Welcome to the July/August 2025 chapter newsletter. 

CHAPTER NEWS

• In-Person Book Club Meeting

• Welcome Kaeli Welsh, New Membership Chair

• Welcome Brittany Jaekel, New Webmaster

• Secretary Vacancy

• Join our AMWA North Central LinkedIn Community 

FEATURE ARTICLES

• Member Moment: Mary Knatterud

JOB BOARD

• Announcements

CHAPTER NEWS

In-Person Book Club Meeting 

Our next Book Club will be an in-person event on September 22, 2025. We will discuss Bottle of Lies: The Dark Side of the Generic Drug Boom by Katherine Eban. We will meet at the Como Pavillion in Como Park in St Paul at 2 pm. We’ll meet outside, and in case of bad weather, we’ll retreat to the plaza. One need not have read the book or be an AMWA member to attend. Also at this meeting, we will choose next year’s selections, so if you have a book (or books) you think is a good one, please bring it (or them) along. Do join us for a lively discussion! 

Welcome Kaeli Welsh, New Membership Chair

Kaeli Welsh is a recent PhD graduate eager to enter the medical writing field. She earned her B.A. in Biology and Chemistry at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN and her PhD in Pharmacology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH). Her thesis research investigated the biochemical mechanisms of the Anaphase-Promoting Complex, an essential protein that determines the timing of cell division. During graduate school, Kaeli gained academic writing experience by co-authoring six research articles and crafting a successful pre-doctoral fellowship proposal for the American Heart Association. 

At UNC-CH, Kaeli was a member of the Science Writing and Communication Club and regularly wrote for the student-led blog, The PipettePen, on a variety of topics for the general public. Through club events, Kaeli learned that AMWA is a great resource for medical writers to network and build essential skills. She attended the AMWA Carolinas Chapter’s 2024 annual conference to explore new developments in medical writing. After finishing graduate school in March, Kaeli returned to her home state of Minnesota and joined the AMWA North Central Chapter with the hope of connecting with local medical writers. Welcome to the team, Kaeli! 

Welcome Brittany Jaekel, New Webmaster

Brittany Jaekel is a technical writer at Bright Research, a Minneapolis-based CRO specializing in medical devices. In her role, she provides crucial support to medtech companies aiming to meet their clinical research goals and bring their devices to patients and practitioners. She specializes in conducting clinical literature reviews, developing white papers, and creating scientific conference materials. She joined AMWA in 2024. 

Brittany earned her PhD in Hearing and Speech Sciences from the University of Maryland-College Park, and her masters in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She currently lives in a northwest suburb of Minneapolis/St. Paul, following stints in Madison, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. In her personal life, Brittany is an award-winning poet and writer. She serves as the creative non-fiction editor at the Great Lakes Review (a literary magazine featuring authors connected to the Great Lakes region) and provides website support to several literary groups and authors based in the Twin Cities. Welcome to the team, Brittany!  

Secretary Vacancy

The AMWA North-Central Chapter is looking for a volunteer to fill the secretary position. If you would like to join us or have any questions regarding open roles, please reach out to bod@amwanorthcentral.org. 

FEATURE ARTICLES

Member Moment: Mary Knatterud

By Tess Van Ee & Dora Miedaner  

Our next featured member is a punctuation lady with a poet’s heart and a scalpel-sharp red pen. Grab your coffee and meet Mary, a founder of our chapter’s book club, in this Q&A that is equal parts wisdom, wit, and well-placed commas. 

Tess: Mary, how did you first get into medical writing?

Mary: I came to the University of Minnesota for my MA/PhD in English. After teaching composition for four years—and Spanish for one—I shifted into full-time editing. My early roles included editor for the U of M Admissions and Records Office, and later as a training and documentation specialist at a private foundation. In 1987, I answered an ad for the Department of Surgery at the U of M, even though I had little direct science or medical experience. I emphasized my language skills, background in Latin terminology, and ability to “translate” technical material for different audiences. That interview led to decades in the field, with a brief detour teaching at the University of Arizona (remotely from Minnesota). I officially retired in 2019—but as of this past May, I’ve returned part-time to the Department of Surgery.

Tess: What has your career in medical editing and writing looked like over the years?

Mary: Editing has been my core focus, but writing has always been intertwined. My PhD dissertation was on patient representation in medical journal articles. I went through various issues of the New England Journal of Medicine over time, starting in 1828 and going up through World War II, and focused on how patients are marginalized, how they're treated, and what terminology was used about them. It was later published by Routledge as First Do No Harm: Empathy and the Writing of Medical Journal Articles.

At the U of M, I produced The Cutting Edge newsletter. I inherited the title, but it was perfect, a skillful word play. We featured a lot of primary speeches and tried to make it scientifically based in intellectual, substantive terms. The audience were largely surgeons and alumni, some patients and families. I also did video scripts for the University of Minnesota. For example, I was the host of a commemorative video for the 50th anniversary of our Open Heart surgery program and interviewed the mother of one of the first open heart babies. As you can see, I’ve enjoyed many creative projects aside from my regular editing job.

Tess: You’ve been part of AMWA for a long time. How did you first get involved?

Mary: I joined AMWA in 1987 and attended my first national conference in 1990 once my kids were older. It was a magical, eye-opening experience. I fell in love with the workshops and began teaching the very next year—courses on punctuation, syntax, and literature-and-medicine roundtables tied to the conference location. I was known as the punctuation lady. I just loved combining my love of literature and medicine. One of discussions I led was on Emily Dickinson and her mentions of the surgery. I tried to tie it to the place. For example, when we were in Atlanta, I did a roundtable on Gone With the Wind and the medical illusions in there. When we were in Kentucky, I did Uncle Tom's Cabin and most recently during the pandemic, at the online conference, I did Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Catherine Ann Porter. Locally, I served as chapter president in 1989–1990 and founded our book club in 2007, which I led until 2019 (and still attend regularly).

Tess: What has AMWA meant to you personally and professionally?

Mary: It’s been a lifeline, socially, intellectually, and professionally. AMWA provides a network of people who understand both the passion and the challenges of the work. I’ve learned regulatory and pharmaceutical perspectives far outside my academic background, picked up countless editing and communication techniques, and gained insight into how different sectors of our profession work. I’ve also formed lifelong friendships, collaborated on projects, and found joy in both learning and giving back. Whether through teaching workshops, leading roundtables, or contributing to the AMWA Journal, I’ve always valued the opportunity to contribute to the community.

Tess: Have you noticed changes in AMWA since you joined in 1987?

Mary: The heart and soul of AMWA remain the people and that is our greatest strength. Technology has evolved, of course, and we’ve embraced online events, especially during the pandemic, but the core mission is bringing our knowledge of wordsmithing and reaching audiences with accurate but fun-to-read content, in the sense of you're not slogging through it. The purpose of connecting and supporting medical communicators is unchanged.

Tess: What advice would you give new members about getting involved?

Mary: To anyone looking to join the field, I would say this is sometimes a solitary profession. Find ways to be active, locally and nationally if you can. Attend workshops, volunteer, lead a discussion, find ways to learn from others and contribute your own expertise. I always loved teaching, particularly workshops. The joy of giving back goes beyond adding lines to your CV; it deepens your engagement with the field and can truly enrich your career and life. 

JOB BOARD

Announcements

Are you looking for work? You know someone who’s hiring? Please reach out! The job board will be updated in every issue of the monthly newsletter. If you’d like to add your name to this list, please contact Dora Miedaner (dora.miedaner@gmail.com).