South Korean Grad Provides Critical Care at a Critical Time

Responsibility has followed and increased throughout Ki (Steve) Lee’s time as an internal medicine resident at Newark Beth Israel Hospital in New Jersey. A year after helping the department through the COVID-19 pandemic as an intern, the St. George’s University graduate is now in a managerial role, overseeing a team of medical staff and full ward of patients. This spring, Dr. Lee will become one of four chief residents in the department, helping to supervise and train its more than 40 residents.

The South Korea native looks back on the path that led him to one of the state’s most high-traffic, high-impact critical care units.

St. George’s University: What has it been like supervising such a critical element to healthcare at Newark Beth Israel?

Dr. Steve Lee: In your first year of residency, you’re learning how to help and figuring out how things work. In my second year, you’re asked to do a lot more. In my case, I’m managing a team that is overseeing the 16 patients on our floor. It’s been a great experience, I have a lot of autonomy, and it has allowed me to grow as a team leader and a decision maker.

SGU: What’s the best part about doing residency at NBI?

Dr. Lee: It’s amazing how much clinical experience we get here. We’re the only lung transplant hospital in New Jersey and the only heart transplant facility too. The most critically ill patients get transferred here, and it’s up to us in the ICU and critical care unit to take care of them. We get a lot of hands-on experience, use all these state-of-the-art devices, and I feel like we learn a lot. If you do residency here at NBI, you can go anywhere else and be comfortable.

 

“You go to Grenada and meet all these new people on day one, and you’re all there to help each other out.”

SGU: You were a first-year resident during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in and around New York City. What was that like?

Dr. Lee: COVID was very difficult. We typically have a maximum of 16 patients on our list, but at that time we were managing 30-40. Our department was running the entire hospital, and there were so many different teams on the floor—pediatricians, radiologists, and many, many others—helping out in any way that they could. What was so difficult was that patients’ outcomes could change in a matter of minutes. Fortunately, for our staff, we all had each other to lean on. We were able to talk through things and we covered each others’ shifts when needed.

SGU: How would you describe your experience at SGU?

Dr. Lee: You go to Grenada and meet all these new people on day one, and you’re all there to help each other out. The education was great, and many of my classmates are now attendings at these major hospitals. They’re doing amazing, and I feel like everyone has done great.

– Brett Mauser

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Grad Reflects on Role in World’s First Successful Face and Double Hand Transplant

Zoe Berman, MD ’17

More than a year of preparation came down to one day for one patient and the surgical team that was about to change his life. Joseph DiMeo, a 22-year-old man from New Jersey, had been severely injured in a motor vehicle accident, and in an effort to regain his independence, he turned to NYU Langone Health to perform the world’s first-ever successful face and double hand transplant.

Over the 23-hour operation last August, Zoe Berman, MD ’17, stood alongside the surgeons, confirming each critical step as the hands and face were detached from both the donor and Mr. DiMeo, and then the donor hands and face were carefully affixed to the recipient. For Dr. Berman, a reconstructive plastic surgery research fellow under world-renowned doctor Eduardo D. Rodriguez at NYU, the “groundbreaking” operation was a culmination of in-depth research and planning that she and her colleagues had contributed to in order to ensure its success.

After finishing up her fellowship at NYU, Dr. Berman will return to Maimonides Medical Center to complete a surgery residency this July, not without an experience she deemed “life-changing” just as it was for the patient. She shared what it was like to participate in the planning and execution of such an intricate procedure.

St. George’s University: How unique of an undertaking was this for Dr. Rodriguez and his team?

Dr. Berman: This was the first-ever hand transplant to be performed at NYU. There have been two face transplants done at the institution—one in 2015 and another in 2018—but NYU physicians had never done a hand transplant. Only 150 or so have been performed worldwide, and the combined face and double hand transplant procedure had never been done before successfully.

SGU: What was your role prior to and during the operation?

Dr. Berman: I was a part of the four-person research team that helped procured the necessary information to build the foundation for this procedure to happen. We started with a review of the peer-reviewed literature on hand transplant and other combined transplants, where we evaluated more than 1,800 articles and ended up critically appraising 93 of those articles to see how we could use that information to inform what our procedural steps were going to be, and how to execute the surgery safely and successfully. We were looking for what elements contributed to the successes of past surgeries, and perhaps even more importantly so, where the unsuccessful operations fell short—whether they were too ambitious in terms of the amount of skin that they took, the blood supply wasn’t adequate, or the patient simply wasn’t the best candidate. We then centralized all of this information and presented it to the surgical team.

Our research team also worked with the surgeons over a series of monthly rehearsals to develop the procedural steps for the hand transplant element. We created a surgical checklist to ensure adherence to every single agreed-upon step of the donor procurement, the recipient operation, and the re-attachment of the hands. Each operative sequence had between 30 and 50 steps and it took all the guesswork out of it.

SGU: Describe what it was like the day of the operation.

Dr. Berman: We had two adjacent operating rooms functioning simultaneously. Our team physically stood alongside the surgeons during all the cadaver rehearsals as well as the actual transplant to ensure that everyone was adhering to the procedural steps. When you’re talking about connecting multiple blood vessels, tendons, bones, and lot of different structures that meld together, it can make it a very complicated procedure.

  • Dr. Berman working with Dr. Rodriguez in the cadaver lab.

  • The NYU plastic surgery team

  • The research team

  • SGU grads Matthew and Zoe Berman, with father Peter

SGU: How has Mr. DiMeo fared since the procedure?

Dr. Berman: Joe is a very motivated young man. It was important to him to get back to work, get back to the gym, to be independent, and to really get back to the life that he was living before his accident. I think it’s the most remarkable thing about him and part of the reason why Dr. Rodriguez and the team thought he was an exceptional candidate for this surgery.

Since the operation, he’s done very well with his rehabilitation and continues to improve functionally every day. He has been monitored very closely for any signs of rejection and he continues to heal and to accept all three of his allografts (face and both hands).

SGU: What prompted you to pursue this fellowship at NYU?

Dr. Berman: My father is a head and neck surgeon, so I think I’ve always had that influence me to a degree. There’s something about the symmetry and the intricacies of that part of the body that I find extremely fascinating. I’ve always had an appreciation for the face and what it represents for a human being in terms of providing a sense of identity and an outlet to communicate verbally and emotionally. To help restore that identity is very meaningful in somebody’s life. When I learned about the remarkable things Dr. Rodriguez and his team were doing at NYU, I jumped at the opportunity to be a part of it. Face transplant is the ultimate reconstructive surgery.

SGU: How has being part of this procedure changed your life?

Dr. Berman: It has been an extremely unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I feel so fortunate to be able to partake in this incredible experience that has truly pushed the field of reconstructive surgery forward. To be a part of this patient’s journey, to see him continue to be so motivated and so beautifully supported by his parents has really been a privilege.

More so than anything, I’ve been so fortunate to have had the mentorship of Dr. Rodriguez, who is a real visionary. He put trust in me to be a part of this, and to be able to contribute to changing somebody’s life—that’s why I went into medicine in the first place—to give someone the opportunity to live a better life, a more fulfilling life, and to have a second chance.

SGU: Why did you choose to go to SGU, and how has it set you up for success in your career?

Dr. Berman: I would have never had the opportunity to do anything I’m doing if I hadn’t first made the decision to go to SGU to get my MD. At the time, I was ready to go to medical school, and I didn’t want to wait for another US application cycle.

The foundation that the education at SGU provided me has allowed me to grow beyond what I ever imagined to be possible. I think coming from SGU gives you a sense of humility that will serve anybody well in the medical field. I have never felt entitled to anything. For me, I’ve always considered being a doctor and working with vulnerable patients to be an unbelievable privilege.

There’s also something sacred and beautiful about the island. I met my husband there (Matthew Bushman, MD ’16), who’s now an anesthesiologist, and my brother (Matthew Berman, MD ’17) also followed me to the island a semester later, who met his wife there (Taylor Dodds, MD ’19), and they’re both in residency now and doing well. We all had an incredible time at SGU, and considering where we all are now, I would never change my decision to go there.

– Brett Mauser

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Basic Sciences Dean: Energized community and student success at the heart of campus return

Why is learning the basic sciences so crucial to the study of medicine?

“In the basic sciences, we set the framework for all of the foundational requirements of clinical knowledge, skills, and behaviors” needed to apply to hospital medicine, according to Mark Clunes, PhD, the new senior associate dean of basic sciences at St. George’s University. He took on his new role when Dr. Marios Loukas was appointed dean of the School of Medicine earlier this year.

As dean of basic sciences, Dr. Clunes is tasked with ensuring that first- and second-year MD students are well-prepared to enter their clinical years. He knows the terrain well, having been a professor of physiology within the School of Medicine since 2008 and most recently serving as the associate dean of basic sciences. His wife, Dr. Lucy Clunes, also an SOM professor, was recently named the school’s dean of students.

Dr. Clunes shared his perspective on why mastering the basic sciences curriculum is crucial to clinical learning, the future of the virtual learning environment at SGU, and what he is most excited for when students return to campus.

St. George’s University: When students complete their basic science curriculum, how will they be prepared for the clinical years?

Dr. Clunes: Essentially, in the basic sciences, we set the framework for all of the foundational requirements of clinical skills; then in their clinical years they have to apply that knowledge to real patients with all the complexity of real patient presentation.

 

“Campus is more than a location; it’s a place of study, a place where students relax, and a place where they interact and gather and share academic and extracurricular life. It’s a dynamic community and a space we share together. I am very much looking forward to regaining our community.”

 

SGU: How can students prepare for the transition from virtual back to in-person learning? What is the advantage to being back on campus?

Dr. Clunes: Although our curriculum has been delivered remotely during the COVID pandemic, we have continued to provide live interactive sessions, so the time management and study skills required to be successful in the remote program are very similar to those required for the on-campus environment.

However, the advantages of being back on campus are that this is a center of academic activity. The learning environment here on campus is tailored for study, either as individuals or in groups, whereas home is not always equivalent. So for the most part, the return to campus will provide an opportunity to re-establish study communities and provide a stable supportive learning environment for success.

SGU: Will there be aspects of virtual learning that remain a part of the curriculum, even when students are on campus? In what ways?

Dr. Clunes: Certain elements have undoubtedly been advantageous virtually.

For instance, virtual “office hours” have allowed faculty to substantially increase the volume of students we can meet with, and these sessions have been appreciated by faculty as well as the students.

In terms of the core curriculum, we still think that community and engagement are vital, so the core elements of the curriculum will be delivered on site, but flexibility around supplemental activity will undoubtedly be increased.

Some examples include:

  • Patient interviews using remote technology—this won’t be retained as an exclusive modality for patient encounters but targeted sessions for remote technology use with patients will be incorporated
  • The advisory services will very likely offer both live or online options for students.
  • Many of the supplemental learning sessions that run in the evenings on campus can now also be offered online, so that students can choose to remain on campus or participate from their home or dorm.

SGU: From an academic standpoint, what are students’ biggest concerns when they enter their first term?

Dr. Clunes: There is often apprehension about medical school and the demands of studying medicine. It is of course an academically challenging course of study. However, there is a wealth of support from the faculty, the course directors, University administration, and all of the advisory and support services. Everyone at SGU is here for one outcome—student success.

Students will return to campus for the August 2021 term.

SGU: Is the study of COVID-19 now a part of the curriculum?

Dr. Clunes: Infectious disease, immunology, and public health have always been an important part of the curriculum. Our experience over the last 12 months demonstrated why it was so important to learn.

Moving forward, the faculty of the Departments of Microbiology, Immunology and Pharmacology, and Public Health will undoubtedly use the COVID pandemic and the wealth of research garnered as valuable educational tools.

SGU: What are you most excited about when students return to campus?

Dr. Clunes: Seeing campus return to the busy, energized place that it was when the students were present. Campus is more than a location; it’s a place of study, a place where students relax, and a place where they interact and gather and share academic and extracurricular life. It’s a dynamic community and a space we share together. I am very much looking forward to regaining our community.

To learn more about the School of Medicine’s MD curriculum, visit the SGU website.

 

– Laurie Chartorynsky

 

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SAS Grad Serves as Grenada’s Guardian of Official Etiquette

As Adrian Joseph, BSc ’10, sees it, every day is an opportunity to grow, to learn, and to serve his home country. Today he directs and coordinates the activities as head of the Protocol Division in Grenada’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a position he’s held for nearly a decade.

Mr. Joseph shares why he went into public service, as well as how SGU afforded him the opportunity to remain close to home and family while furthering his education.

St. George’s University: What are your responsibilities in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

Adrian Joseph: As chief of protocol, I oversee the security, logistics, and etiquette in diplomatic and national events or functions. In this role, I am also responsible for all consular matters and for serving the diplomatic corps/regional and international organizations accredited to Grenada in accordance with the Vienna Convention.

SGU: Did you always want to work in public service?

AJ: I’ve always wanted to serve my country in some way or another. However, it was while serving as the vice president of the SGU Model United Nations that in many ways piqued my interest in the field of modern diplomacy. That experience provided a wonderful opportunity to interact and learn from different cultures.

I chose this field because, in my opinion, it is quite extraordinary given that its main objective is to achieve a sense of harmony in the world. I find the work that I do very fulfilling as it allows for facilitation in communication and knowledge exchange and in promoting peace. I am also working on further strengthening my business acumen by earning a doctorate in business administration with a specialization in global business at Keiser University in Florida.

SGU: How have you been affected by the events of this past year?

AJ: This pandemic has been tough on many of us, but despite the adversities, it has also shown us the importance of family and friends and how grateful we should be for our health. For me personally, it has given me a new insight on issues such as food security and self-reliance. As a result, I have been dabbling in farming, which has turned out to be quite interesting and rewarding. I hope to expand on it because, apart from providing an additional source of food, it’s also a great form of exercise and I find it very relaxing.

SGU: What advice would you give to someone pursuing a similar path as you at SGU?

AJ: I will always be grateful to SGU for affording me the opportunity to earn a degree that has helped me in so many ways in becoming a well-rounded individual. The University is fully equipped with all the essential instruments for learning and for preparing its students for the professional environment. I am proud to be an alumnus of an esteemed institution that continues to produce distinguished graduates who are thriving in their respective fields.

 

— Ray-Donna Peters

SGU Donates 8,000+ Meals to St. Vincent Relief Efforts

SGU campus officials collaborated with the Ministry of Health Grenada and officials from the National Disaster Management Agency (NaDMA) to deliver meals to St. Vincent families affected by the volcano eruption. Image courtesy of Terrence Franklyn.

In solidarity with the island of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and its people, St. George’s University has donated more than 8,000 meals to those affected by the recent eruptions of the La Soufriere volcano.

“SGU’s origins are tied to St. Vincent,” said SGU Chancellor and University Co-founder Charles R. Modica. “Our connection to the island spans far and deep and we hope to assist our St. Vincent brethren in any way we can. The meals will help families affected by the volcano, which continues to erupt and cause uncertainty for the people who live and work on the island.”

SGU’s Department of Public Safety officials collaborated with the Ministry of Health Grenada and officials from the National Disaster Management Agency (NaDMA) to coordinate the effort. SGU’s Department of Public Safety delivered the meals to NaDMA for shipment to St. Vincent.

SGU has also pledged to offer beds for evacuated residents, if needed. In addition, the School of Medicine Alumni Association has started a charity drive to help St. Vincent families, which includes SGU alumni who live and work there. All individuals are encouraged to donate.

 

A Rich History Together

Just as Grenada and St. Vincent share close ties, the island and its people are dear to many in the SGU community, as it was a co-partner of the University from its inception. For more than 25 years, SOM medical students completed a semester of their basic sciences on the island. When the volcano last erupted in 1979, some SGU students were studying on the island and instrumental in helping island recovery efforts, even as medical students. SGU also lent a hand by donating much-needed supplies.

Similarly, when Hurricane Ivan struck Grenada in 2004, St. Vincent offered assistance during the country’s recovery.

“We are thinking of our Vincentian neighbors during this challenging time and stand ready to further assist in their recovery,” said SGU Provost Glen Jacobs. “We are working closely with the Government of Grenada and disaster preparedness agencies to continue offering support in any way we can, including food and shelter for our St. Vincent brethren.”

Students, faculty, and staff in Grenada wishing to drop off donations may contact NaDMA.

 

— Laurie Chartorynsky

 

 

 

SGU, WINDREF co-host climate intervention webinar with UN, WHO, and PAHO

Continuing its longstanding collaboration with national, regional, and global organizations that drive discussion and improvements related to climate change, St. George’s University co-hosted an interactive webinar to address the importance of climate intervention in the Caribbean and how the region can benefit from increased data collection.

The webinar, titled “Calculating the Health Co-Benefits of Climate Interventions Using the CaRBonH tool in the Caribbean,” was co-organized by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Regional Collaboration Centre at St. George’s, SGU’s Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine (DPHPM), the Windward Islands Research and Education Foundation (WINDREF), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

“Small Island Developing States, which include the islands in the Caribbean, have a high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change despite the region’s low contribution to greenhouse gas emissions,” said Dr. Calum Macpherson, SGU’s dean of the School of Graduate Studies and director and vice president of WINDREF. “These impacts include more frequent and increasingly severe storms; unpredictable weather patterns, which impact agriculture and the incidence of vector borne diseases; increasing sea levels; and increasing temperatures, all of which adversely affect human and animal health.”

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The April 28 webinar introduced the current status of the data collection process in the Caribbean and explored the potential advantages of adapting the WHO’s Carbon Reductions Benefits on Health Tool (CarbonH) tool to assist in calculating the health benefits of climate interventions.

“Ultimately the data collected in the region will be part of the discussions at the Global Climate Change, COP26 meeting to be held in Glasgow in November 2021,” Dr. Macpherson said.

The CaRBonH tool was initially developed by WHO to quantify the potential health and economic benefits that could be achieved by climate policy implementation in Europe. RCC St. George’s, WINDREF, PAHO, WHO, and SGU have been working in collaboration to apply the CaRBonH tool in the Caribbean by conducting a preliminary analysis of data availability in the region.

 

“Small Island Developing States, which include the islands in the Caribbean, have a high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change despite the region’s low contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.”

 

Webinar participants included 24 representatives of the UNFCCC National Focal Points, and chief environmental health officers and national statistical officers from 16 Caribbean countries. The session was moderated by Dr. Lindonne Glasgow, SGU’s deputy chair and assistant professor of the DPHPM.

Presenters included Dr. Vintura Silva, regional lead of UNFCCC RCC St. George’s; Jonell Benjamin, consultant of UNFCCC RCC St. George’s; and Dr. Daniel Buss, advisor for climate change and health in PAHO, with opening remarks given by Dr. Macpherson,

St. George’s University hosts the UNFCCC RCC in the DPHPM, one of six global Research Collaborating Centers in the world. In an effort to assist in the development of clean development mechanism (CDM) projects in the region, the UNFCCC secretariat created a partnership agreement with WINDREF, which is based on the SGU campus, as well as St. George’s University to establish a regional collaboration center in St. George’s, Grenada. The RCC St. George’s is available to support countries interested in applying the CaRBonH tool to calculate the health co-benefits of climate interventions.

The group plans to reconvene on June 1 and 2 for a virtual conference titled, “Making the Case for Health Co-Benefits of Climate Change Mitigation in the Caribbean.”

SGS Grad Wins Coveted Fulbright Scholarship Award

To make strides in improving public health at home, Grenadian Larissa Mark, MPH ’18, has gone almost three thousand miles away to make it happen.

With an already enhanced understanding of the promotion and protection of community health, the St. George’s University graduate has taken it even further in 2021, now working toward a Master of Public Health in epidemiology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. Ms. Mark is doing so as a recent recipient of the Fulbright Foreign Student Scholarship Award, a program that allows awardees to explore professional opportunities abroad.

“I was beyond excited to venture into this new territory,” she said. “It was the opportunity of a lifetime to grow both professionally and personally. This award also came at an opportune time with the spotlight on public health due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.”

Ms. Mark was nominated for the award in part due to her research collaboration with her SGU professors on the Bush Burning Practice And Related Respiratory Symptoms Among Households In Grenada, The Caribbean. She also made significant contributions to public health as an environment, health, and safety manager at Sandals Grenada Beach Resort and Spa.

“SGU has played an integral role in my foundation both as a professional and an individual,” Ms. Mark said. “It is where I found my passion for public health and made long-lasting friendships. I could always depend on my professors for advice on my career development. However, the support did not stop when I completed my degree—there was continued mentoring support both professional and personal well after I graduated.”

On track to graduate in May 2022, Ms. Mark plans to spend her summer working with the Department of Human Health and Services Nebraska. As part of her Applied Practical Experience (APEx), she will be assisting on a study on the health outcomes associated with COVID-19 and pregnant women. She envisions herself completing a PhD in epidemiology or environmental epidemiology before returning to Grenada.

“I have always felt most fulfilled when I am helping other people and making a difference,” she said. “There’s no better way to do so than with service to the community by improving public health.”

 

— Ray-Donna Peters

 

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SVM Grad Thrives in High-Intensity Critical Care Specialty

Jennifer Ortolani, DVM ’15, thrives in a fast-paced environment, where her ability to quickly diagnose and treat patients in dire need are in high demand. A critical care specialist at BluePearl Specialty and Emergency Pet Hospital in Rockville, MD, Dr. Ortolani spends her day managing a variety of different cases hospitalized in the intensive care unit, consulting on cases with other specialists, and treating patients in the emergency department.

“I chose to become a veterinarian and specialize in emergency and critical care medicine because it combines my love of medicine, science, people, and animals,” said Dr. Ortolani. “What I enjoy most about my job is managing critical and complex disease processes and working with families to get their pets back home where they belong.”

Although she’d only been working as a criticalist since September 2019, Dr. Ortolani marvels at the difference a year can make. Similar to many others, her hospital has made a number of changes—conducting nearly all communications over the phone, and no longer developing that interpersonal connection with clients during consultation and cage side.

“Now, more than ever, we are asking people to trust us, while having even fewer mechanisms to earn that trust,” stated Dr. Ortolani. “Fortunately, I have been able to play an instrumental role in developing protocols to keep our hospital’s associates as safe as possible during these novel times. With so many medical professionals stepping up right now, including veterinarians, I am very grateful to be able to do my part and continue to help sick pets and their families.”

In spite of life’s current challenges, Dr. Ortolani has welcomed the chance to take on more, growing her career as a clinician and leader, building her hospital’s internship program, and increasing its critical care skills. She continues to educate herself, acquiring formal certifications and degrees, including the one she is currently completing at the University of Tennessee’s Veterinary Human Support certificate program.

“I’m hoping to expand my teaching and lecturing skills in the future,” said Dr. Ortolani. “I like training interns in a clinical environment but would also love to play a role in mentoring residents and students again. I really enjoy teaching didactic lectures, and perhaps someday I’ll get the opportunity to teach or guest-lecture at a university.”

 

— Ray-Donna Peters

 

 

Nephrology alum tackles kidney disease in Chicago

Andrew Kowalski, MD/MPH ’12, knows Chicago. He grew up in the Second City suburbs, went to college at Loyola University Chicago, and now works as an interventional nephrologist and assistant professor at MacNeal Hospital—the Illinois-based hospital where he was born and where he volunteered prior to becoming a medical student at St. George’s University.

Like in many American cities, kidney disease is a widespread issue in Chicago, which is where Dr. Kowalski comes in.

St. George’s University: How big of a problem is kidney disease in America?

Dr. Andrew Kowalski: More than one in seven people in the US have kidney disease—that’s about 15 percent of the population. Of those people, nine out of 10 have no idea they have any sort of disease, and two in five aren’t aware that they have severe disease and are very close to initiating dialysis. I see it a lot. I will tell some patients about significant issues that they face and they’re shocked.

I practice both general and interventional nephrology. As a general nephrologist, I see these patients and discuss ways to change their lifestyle, augment risk factors, and create treatment plans to move forward. Oftentimes we can put in 110 percent into a patient and, for whatever reason—likely their genetics—they still progress to requiring dialysis.

SGU: How closely is kidney disease associated with socioeconomics?

Dr. Kowalski: The majority of kidney disease patients have some issue with diabetes and/or high blood pressure. And it’s usually uncontrolled. Much of this closely relates to socioeconomics; those in the poorest communities tend to not have adequate access to healthcare, or whoever they see might not be the best. A lot of them have advanced conditions and complications that come with them.

Also in the mix, albeit less frequently, are patients from affluent neighborhoods. You see the same diabetes and high blood pressure, but the disease is more related to medications, drug use, and genetics. These patients feel like they know more and tend to try to treat themselves.

 

“SGU blew my mind in terms of the resources that were available, the culture there, the people there. It was fantastic.”

 

How did you get into nephrology?

Dr. Kowalski: What drove me into nephrology was meeting my mentor, Dr. Edgar Lerma. The way that he practiced, the way he carried himself and interacted with patients, it was really something I wanted to emulate. He wasn’t a very tall man, but he had a presence about him. He never spoke at the patients but always spoke with them. By the end, you would think you were speaking to a friend and bouncing ideas off of him. They truly trusted him and knew that they were in the right hands.

Nephrology has many avenues too. As an interventional nephrologist, I get to use both my hands and my head. As an interventional nephrologist, I see these patients and plan and manage their dialysis access. I would place their hemodialysis catheters, peritoneal catheters, and manage their fistulas and grafts so that they are receiving adequate dialysis treatment.

SGU: What’s your favorite part about your job?

Dr. Kowalski: I love teaching residents. I love explaining something that has a reputation of being difficult and seeing light bulb go off in their heads.

SGU: In addition to your MD, you obtained your Master of Public Health from SGU. How has that factored into your practice?

Dr. Kowalski: When I went to medical school, I wanted to have as many career options available as possible, and it helped not only with that, but it made me more well-rounded. I use the principles and practices that I learned in the MPH program more than I thought I ever would have. The coursework for that degree dove into many aspects of medicine that I was unaware of. We had in-depth discussions about population’s access to care, the influence of insurances, and the thought process that patients go through about their diagnosis and overall patterns of disease. An MPH degree gives you more options, and taking into account what you’re taught and the fact that it’s just one additional year, I think it’s extremely valuable to have.

SGU: How would you describe your SGU experience?

Dr. Kowalski: Going to SGU was much, much better than I thought it was going to be. It blew my mind in terms of the resources that were available, the culture there, the people there. It was fantastic. And time really flew by. During the week, you got a top-notch education—it really was phenomenal what we learned. And then every weekend it was like you were vacationing at a beautiful resort.

SGU really set me up for success. A lot of it had to do with riding on the shoulders of the giants who came before me who built a culture where everyone works together and helps each other out. We’re all on the same team, and our goal is to be better and do better as a whole.

– Brett Mauser

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Equity in medicine the focus of new SGU scholarship

St. George’s University’s new scholarship program—the Equity in Medicine scholarship—focuses on developing strong physician pipelines in underserved areas by recruiting students from these areas and encouraging them to return home to practice.

According to Health Resources and Services Administration, medically underserved areas are areas designated as having too few primary care providers and other factors.

Read about two Equity in Medicine Scholarship recipients who are committed to working in areas where care is needed most.

Anders Grant

Hometown: Bronx, NY

Her commitment: Primary care on Native American reservation

Anders Grant spent more than 20 years as a dietitian on the East Coast and in Texas. Years later, after raising her own children, she began working with various tribes on the Native American Reservation—where medical school called out to her.

In her three and a half years there, she “fell in love with the communities and the people.” Aided by the Equity in Medicine scholarship at St. George’s University, Ms. Grant is committed to returning to the reservation—a medically underserved area—when she becomes a physician.

“The people were so interested in teaching me their ways, and because I love languages, I immediately tried to learn the Navajo language. It was very reciprocal,” she said. “Once I showed that I wanted to learn their culture, that I wasn’t someone who said a casual hello, we became more like a family.”

Healthcare access and education is limited in and around the various Reservations. According to Ms. Grant, it takes upward of an hour to drive to visit with a healthcare professional, and even then, staff and resources are limited.

Ms. Grant is especially focused on the treatment and prevention of diabetes, working closely with children and families on the reservation to address the root of the problem—obesity. As an ultra-marathon runner, she offered diet and exercise programs for children that yielded tremendous results and was soon adopted by many parents.

“What I really emphasized was moving,” she said. “They saw me running out there every day, which showed that I practice what I preach. If I can get the children to start improving their health now, oh my goodness, the future is unlimited.”

Using the foundation she receives at SGU, Ms. Grant is committed to making a lasting difference in returning to the Native American Reservation.

“I can’t wait to get back,” she said. “I want to prove to them in person that you can never give up. It’s never too late to make your dreams come true.”

Taylor James

Hometown: Forest City, NC

Her commitment: Rural medicine

In rural America, state-of-the-art technology and a wealth of resources may only be found at a great distance. Growing up in the foothills of North Carolina, Taylor James has seen the consequences of such deficiencies firsthand—and they have shaped her career path.

When she was just four years old, her father passed away after a medical mishap during a surgical procedure on his hand. According to Ms. James, the anesthetic was administered in a blood vessel, inadvertently numbing his heart, and no available medication could reverse the effect. She attributes the mistake, in part, to a lack of resources at her local hospital.

“I didn’t really recognize it until I moved away and saw what other places are like,” said Ms. James, now a first-term student at St. George’s University. “As I grew older, I better understood what happened to my dad, why it happened, and now I want to figure out how to combat these problems in small towns like mine.”

She has been laser focused—graduating a semester early from North Carolina State University, with a degree in human biology. During her studies, she gained valuable clinical experience at the University of North Carolina’s emergency medicine department as well as WakeMed Cary Hospital.

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As a Spanish minor, she also completed a doctor shadowing assignment in Spain, an experience she said: “instilled the importance of cultural competence.” She has used her bilingualism to communicate with—and ease the minds of—Spanish-speaking patients.

While she is keeping her options open, Ms. James is leaning toward a career in primary care, to become a valuable resource in a community that needs it. She even foresees opening up her own family medicine clinic and is grateful for the financial flexibility she has to do so through receiving the Equity in Medicine Scholarship from SGU.

“I was so shocked and so thankful to receive the scholarship,” she said. “I have really enjoyed my first few weeks at SGU. It’s a lot of studying—which I expected—but I don’t think I expected the overwhelming amount of resources and support SGU provides to ensure that we’re successful.”

– Brett Mauser