Pathways

I am very grateful to have completed the Global Health Pathway. After applying and being accepted into the pathway during the spring of my intern year, I spent the next two years attending quarterly conferences, collaborating with residents from all specialties also participating in the pathway, and exploring how to incorporate global health in my own career.

My interests in global health stem from the desire to better understand how people from all socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds experience illness and health care. The pathway at IU School of Medicine provides a diverse exposure to global health care both domestically and internationally. Through our academic conferences we have the privilege of discussing fundamental barriers to health care, pathology from all around the world, and the structure of health systems in various communities. Additionally, members of the pathway are fortunate to learn from wonderful providers that specialize in Global Health. During my time on the track, I was also able to meet with these amazing mentors that helped me to curate my own specific global health interests.

Another crucial component to the Global Health track at IU School of Medicine is the ability to travel internationally to complete a rotation. I was able to live and work in Eldoret, Kenya through the AMPATH program (Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare). This was an invaluable experience that really allowed me to see firsthand how to provide high value care in resource limited settings. I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with my Kenyan colleagues and was ultimately able to use the lessons I learned on the wards there to become a better physician. My experience on the pathway culminated in a poster presentation that I delivered during our annual IU Center for Global Health Equity’s Global Health Scholars Day. Overall, participating in this track provided me with the tools to not only pursue global health, but to become a more compassionate and experienced physician!

I signed up for this pathway because I wanted to have a better idea of what it is like to be an academic physician. Dr. Dilly, pathway key educator, provides you with all the tools plus more than I expected. The training goes beyond the process of learning how to develop your career as an academic physician (there are so many tracks!) and goes into the different tenets of learning theory. You have the opportunity to create your own curriculum and participate in medical education research. By the time you complete the program, you've also had someone evaluate your teaching style and you start to develop your own teaching philosophy. It's a very interactive program. The meetings are monthly. This is a unique opportunity and you receive a certificate at the end of your training. I enjoyed the program and created a lot of mentors in my area of interest, which is cardiology. This pathway is unique to IU School of Medicine and in large part thanks to Dr. Dilly and her team. You also learn the inherent overlap between being a strong clinician and teacher.

While looking at different residency options, I was intrigued by IU School of Medicine's primary care track and flexibility in scheduling outpatient rotations that I thought would be useful to a future outpatient doctor. I applied to the primary care track my intern year and enjoyed how the track allowed me to have a second half-day of continuity clinic during my non-ward months in a different clinic setting with a new mentor. The bimonthly meetings and didactics were nice to meet in a smaller group with people with similar interests as me, especially being in a large internal medicine program, where most people choose to further specialize or pursue inpatient medicine. The camaraderie and mentorship from the track coupled with the diverse clinical experiences have been helpful in my current role as a primary care physician.

Immediately after being accepted to Internal Medicine Residency at IU School of Medicine, I discussed my interest in research and desire to pursue a Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship (PCCM) through this pathway with the internal medicine program director, who immediately connected me with the Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship program director with eventual direct acceptance into the fellowship outside of the match process with ABIM approval. During residency, I was assisted by both programs to match me with a research mentor with similar interests and a track record of success in obtaining funding and history of clinically significant publications. After completing my shortened pathway through residency (24 months), I was able to begin my clinical fellowship training in PCCM starting with 12 clinical months (of the 18 required) during which I worked with the program leadership and my research mentor to plan my upcoming 3-3.5 year research plan. During my clinical training in fellowship, I was provided with a healthy mix of autonomy and support as appropriate to become proficient and comfortable in clinical practice. Upon starting my research project, I had an established plan with multiple anticipated publications that I am currently working on. My next few years will be dedicated to research (with interspersed clinical months and weekly pulmonary continuity clinic) allowing me to gather data and produce publications to establish myself in the field with the ultimate goal of becoming a funded translational medicine physician scientist at an academic institution where I can pursue my research interests and practice PCCM clinically.

I chose to do pursue this pathway after already completing an MD/PhD since I have a significant interest in research. My ultimate goal is to obtain independent NIH funding and lead a research group of my own. Through the support and facilities I have been provided from this program, I am confident that I will be successful. If you have a significant research in pursuing research after completion of residency, I strongly recommend this pathway as it will provide you with the training and support required to succeed in today's competitive research environment.