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Following their participation in the Clinical Scholars program, many alumni put their experience to use in their careers. To read profiles of distinguished Program alumni who have gone on to make a difference in their fields, click on an article below.
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Dr. Michael Cabana
For Dr. Michael Cabana, one of the most valuable parts of the Clinical Scholars program was the opportunity to focus on the “big” issues that affect medicine. “The Clinical Scholars fellowship is one of the rare opportunities in your career you get a chance to step back, where you’re allowed to not only focus on the question at hand, but also look at a broader picture,” he told us. More > |
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Dr. Carlyle Chan
For Carlyle Chan MD, the Clinical Scholars program was an important launching pad for his career as a academic psychiatrist and residency director. Chan applied to the Program in 1977, after reading about the Clinical Scholars program in a scholarly publication. He was completing his psychiatry residency at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics and was looking for a way to expand his experiences after spending the previous three years in an intensive clinical residency. More > |
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Dr. William Cunningham
Dr. William Cunningham, a leading researcher on HIV/AIDS and health disparities, credits the Clinical Scholars program as being a key influence in his career development. “I felt empowered to make a difference and have an impact,” he says of the Program. Most importantly, the Clinical Scholars program gave Cunningham a way to bridge his passion for medicine with his desire to do work that would benefit society—as well as perform research that had major policy implications for the way that HIV/AIDS treatment programs were developed and funded. More > |
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Dr. Esa Davis
When Esa Davis first saw a chart of obesity rates broken out by race and gender while in medical school at UMDNJ-New Jersey, she was startled. The chart showed that while obesity rates were rising in the general population, they were rising much faster among African-American women. “It really startled me, because African-American women were off the charts, but African American men weren’t nearly as high,” Davis told us. “So, what’s predisposing African-American women to be more obese?” More > |
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Dr. Alison Gilbraith
Dr. Alison Galbraith learned about the Clinical Scholars program long before she actually applied. After completing her undergraduate studies at Stanford University, Galbraith worked as a research assistant with a former Clinical Scholar. “He was doing a study about people on dialysis and whether or not they had an advanced directive,” she told us. “He was interested in ethical issues, especially around things like living wills.” More > |
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Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey
Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, the current President and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Clinical Scholars alum, tells us that the Clinical Scholars Program helped to catapult her career.
“As a Clinical Scholar, I was encouraged to “analyze” the health care system in a new and innovative way – one that allowed me to describe health care beyond the clinical realm.”
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Dr. Kavitha Patel
Kavita Patel, M.D., M.S.H.S., learned about the Clinical Scholars Program when she was in medical school at Oregon Health and Sciences University. As the National President of the American Medical School Association at the time, Dr. Patel said that “many of the leaders before me went on to the Program. Because we were like-minded individuals, it seemed like a perfect fit. I was right.”
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Dr. Kimberly Rask
Dr. Kimberly Rask credits the Clinical Scholars Program with teaching her how to think about difficult issues and how to do research in a way that teaches us how to solve problems. “I would absolutely recommend the Clinical Scholars Program. There is no other program that has the eclectic, policy relevant, systems-thinking, advocacy-oriented, collaborative curriculum that this Program has. It was invaluable to my career.”
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Dr. Terrence E. Steyer
For Terrence E. Steyer, MD, the Clinical Scholars Program was an invaluable way to meet contacts that impacted his career on many different levels. Referred to the Program by several of his mentors, Dr. Steyer applied and was accepted as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar.
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Dr. Joe Thompson
After completing two years of his residency, Dr. Joe Thompson, M.D. was on the path to becoming a pediatric, intensive care physician—he enjoyed the technical aspects of clinical care work and had never thought about working in the policy arena. During his residency, however, Thompson realized that he was also interested in broader health care issues. While he was satisfied that he was getting hands-on clinical experience and was able to treat individual patients, he wondered how prevention, funding, and social factors could also affect patients’ health outcomes. More > |
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Dr. Mort Wasserman
Dr. Wasserman believes the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars Program is “incredibly valuable.” A current professor of Pediatrics at the University of Vermont College of Medicine, Dr. Wasserman spent two years at the University of Washington as a Clinical Scholar and also earning his Masters in Public Health.
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