Junior Fellows Attend Global Public Health Career Seminar at NYAM

On April 13, more than 40 students in NYAM’s Junior Fellows class of 2011 attended a special Global Public Health Career Seminar at NYAM designed to introduce them to public health initiatives in Africa and to focus on the important skill of communications. The event featured guest speakers John Damonti, President of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation, and Jill Dosik, President of CGI Health.

John Damonti, Jo Ivey Boufford and Jill Dosik

NYAM President Jo Ivey Boufford, MD welcomed the Junior Fellows and described the shift in the discourse of global health from a problem seen as “over there” to one that is both “here and there” and can benefit from international collaboration.

“There’s a lot to learn from other countries who do pretty amazing things with limited resources,” Dr. Boufford said.

Mr. Damonti then gave an engaging presentation highlighting the extent of the AIDS crisis in Africa and the many barriers to treating adults and children with the disease, and providing an overview of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation’s innovative work to fight AIDS in sub-Sarahan Africa through its Secure the Future program. Since 1999, the program has provided care and support for women and children with HIV/AIDS in 14 countries through four Children’s HIV/AIDS Clinical Centers of Excellence, as well as grantmaking, technical assistance, and a Pediatric Aids Corps. It is projected that a year from now, 100,000 children and their families will be receiving treatment thanks to the program.

Ms. Dosik complemented Mr. Damonti’s presentation by enthusiastically introducing the Junior Fellows to her line of work, health care public relations, and engaging them in an exercise to craft a news article about the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation’s work in Africa. Using the key questions every journalist must ask—Why? Who? What? When? How?—the Junior Fellows took turns eloquently summarizing Mr. Damonti’s talk and explaining the importance and impact of the Foundation’s work.

Joanne Eichel, Director of NYAM’s Office of School Health Programs (OSHP), thanked Mr. Damonti, who is a NYAM Fellow, and Ms. Dosik for their contributions to the OSHP Advisory Committee, and acknowledged the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation’s longstanding and generous  support of The Junior Fellows Program at NYAM.

Ms. Eichel closed the event by addressing the Junior Fellows: “My hope is that you take everything from this session and add it to the building blocks of your thinking about your future career,” she said.

Over the course of the school year, the Junior Fellows have visited NYAM to participate in a variety of health career seminars and learn to conduct independent health research in the NYAM Library. Each student is currently working on a research project on a question of his or her choosing. The projects will be presented at the annual research poster session at NYAM on May 24, followed by a culmination ceremony.

The Junior Fellows Program, a partnership with New York City public schools and regional academic medical centers, is designed to stimulate middle and high school students’ interest in public health, science, medicine, and research. It advances students’ skills in using technology-based educational resources, identifying strategies for improving health and preventing illness, and understanding the research process and the nature of scientific inquiry. The program engages Junior Fellows in project-based learning, works to enhance their critical-thinking skills, and helps them foster positive interactions with practicing physicians and health professionals.  

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Posted on April 14, 2011

Contact:
Andrew J. Martin
Director of Communications
The New York Academy of Medicine
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New York, New York 10029
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amartin@nyam.org

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