Public health in Anesthesia?

[mjh613]

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I'm a 3rd year med student at Columbia, and I'm just finishing my week of Anesthesia (that's all we get during 3rd year rotations). I liked it a lot more than I thought I would -- I like especially the pharmacology, the mathematics, and the physiology that's critically useful in the field. I also like the focus on airway management.

At least as I perceive it, one of the biggest downsides that I would see for me going into anesthesia would be the lack of public health tie-in in the field. I am interested in issues surrounding healthcare access and delivery, and I am planning to get my MPH, but I just don't see how that ties in with anesthesia at all.

Is anybody here (or does anyone work with) an anesthesia MD who also has an MPH (or is at least interested in public health issues)? Is it possible to do public health work as an anesthesiologist? Can you speak to that?

Thanks for any input you could provide!

-- Mark

 

[DrLight]

"Experts in surgery and anesthesia exchange experiences, resources, and expert knowledge to promote initiatives that address the challenges of surgical care in resource-poor settings."http://www.ghdonline.org/surgery/


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[strugglin]

I am a freshman medical student, however, I earned my MPH prior to attending school. I think you will be able to pursue public health regardless of your specialty, because I worked with MDs who were your expected specialties (Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, etc) to "random" specialties (Neonates, etc).

You don't necessarily have to stick with your chosen specialty to pursue public health, but if you do choose to, nosocomial infections are very commonly transmitted through central line placement, intubation, and other procedures performed by anesthesiologists. You may find a niche in infection control or something similar that you can thrive in.

Regardless, keep up the good work and best of luck!

 

[imfrankie]

There are some anesthesia department's which have global health fellowships, e.g. Univ Washington, Stanford, Duke, Dalhousie.... Some incorporate MPH or similar into the training period.

 

[cchoukal]

Hopkins had some tie-in to the Bloomberg school of public health when I interviewed there, but that might be for fellows. Pronovost could be considered an anesthesiologist who works in public health. While his career is not typical, it is at least one example of something that might appeal to you.

 

[michigangirl]

Peter Pronovost is a perfect example of an anesthesiologist who has made public health his focus-- he has mentored many of us including myself in our department and many of us have been motivated to pursue a Ph.D at the public health school thanks to his and others' work. Many opportunities abound if you find the right setup to get your MPH/Ph.D -- even if you pursue clinical research locally or on a multi-center large scale level, a public health degree will serve you outstandingly in the realm of research design, methodology and analysis. It makes a huge difference to be able to rely on yourself to do the bulk of your research, not running to a statistician or an epidemiologist at th drop of a hat.

Happy to talk more, PM me if you like.