Volunteers Honored

During Reunion-Commencement Weekend, the BMAA recognized the contributions of student ambassadors and Board members who graduated in 2013. Student ambassadors lead tours of the Medical School, attend events, and facilitate connections with students throughout the year. Solomon J. Adelsky MD’13, Brenna M. Brucker ’09 MD’13, Eugene B. Cone MD’13, and Kartik K. Venkatesh ’06 PhD’11 MD’13 were recognized at the Opening Celebration, which kicked off the weekend. BMAA Student Representative James R. Rotenberg ’09 MD’13 (pictured at left with President Christina Paxson) also received an award in honor of his two years of service on the Board. Student participation on the Board ensures that we are aware of student concerns and can help address them as part of our mission.

Brown Corporation Trustee Elected

Congratulations are in order for Srihari S. Naidu ’93 MD’97, our current president of the Brown Medical School Alumni Association, who was elected an Alumni Trustee of the Brown Corporation. The entire Brown alumni body had an opportunity to vote on the ballot earlier this spring. He will serve until 2019.

Alumni trustees participate as full members of the Corporation, serving on one or more standing committees over a six-year term. Trustees thereby help guide the University as a whole, including the Medical School. Trustees also support the University in other ways, including making Brown a philanthropic priority.

Primary Care-Population Health Program Committee

MD alumni are serving on a number of committees charged with making critical decisions about the future of Alpert Medical School.

Among them is Dan DiPrete ’85 MD’89, P’15MD’19, ’15MD’19, who is serving on the Primary Care-Population Health Program Advisory Council. This new, dual-degree program is slated to launch in 2015 and will graduate a cadre of primary care-focused physicians who have also completed a master’s degree in population health. Dan reports that the subcommittees are working on the various components of the planned program, on schedule.

But the big news, he says, is the American Medical Association’s $1 million grant to support the planning of the program. Alpert Medical School was one of 11 schools to earn a grant out of 119 that applied to the AMA’s Accelerating Change in Medical Education initiative. "That's a big vote of confidence on the part of the AMA, and as a practical matter, it goes a long way toward the program’s successful implementation," Dan says.

Jeffrey Borkan, MD, PhD, chair of the Department of Family Medicine and assistant dean in charge of developing the new program, says the funds will be used for planning, piloting, creating an admissions process, and evaluation of the program. "A major part of the AMA grant is [also] involvement in a cutting-edge consortium around accelerating change in medical education," he adds.

There is still plenty more work to do, Borkan says, including application for accreditation to the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, creation of the new master’s degree program, curriculum design, and forging specific agreements with key partners, departments, and Brown-affiliated health systems.

Steven Shin ’95 MMS’97 MD’99

Steven S. Shin is the director of hand surgery at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in California. He completed his internship and residency at New York University’s Hospital for Joint Diseases and a combined hand and upper limb fellowship at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

A hand consultant for several professional teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers, the L.A. Dodgers, and the Anaheim Ducks, Steve likes to spend some of his free time with another team: the Brown Medical Alumni Association Board of Directors.

"The people are the best part about serving on the Board," says Steve. "It's so gratifying to be in a room with other devoted alums who share the common goal of helping make Alpert Medical School the best that it can be."

In addition to his work at Kerlan-Jobe—where his clients have included star athletes like the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant—Steve teaches at the Keck School of Medicine of USC; lectures certified athletic trainers at underserved public high school teams for the nonprofit Team HEAL Foundation; and is a fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. He’s also a husband and the father of a young son.

Nonetheless making time for Brown was an easy choice.

"Serving on the Board of the BMAA fit perfectly with my desires to help the School grow and prosper," he says. "Work will always be there, and it was important enough to me to take some time out and give back to the Medical School in this capacity."

Even 3,000 miles away, Steve still feels a strong connection to his alma mater. Nonetheless, he hopes the invention of the teleporter isn’t far off, "so that my trips to Providence and back are a little easier!"