Dr. Kristen Obiakor is the founder of the Medical Specialty Exposure Pipeline (MSEP) at Yale. Each month, residents from a medical specialty speak to students and hope to inspire a future career in medicine. In March, seven anesthesia residents took time out of their busy schedules to come train and speak with local students! Here, we learn more about Dr. Obiakor and the MSEP program.
Hi, Dr. Obiakor! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I am a third-year pediatric resident at Yale, graduating in less than 30 days actually! I am Jamaican and Nigerian, and also a Midwest girl at heart. I received my BS in neurobiology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, conducted neurosurgery research for 5 years at UW School of Medicine as a college & graduate student, went on to receive my Masters in Medical Physiology at Loyola Stritch School of Medicine, and ultimately received my Doctor of Medicine from Rush Medical College in Chicago! My upbringing as a daughter of immigrants from Jamaica and Nigeria created a fundamental understanding that my view of the world always requires a social justice lens. Throughout my career, many of my passion projects have centered around health equity work. It is my “why” in medicine. As a pediatrician, I want to build more caring, conscientious communities within healthcare systems, equipped to comprehend social determinants of health and deconstruct barriers that inhibit optimal health outcomes. In July, I will be starting fellowship as a National Clinician Scholar at UCLA where my research will focus on using an intersectional lens to investigate early intervention strategies to attenuate adverse childhood events within vulnerable pediatric populations.
What is MSEP?
MSEP stands for Medical Specialty Exposure Pipeline. The mission of MSEP is to empower high school students that are historically minoritized & underrepresented within medicine to choose medical career paths.
I understand that you spearheaded the creation of this program in 2021, tell us more about why you created this program?
We continue to see significant underrepresentation of Black & Latinx providers within the medical workforce. We know through research that health outcomes and patient satisfaction are improved when healthcare providers and their patients have concordance in their racial, ethnic, and language backgrounds. By increasing diversity and community representation within the medical profession, we improve health outcomes. Pipeline programs represent a tangible strategy to promote equity within our health systems through early exposure of students to medical careers. I am a product of pipeline programs; I know that they work. With the help of an amazing group of people, including the Associate Program Director for the Yale Pediatric Residency Program, Dr. Adam Berkwitt, I founded the Medical Specialty Exposure Pipeline to create an opportunity for students from our surrounding communities to see Yale physicians that look like them and know that they too can one day become medical providers.
Who can attend an MSEP Session?
Ninth through twelfth grade high school students! Our goal is to identify students who are passionate about exploring the field of medicine and who will gain the most from the MSEP experience. My particular focus is to diminish barriers that those from underrepresented or historically marginalized backgrounds face as they embark on their journeys to medicine. For this reason, we seek students who best represent the surrounding communities served within the Greater New Haven area in our consideration of applications.
What kinds of topics are covered at an MSEP session and who presents?
Our pipeline program is unique because it is led by resident physicians and follows a case-based model. Resident physicians of diverse backgrounds in pediatrics, internal medicine, OB-GYN, psychiatry, surgical specialties, and more lead monthly sessions geared toward exposing students to each field, developing clinical reasoning skills, and providing students with interactive, hands-on learning & networking opportunities. Our hands-on portion has ranged from performing “skin” biopsies on bananas with real dermatologic tools during the dermatology session, to learning how to place plaster wrist splints on each other with orthopedic surgery. Additionally, every session has an “about me" portion where we learn about each residents’ journey to medicine, why they love and chose their field, and their passions inside and outside of the hospital.
What do you hope a student who attends a session takes away from the day?
I hope that students can see themselves in us, that the field of medicine—and their pursuit of it—becomes a tangible entity. I hope to inspire our students to become our next generation of medical providers that truly represent the communities that we serve!
How can people learn more about upcoming sessions or get involved?
Anyone interested can contact MSEP@yale.edu or contact me directly at kristen.obiakor@yale.edu!