Shanaz Kahn
As a graduate student at the George Washington University International Education Program, Shanaz brought her experience in both global health and health science education to the internship. Her project, entitled “Ethics of Global Health Opportunities” centered on the intersection of these important issues by developing quality indicators for global health education programs and drafting a framework for ethical global health experiences for students. While continuing to pursue her master’s degree she now is a part of the Association of American Medical Colleges Global Health Learning Opportunities staff, to aid in the development of global health opportunities for medical students.
Christine Pham
A native of Virginia, Christine interned with AMSA during the summer of 2010 and spearheaded a project on developing physician-in-training skills on working with pediatric patients. Recognizing the difficulty that many have in explaining healthcare to children, she created an engaging training module on effective communication to both children at all ages based on their developmental level in her project “Children & Patient Communication.” She is currently pursuing a chemistry and psychology degree from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Matthew Reuter, MD
Matt spent a one month elective rotation as an AMSA intern during his fourth-year of medical school at Georgetown University. Matt’s project, “ACA, Simplified” focused his efforts on examining the recent Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act from a patient’s perspective. He developed a brochure physicians can use in their office to inform patients about the major aspects of the law that will affect them. He also developed lobbying materials to urge Congress to fill potential donut holes in the law that could affect the middle class. Upon graduating from medical school, he will be pursuing a residency in Orthopedic Surgery.
Naveed Saleh, MD, MS
Naveed attained a bachelor's degree in biology from Cornell University, a medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine and a master's degree in science journalism from Texas A&M University in College Station. As a freelance medical writer and editor, he has written and edited for several prominent physicians and researchers. Naveed spent his time in the office working with The New Physician magazine on a variety of features for the December 2010 edition. He won a 2010 Apex Award for Health & Medical Writing for his contributions to the magazine.
Rachita Sood
Rachita is currently a student at the University of Maryland pursuing degrees in Neurobiology and Government & Politics. Her project, “Good Patient Communication,” focused on emphasizing the value of good communication skills to physicians and how patient-centered care can be delivered in an effective manner. The white coat card she developed for her project was featured in the November 2010 edition of The New Physician. Rachita went on to coordinate AMSA’s first-ever National Health Equity Week of Action. She is studying abroad in Brazil where she is honing her understanding of global health, while also applying to medical school.
Allen Wang
Allen, a Pasadena, CA native, has spent the last few years pursuing a degree in Medical Humanities and Health Care Policy from the University of Oklahoma, where he recently graduated from in December 2010. During his internship, he worked on two projects entitled: “2010 Patient Protection and Affordability Care Act's Effect on Primary Care Physician Shortages” and “The Way Physicians Get Paid: How That Hampers Quality Medicine and Primary Care.” Each focused on providing physicians-in-training with insights to careers in primary care, especially the effect of the recent healthcare reform legislation will have on the field of primary care. Allen hopes to enter a career in medicine where he hopes to integrate clinical care with public policy.