DOM faculty enlisted for April 10 IM Specialty Speed Dating Event

A dozen Department of Medicine faculty will participate in the Second Annual Internal Medicine Specialty Speed Dating Event on Wednesday, April 10, 5:30-7:30 p.m., in HSIB 532. A light dinner of Mexican food from Chipotle will be served.

Hosted by the Internal Medicine Student Association at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson, the by-invitation-only event is designed to enlighten medical students about types of careers they can choose from and different pathways among various subspecialties in internal medicine.

“The students will rotate from table to table and have a set of questions to ask. It’s a lot of fun and a way to garner interest in Internal Medicine. Plus, it provides much more depth and meaning to talk to experts in the fields that they are actually studying in real time during their pre-clerkship phase!” said Amy Sussman, MD, DOM vice chair of education and internal medicine clerkship director who serves as the student's ACP faculty mentor for the club.

“We are hoping to have at least one representative from each division. It provides much more depth and meaning to talk to the experts in fields they’re actually studying during their pre-clerkship phase of medical school.”

Currently, faculty who’ve confirmed attending include: J.R. “Keng” Pineda, MD, PhD, Division of Cardiology; Sarah Penquite, MD, fellowship associate director, Division of Endocrinology; Amy Klein, MD, Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship director and geriatricians Julia Cremer, MD, Meena Dagar, MD, and Samantha Russell, MD (fellow), with the Division of General Internal Medicine, Geriatrics & Palliative Medicine; Cameron Thompson, MD, Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology; Muhammad Husnain, MBBS, Division of Hematology & Oncology; Saman Nematollahi, MD, fellowship associate director, Division of Infectious Diseases; Puneet Shroff, MD, allergist, and Laura Meinke, MD, a critical care specialist with the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine; and Dr. Sussman, who also is fellowship director for the Division of Nephrology.

Dr. Shroff, who was at last year’s IMSA Speed Dating Event, said he enjoyed interacting with students and finding out how they thought about their medical studies, residency and fellowship training, and the careers ahead of them. It’s very different from his experience over 20 years ago, he added.

“There wasn’t the wealth of information on the internet to clearly outline all the paths, so the austerity of mentorship was really so critical to your path then,” Dr. Shroff said.

Entering residency at Washington University at St. Louis, he leaned toward pulmonology as a career. But expertise there included premier allergists and immunologists like Phillip Korenblat, MD, and John Atkinson, MD, who inspired him to choose that as a career.

“It’s a different landscape today,” Dr. Shroff said. “These students already have a wealth of medical background and have a good understanding of their pursuits within medicine. They’re looking for research opportunities and more specific clinical experiences in all of that.”

Of the four IMSA co-chairs – all first-year medical students (MS1s), Allyson Molzahn, Nhat Nguyen, Leena Idris and Ethan Ross, each has logged time in research labs. As an undergrad, Nguyen worked on Lalitha Madhivanan, MD’s research on the molecule NRF2 and its role in development of Parkinson’s disease, and won a 2022 Dean’s Award of Excellence from the UArizona honors college. Molzahn is a research tech at the Arizona Simulation Technology and Education Center (a role she previously held at the Asthma & Airway Disease Research Center), while Idris had been a substance abuse research coordinator in the Department of Family & Community Medicine.

Still, Molzahn said the Speed Dating Event offers her and other prospective internal medicine physicians a better glimpse into internal medicine’s varied specialties, empowering students to explore their options. “Engaging with experienced doctors from different fields gives us more insight into the day-to-day realities, patient interactions and unique challenges of each specialty,” she added.

That’s important, Idris said, since most of their time as MS1s now is dedicated to classroom work. But, at the end of four years, they’re expected to know what specialty they may want to pursue. The speed dating doctors input is very helpful in that regard. It might even help them line up their own mentors.

“Opportunities such as the Speed Dating Event present not only a chance for us to become familiar with what IM is and all the specialties within it, but also fosters an environment where we can hear firsthand the reality of IM residency and fellowships,” she said. “Students can form connections, gain new perspectives and have some peace of mind knowing more about life after medical school.”

It’s also a great opportunity for first- and second-year students to introduce themselves to physicians that they might eventually be working with during their clerkship, said IMSA member Ethan Ross.

“The speed dating event provides an invaluable opportunity to gain insights, ask questions, and form relationships that can significantly influence one’s career trajectory, especially if you are unsure of which specialty to pursue. These events help you navigate the vast array of medical specialties to find one that best aligns with your passion, skillset, and career aspirations.” — Nhat Nguyen, co-chair, UArizona Internal Medicine Student Association

For additional information, see the Internal Medicine Student Association webpage under Student Clubs on the Student Life webpage at the College of Medicine – Tucson website. Or reach out to IMSA co-chairs Allyson Molzahn, Leena Idris, Ethan Ross or Nhat Nguyen (Class of 2027).

DOM calendar listing for this event.