Start year: 2024
Basic:
- Hometown: Alpharetta, GA
- Where did you attend university/college? University of Georgia
- Where did you attend medical school? Harvard Medical School
- Where did you attend residency? Stanford
Fellow Perspective
Tell us briefly about your background before cardiology fellowship?
I grew up mostly in Alpharetta, a suburb of Atlanta Georgia. In college I studied biology and anthropology and spent my time singing in every singing group I could join and learning how to be a football fan. I went straight to medical school where I took a class called computationally enabled medicine which combined with the anthropology background got me interested in the cultural aspects of how people in medicine interact with technology in their work environment. I moved to California for my medicine residency where I got to do a few projects related to health IT use and fell in love with the acuity, variety, and strong patient relationships that came with being a cardiologist. I did a chief year the year after residency before coming to Duke for fellowship.
What are your career plans in cardiology?
Still in the works! Clinically I am hoping to create a nice practice mix of clinic, rounding with residents, and imaging days. Valvular heart disease and heart failure are both interests of mine and my rotations and faculty in fellowship have been helping me to figure out what training pathway helps me build the right skills for my interests. Outside of clinical work I am interested in building workflows for incorporating AI into clinical care and figuring out how we evaluate its effectiveness.
Why did you choose Duke for your cardiology fellowship training?
I was looking for a fellowship program that had balanced opportunities for top notch clinical training and academic and career development. Duke really strikes that balance like few other places. When I interviewed I also got the distinct sense that this was a place that valued authenticity and was going to support me in becoming the kind of clinician and leader I want to be without pressuring me to be someone I’m not.
What advice might you offer residents looking at fellowship programs?
Be honest with yourself about what you are looking for but also leave room for yourself to change your mind. Try to go somewhere where your opportunities will be excellent across the board even if you find that you’ve fallen in love with something you didn’t expect!
What do you enjoy doing in the Triangle area outside of work?
The area has a surprising number of amazing restaurants across so many different types of cuisines. It’s a diverse area with people from all over the world which lends itself well to being a foodie. Options range from award winning chefs with fancy vibes to hole in the wall eateries that are amazing finds. The area is also central to a lot of really great day/weekend trips. Wilmington, Richmond, Asheville, Blue Ridge, Shenandoah — all easy to get to! And RDU is probably the most convenient airport I’ve ever encountered so exploration doesn’t have to stop where you can drive.