sheila Phicil

With years of experience in health care, most recently at Boston Medical Center (BMC), Sheila Phicil has recently switched gears, paving her own unique path to modernizing healthcare. As the former Director of Innovation for the Health Equity Accelerator at BMC, Phicil organized and interpreted patient data in order to seek ways to center patients and their unique needs.

Sheila holds a dual Master’s degree in Public Health and Financial Economics, is a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP), and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE).

As a “social change futurist” and former “intrapeneur,” Sheila brings her unique skills to existing data collection systems by addressing racial health disparities. Like an entrepreneur, an intrapreneur is a self-led member of a larger organization, such as BMC. Through trial and error, several hospitals nationwide have adopted the same initiatives that Phicil helped onboard. She has spent the last few months sharing her expertise and guidance with healthcare facilities across the nation.

 Her hands-on, interpersonal connections with patients, caregivers, and medical professionals have led her to create a niche product of her own to advance healthcare on a global scale. 

 

The Woman Behind the Innovation

 As a Black woman of Haitian descent, Phicil shared how she’s witnessed the potential for science and technology to “provide the change needed for social change.” Scientific processes often help actualize the socioeconomic outcries we have experienced over countless years, quantifying them and bringing these experiences to life. With greater accessibility to education and opportunities, more people are getting a chance to enter the science field and ask meaningful questions that embody the facts of life. 

 Staying grounded amidst navigating and deciphering the minutiae of this patient data is vital. Sheila creates a balance between her work and her well-being by enjoying time in nature, soaking up the sun, and traveling. She also actively checks her perception and privilege to embrace deeper expansion and understanding of herself and the complex world around her. She is also sure to set boundaries between her work and personal life.

Life as a Social Change Futurist 

Sheila’s multifaceted venture, Phicil-itate Change is an innovation studio that brings high-potential healthcare concepts and radically patient-centered solutions to life. Following their SEEDS Framework, the team supports fellow healthcare innovators, patients, and venture studios. The innovation studio is rooted in bringing real-life solutions to everyday people that will improve the medical experience on all fronts. With countless hours of dedication and expertise applied to the project, the team is building a platform to ensure a sustainable, actionable, and effective product for both patients and healthcare providers.

While collecting data in a broad sense can be helpful, Sheila’s program will help humanize the data and numbers collected in different forms and files in healthcare offices. Providing deeper insights into each patient will allow healthcare startups to offer resources that encourage advancement and wellness for each person. The team’s flagship product, the COMPASS Project, brings these features together in an AI-powered platform. The COMPASS Project paints a clear picture of the powerful potential when innovation meets human empathy and care. 

The Inspiration Behind the Work

“Why are they in that circumstance and I’m not?” echoed through Sheila’s young mind when she saw the sad commercials of starving children back in the early 1990s. As a true community beacon, Sheila spent much of her youth organizing and working with diverse groups of people to meet common goals. She’s always found inspiration and wisdom from the guidance and collaboration with teachers, colleagues, and patients alike. Since supporting her younger siblings and honoring the ways of her parents as a young girl, Sheila Phicil has grown into a nurturing and harmonizing force, driven to bring as many people along with her towards a brighter, healthier future.

She was particularly inspired by a 10-day mission trip to Haiti in her early college days. After visiting the island to disperse medical supplies, such as wheelchairs, prosthetics, and crutches to locals in need, she discovered several discrepancies. Despite the organization’s kind-hearted efforts, speaking to the locals individually revealed unique challenges that these well-intended resources merely exacerbated. 

A majority of the locals traveled across various terrains to get supplies. Before she left, a surprising number of items were returned. Her team members were hurt and confused, but being the only Haitian-Creole speaker present helped her communicate with the locals in greater depth. These deeper, personal conversations revealed that many of the locals couldn’t use the supplies in their daily lives, so continuing without them was easier. Rather than being ungrateful or ignorant of the use of the items, the team simply didn’t supply what the locals needed. This revelation sparked a deep awakening in Sheila that has since shaped her work to facilitate greater change. 

With many active components to her work, Sheila is set to make big and lasting changes in the field of healthcare innovation. We look forward to seeing how Phicil-itate Change continues to grow and foster deeper trust in the healthcare system.

Dr. Boltcreed's Marathon and the Passion in her Pursuits

Dr. Emily Boltcreed hails from England where she spent most of her younger years as an avid writer and poet. Three generations of men in her family are engineers. At the same time, her mother actively incorporated engineering fundamentals into her creative pursuits (such as textiles, quilling, papercrafts, and other skills that are often discredited for their association with women’s “busy work”). Her family motto was, “Don’t buy that, build/make it yourself!” Emily’s early exposure to the versatility of science etched a hopeful blueprint for the possibilities that lay before her. 

 

   In school, she gravitated toward her physics teacher who was such a force of nature to inspire Emily to pursue a Bachelor’s in Physics. Her studies eventually led her to focus on biomedical physics, such as medical and MRI images. From there, she found herself tiptoeing the fine line between biology and physics, a place where she could sift through and understand the building blocks of life itself.

 

   She attended Northeastern, where she met our very own Lori Lennon. While at the university, she completed a co-op at the Allen Institute for Brain Science, which introduced her to the field of neuroscience. She also worked in a lab on campus that studied the peripheral nervous system. She found her fuel through connecting with and educating others meaningfully. Emily would spend free time outside of her studies teaching science, sex-ed, and embodying empowerment to young girls in public schools. She would also make time to write for the school science magazine and participate in multiple student body activities. 

 

   Eventually, she took a break from studying to be a public school teacher for two years. With Teach for America, she was sent to South Dakota during the height of the Standing Rock Movement. Emily witnessed the atrocities of racism and poor legislation that breeds poverty and distress within communities. Though she found joy in connecting with her students, she was torn by the shocking circumstances that they faced outside of the classroom. She knew she had to use her abilities and connections to contribute to the greater good. 

Dr. Boltcreed at her hooding ceremony.

   Emily has since returned to the classroom herself, continuing to get both her Master’s degree and PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology. Today, as a postdoctoral researcher, her main focus has been on developmental neuroscience in lab mice. 

   One aspect of her work aims to quantify how aggression appears in the brains of female mice throughout their estrus or menstrual cycles. Her team maps out the chemical interactions throughout the cycle, creating a better picture of reality from the female perspective. Though the team is focused on mice, many of us know these little creatures often pave the way for pivotal advancements in human nature.

   Studying at Columbia’s NY State Psychiatric Institute in Manhattan has allowed Emily to be deeply immersed in a conglomerate of influential and high-powered global health institutions. While expanding on her innate passion for wellness through science, she is forging inspiring and lasting connections that nurture her scientific prowess. Emily gracefully combines the eloquence of her writing and the curiosity of her scientific mind to understand and illustrate the inner workings of life as we know it. 

   When she isn’t focused on changing the world one study at a time, Emily finds peace as a marathon runner! You can track her progress here, thanks to her tech-savvy husband.  She also continues to write for several publications and mentor students through various programs in New York such as Big Brother, Big Sister, ReadAhead and the New York Academy of Science's Afterschool Science Mentoring Program. Quality time with her spouse, extended family, fellow scientists, and friends also offers refuge and nourishment. Emily is especially moved by the pivotal women scientists she’s encountered and befriended such as Abigail Koppes, Vikki Hazelwood, and Giulia Zanni, among many others. As she continues to define her beautifully kaleidoscopic life, Dr. Boltcreed makes sure to bring all of the communities she loves with her. 

 

Beets, Sutures, and a New Generation of Medicine

Dasia Taylor is a young woman who began to define her career in STEM just shy of her senior graduation. Back in 2019, Dasia spent months developing a “novel suture additive” to help doctors and patients detect infection sooner. As she perfected the sutures, Dasia’s invention catapulted her across several regional and national competitions. In 2020, she landed among the top 40 finalists of the Regeneron Science Talent Search, the nation’s oldest, most notable science competition. The next stop on her journey is obtaining a patent for her novel work.

So, How Did She Do It? 

Dasia spent several months testing her sutures in beet juice. She noted that the liquid would change from bright red to dark purple, indicating a change in patient pH and likely an infection.  

But, why beet juice?  

There have been recent efforts to produce biotech sutures with a similar purpose. But with features like pairing up to smartphones, these high-tech sutures would be intricate and costly to produce. Beets are naturally more accessible and cost-effective. 

Considering healthcare needs on a global scale, biotech sutures that connect to smartphones would likely be a challenge for most people to obtain. 

With infections developing at much higher rates in countries outside of the U.S., Dasia’s invention can bring the benefits of high-tech sutures to a much wider range of people. In doing so, countless lives and billions of dollars can be saved annually by using Dasia’s beet juice and cotton blend sutures. 

 

All Of This at 17? What’s Next?

Since her debut in the science world, Dasia has created a local kids' science program in her home state of Iowa, inspiring younger generations of problem solvers. Growing up in a predominantly white neighborhood and navigating a predominantly white field have empowered Dasia to continue to be seen and heard. Along the way, she carefully weaves important narratives about Black history and culture into local spaces and dialogues. In her quest for knowledge, she informs others through thoughtful work and storytelling. 

In her preliminary studies, Dasia’s passion for accessible healthcare was born from her concern for the life-threatening socioeconomic and healthcare challenges facing women throughout Africa, in particular. Naturally, her equitable nature is intended to improve healthcare globally, for all people.   

Education and equitability are at the heart of her passionate strides toward accessible healthcare for those who need it most. Dasia is nothing short of phenomenal, as she works toward getting a patent, she continues to bring her community along with her. We look forward to seeing more of Dasia Taylor’s journey as she breaks barriers in STEM. 

 

Reviving a Timeless Science with PhagePro

PhagePro was born out of a deep knowledge of science and an even deeper passion for helping others. Co-founded by Dr. Minmin Yen in 2016, PhagePro has grown as a pioneer in eradicating deadly global diseases. As a first-generation Taiwanese-American, Dr. Yen takes great pride in honoring her heritage and improving the lives of others alongside her passionate colleagues. 

Dr. Yen remains inspired and empowered by fellow women and people of color who break barriers simply by existing. Her efforts are also fueled by passionate supporters who understand and trust in the great potential of this living science. 

Dr. Minmin Yen and the Birth of PhagePro

Dr. Yen and her co-founder, Professor Andrew Camilli during a group dinner with their collaborator our collaborator in Dhaka, Dr. Munirul Alam, and associates.

Dr. Yen grew up in a loving, determined, and courageous family. Her mother and father left Taiwan for the United States in the 1970s. Together, they were committed to paving the way for their growing family through education.

While her mother was a history major, her father was fueled by a natural inclination toward  STEM concepts and their application in daily life.  Their father encouraged the Yen girls to follow their own wonders to discover the inner workings of the world around them.

Featured: In the yellow hijab is PhagePro collaborator, Dr. Marzia Sultana from the International Centre for Diarrheal Diseases in Bangladesh. We also see Dr. Fatema Tuz-Johura, a Research Associate at Johns Hopkins, and Dr. Yen.

Combining her passion for helping people with the possibilities of science, Dr. Yen has embarked on her journey in the medical field, bringing PhagePro to life.

Since its founding in 2016, PhagePro has been committed to ending the cholera epidemic. Most of the active cases of cholera occur in countries with limited resources. Able to kill a person within 12 hours of initial symptoms, cholera is a high priority for global health organizations. The team has since partnered with organizations in Dhaka, Bangladesh as they prepare for the first trials of this cutting-edge treatment. 

Backed by a team of fellow experts in medicine and healthcare, PhagePro is unearthing the modern-day potential of a century-old wellness practice using phages. 

So, What Exactly are Phages? 

The science behind phages can help medical professionals move towards eradicating bacterial diseases such as cholera. Phages are viruses that target and eliminate specific pathogens, reducing the risk of long-term side effects and disease mutations.

Phages are naturally occurring and abundant on land, in the water, and even in our bodies. There are a variety of phages, working with both good and bad bacteria throughout nature. When phages target bad bacteria, they seek to eliminate the infection completely, making them a strong contender for the next antibiotic revolution. 

Unfortunately, some experts speculate that phages are too archaic to be reliable. However, their modern-day successor, antibiotics, are rapidly outdating themselves. Once the powerful nature of phages can be harnessed, there is great potential for these little fighters to support PhagePro's quest for global wellness. 

Revolutionizing Antibiotics

Modern-day antibiotics are great at killing all bacteria, good and bad. However, many patients become susceptible to even more bad bacteria overpowering their system if they cannot recover in time. Incomplete antibiotic treatments also create a breeding ground for bad bacteria to mutate and resist the treatment altogether. With many bacterial diseases rapidly mutating, it is clear that a new and lasting solution is desperately needed for treating infectious diseases.

Phages can target the bad bacteria specifically and they are specific to the bacteria they attack. For example, imagine someone who needs a cholera treatment, their phage dosage will only target the pathogens that are causing harm. By targeting the problem directly, phages minimize the risk of adverse reactions. They can also be used to treat other bacterial infections, such as STDs, UTIs, meningitis, staph infections, and pneumonia.

Once the infection is gone, the phages are simply flushed out of our systems. Having an abundant, natural supply of phages also implies that there will be no worry about shortages. It will likely also appeal to more people because it is naturally occurring and straightforward in its action. Treatment is rapid and symptoms begin to alleviate within moments of application, decreasing the further spread of the disease.

With the rise of antibiotic resistance in humans, animals, and plants, there has to be a different way to address bacterial pathogens more effectively. While phages were discovered about 100 years ago, coupling this practice with current scientific advancements will bring nothing short of monumental change. If we can reduce the spread of disease… imagine how much more we can invest into creating a brighter future for us all.

 

Making Space for Motherhood: Why is it So Hard?

In a day and age when women are now expected to contribute as much of themselves to their work life as we once did our families and homes, it is baffling to find so many challenges when navigating the workspace comfortably and effectively as a mother. A 2021 McKinsey study shows that businesses led by women tend to outperform those with little to no women in senior positions. This statistic highlights that women and mothers are not only valuable at home but also to our economic wellness and growth. 

There have been some hopeful strides in bridging the gender gap in the workforce, making things appear equal on the surface. For example, in the U.S., women make up about half of the total scientists across STEM fields. While this is a positive fact,  Tara Barrow’s experience at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference can serve as a teachable moment. Barrow’s experience and others like it help pave the way for us to understand the importance of equity and creating solutions that are fair for everyone. 

A common issue women and mothers face is having safe, sanitary, and accommodating spaces to tend to their needs. As a new mom, breastfeeding and pumping become a regular part of a woman’s daily routine. Oftentimes, moms have to prepare to feed or pump at all hours of the day to provide nourishment for their children and maintain their own health. It requires a lot of energy to nurture someone. As mothers, there are rapid, permanent, and constant changes that occur on a cellular level, ultimately priming the mom to be a nurturer. Increased mental, emotional, and physical sensitivity affects the mother for years after the initial stages of postpartum. 

Women, particularly those who have chosen to become moms, live in a completely different world than the rest of us. To avoid the pitfalls that come with playing superwoman, such as mood disorders, decreased performance, insomnia, postpartum mood disorders, and substance abuse, it would be beneficial to consider and provide the accommodations necessary for mothers to rest in our power. 

How Can We Support Moms in the Workplace? 

Fellow mom and researcher Anna Kent shares a few pivotal ideas on how to actively support moms in the workforce, including better benefits and flexibility in the workplace, improved access to quality, affordable child care, and encouraging a deeper respect and understanding for all that women and mothers do at home, at work, and anywhere else we are needed. 

Include the women and mothers in your workplace in a meaningful and mindful dialogue on how to meet their needs more effectively. Regular check-ins and a little more help from our human nature can help us advance toward a more harmonious experience for mothers, their families, and our society as a whole. 

Understanding the biological implications of motherhood and the life-altering changes that come with it, women have been primed with a loving sense of duty that can be channeled into anything we are passionate about and empowered by. If women are driving much of our economic success as it is, imagine how much further we will be when women and mothers truly feel supported and empowered in all that we do.

Mbadika: Meet Netia McCray and Her Limitless World of Ideas

Netia McCray grew up watching her parents make their dreams become reality. Her mother and father were scientists in their own right, demonstrating a particular knack for creation and production. 

Netia’s mother was a seamstress, demonstrating design development with her unique fashion creations for family and community members alike. Her mother would also spend her spare time teaching others how to nurture their own entrepreneurial spirits. 

Netia’s father was a mechanical engineer, working on cars and spending much of his time tinkering away at old gadgets and gizmos.

At the end of her junior year in high school, Netia was invited to check out MIT’s summer enrichment program, MITES (Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science). After aspiring to attend the school himself, her father fervently suggested that she attend the program. Unsure of what MIT had to offer, Netia was initially skeptical, assuming she’d be forced to learn nuclear physics. 

Once she reached the Cambridge campus, Netia was pleasantly surprised by MIT’s vast scientific opportunities, unveiling a rich world of potential. Netia was exposed to a unique network of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) disciplines, unraveling the mystery of science into something more digestible. Blown away by the fullness of STEM, Netia eagerly participated in the program and earned herself a full ride to the school as an undergraduate, making her family proud. 

Despite facing personal and social hardships, Netia was determined and graduated from MIT with a desire to bring her newfound passion to young students like her. She has been on a mission to demystify the world of science and open the doors of opportunity to more students of color ever since.

Shortly after graduating, Netia launched her company Mbadika, (bah-GEEe-kah), focusing on providing local Boston high school students with paid STEM internships. The internship program not only allowed the students to explore the sciences, but they also had a hand in developing some of the later programming for Mbadika. The first cohort of students contributed to the design and production of the MLAB field kits, which continue to inspire fellow explorers ages 8 and up.  Mbadika also recently launched a public workshop initiative, MLAB, to provide the general public access to STEM education in informal settings such as local shopping centers. Featured in a pop-up at the Cambridgeside Galleria, these biweekly workshops offered students and newcomers a taste of STEM by exploring the science of fashion or how to recreate items from popular films. 

Both the workshop and internship aim to bring various STEM concepts and practices such as design development, 3D Printing, digital content creation, and more. Netia has been able to present complex topics and ideas in a relatable and engaging way. In this way, Netia has successfully been able to empower people from all walks of life to take risks, be bold, and realize their innate ability to understand STEM. 

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From Cornell to Cornfields: Barbara McClintock’s Powerful Purpose

Barbara McClintock was a dedicated pioneer of genetic science. Her lifelong commitment to the study of corn produced remarkable results, earning her several notable awards including the Nobel Prize in Medicine and the National Medal of Science. 

Earning all of her degrees from Cornell, Barbara showed interest in genetics and science before women were even welcome in the field. With much of her study being conducted between the early 1930s and the late ‘60s, Barbara was a trailblazer in every sense of the word.

Barbara McClintock in the cornfield at CSHL, ca. 1950s

Due to the national barriers against higher education for women, Barbara began her official studies in Germany, just before the rise of Hitler. Thankfully, she took heed to the increasingly turbulent climate and fled the country just a year later in 1934.

Upon her return, she was granted funding from the National Science Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation to complete her decades-long study of corn throughout Central and South America. 

Her findings offered a more well-rounded view of genetics and the way offspring inherit traits and characteristics from their parents. Barbara discovered how genes can move, mutate, and change depending on several factors in the parent and offspring’s environment. 

Despite being met with some skepticism, Barbara remained confident in her findings, earning her rightful recognition before her retirement. Barbara’s studies have since transcended the South American cornfields, shaping the way scientists understand the nature of genetics for all creatures and organisms.

No Limits: Honoring Mae Jemison

Photo Source: Britannica.com (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mae-Jemison#/media/1/302488/117565)

Women have pioneered alongside their male counterparts since the dawn of time. What a dull world we would have if there were truly only one perspective to shape life as we know it.  

Women have also had a hand in shaping the way we see and understand outer space. Many notable women explorers have traveled among the stars, with one in particular who had to face many challenges to get there. 

Mae Jemison was born in Alabama and raised in Chicago during the 1960s. In a particularly heated social climate, dreams only seemed to go so far for people who looked like Mae. Hearing about other people’s constant fears and doubts never stopped Mae from having her head just above the clouds, where she could stay in touch with her big, bold dreams. 

She received her college education from Stanford University, where she studied chemical engineering at just 16 years old. For a young black woman in the 1970s, such a feat was incredible in itself, proving to Mae that she could truly do anything. 

After completing several community-based health initiatives after graduating college, Mae Jemison applied to NASA twice. In 1987, just 4 years after Sally Ride became the first American woman and third woman to travel to space, Mae was picked out of a pool of 2,000+ applicants to join NASA’s space exploration team. After several years of astronaut training, Mae Jemison took her first trip to space in 1992, making history as the first Black woman in space.

Since completing her historical debut in outer space, Mae Jemison has continued to stay pretty down to earth. She has since taught at several universities such as Dartmouth College and Cornell University. Ms. Jemison also launched a space and science camp for kids, called The Earth We Share, lasting well into the mid-2000s. She also launched a non-profit in honor of her mother, Dorothy Jemison, specializing in science, space, and youth engagement. Currently, Mae advises several companies and organizations to guide scientific improvements as well as DEI initiatives. 

With a long-time love for science and dance, Mae was able to marry her innate talents with her desire for exploration. Her mother was sure to guide her to continue taking her education seriously while making time and space to fulfill her passions as well. 

Mae Jemison is a testament to women and girls everywhere; we don’t have to choose just one passion to pursue to claim our victory in life. The world becomes an even brighter place when we make room for all of the things that inspire and bring us joy. 

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