220. Teaching with Your Humanity with Dr. Laura Vater

220. Teaching with Your Humanity with Dr. Laura Vater

June 28, 2026 · 52 min · Episode 230

About this episode

Dr. Laura Vater discusses the importance of clinician humanity and advocacy in medical training.

Dr. Laura Vater is a medical oncologist, writer, and advocate for clinician humanity. In this conversation, we go deep on what it actually looks like to protect yourself inside a system that wasn't built with you in mind. We talk about sleep deprivation, suicidal ideation during training, and how Laura found the courage to advocate for change — not all at once, but through longitudinal relationships and slowly building trust. We also geek out together on teaching: how to show up for learners without losing your mind, why the "human skills" deserve the one-sheet, and what it means to lead with what you actually care about. If you've ever felt like you were trying to fit into a version of medicine that wasn't quite yours, this one's for you. Connect with Laura: https://www.lauravater.com/ https://www.instagram.com/doclauravater/ Learn more about Hippocratic Collective: https://hippocraticcollective.org/ Connect on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joanchanmd

People in this episode

Host: Joan Chan

Guest: Dr. Laura Vater

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Hippocratic Collective

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