Student Chapters

Supporting the next generation of health professionals aligns with our mission to promote health and protect the environment. By empowering students to lead and advocate on issues like climate change, nuclear disarmament, and public health, we help cultivate the skills and passion needed for meaningful change. Our student chapters are vital hubs for education, advocacy, and community engagement, amplifying the voices of future health leaders. We look forward to working with these dedicated students as they grow into influential advocates in their fields.

 

Baylor College of Medicine in Houston

Texas PSR Student Chapter

We at Baylor College of Medicine PSR have consistently strived since our founding to unite the many roles at our multidisciplinary institution in building a healthier and safer Texas through consistent outreach, education, and advocacy made uniquely possible from our diverse backgrounds as professionals, educators, and students.

Throughout our time as an official chapter, we have built volunteer relationships with multiple community gardens across Houston. In 2024, our focus was on our education mission at BCM, assisting in state-level events, and helping expand PSR chapters in our region. In 2025, we will be working with other regional student chapters to focus on issues critical to Houstonian communities, including advocating for implementation of safe and effective bicycling infrastructure and community-level education on climate change.

 

The University of Texas at Austin-Dell Medical School

Environmental Health Interest Group (EHIG)

EHIG has been an official student organization at Dell Med since 2020, founded as an organization of future healthcare professionals who recognize the climate crisis, pollution, and environmental degradation as dire threats to human health. Through advocacy, education, research, and community partnerships, we seek to foster climate resiliency and sustainability in Central Texas and the state to protect both our patients and the environment. Previous work includes writing op-eds, creating podcast episodes, collaborating with the UT Austin Environmental Law Clinic, and educating medical students about a variety of environmental health topics. Joining TX PSR is an exciting step to expand our network beyond Austin to learn from communities and health professionals across the state seeking to protect and promote health.

 

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston

Medical Students for a Sustainable Future Texas PSR Student chapter

Medical Students For a Sustainable Future (MS4SF) at The University of Texas Medical Branch is proud to announce its new role as a student chapter representing Texas Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR). Since becoming an official organization at UTMB in 2022, we have been dedicated to fostering awareness and creating impactful change around the effects of climate change and pollution on public health. Living in Galveston, we are particularly attuned to the challenges posed by climate-related disasters and have witnessed firsthand the long-term impact of climate change on our community.

Our chapter works on a range of initiatives within UTMB and across the Galveston community. We have hosted volunteer days at Galveston’s Own Farmers Market, conducted research with the Sealy Center of Environmental Health and Medicine, and recently developed a 4-week elective for 3rd and 4th-year students focused on climate and health. We’re excited to launch this elective in early 2025 and look forward to seeing the first cohort’s engagement with this crucial topic.

 

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston McGovern Medical School

UT McGovern (UTMC) Texas PSR Student chapter

We are a group of medical students at McGovern Medical School that resonated with Texas PSR’s mission to use the expertise of medical professionals to help build a healthier, safer, and more sustainable Texas. As the future health leaders of our communities, we believe we hold a duty to lend our first-hand experience of what is ailing our communities to those responsible for protecting them with policy.

Our goal as a new student chapter of PSR is to provide medical students passionate about advocacy and environmental health with the tools and opportunities needed to get involved. To this end, we will be hosting a voter registration drive in the McGovern Medical School building weekly through the month of September to help lower the barriers to civic participation for workers and students of the TMC. Additionally, we are planning an environmental health lecture series to provide students with opportunities to interface with medical leaders on environmental topics relevant to Texas.

 

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas

North Texas PSR Regional Council and Student Chapter

The North Texas Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), established in 2022, is dedicated to empowering health professionals with knowledge about the intricate relationship between environmental factors and human health. The chapter also actively supports and promotes local environmental initiatives to foster a healthier and more sustainable community.

In 2024, our chapter has concentrated its efforts on the critical topic of heat and health. Recognizing the growing impact of extreme heat on public health, particularly in vulnerable populations, we have organized a series of educational events, including lectures and journal club discussions. These sessions aim to equip health care professionals with the tools and understanding needed to address the health consequences of extreme heat in their clinical practice and advocate for systemic solutions that prioritize patient and community well-being.

 

The Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long University of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio

Climate Action for Public Health (CAPH) at UT Health San Antonio Student Chapter

We have been an official organization with UTHSCSA since 2022 and have been involved in campus sustainability, research projects, advocacy work, and an upcoming elective on climate action. Our focus is on educating the student body on how ramping climate change exacerbates poor public health outcomes and providing them opportunities to take action in the community. Joining PSR will allow medical students at San Antonio to engage with likeminded students statewide and attack policy at higher levels including state and federal.

---

Interested in starting a student chapter at your health professional school? Email our Executive Director, Marj Plumb DrPH, at Director@texaspsr.org.