Meet Our Alumni: Yale Neurocritical Care Fellowship

May 09, 2022

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00:08I did my residency at Yale and
00:10I knew that I loved the program.
00:12I loved the people. I I knew that I
00:15wanted to stay at a program that was
00:18more neuro focused as opposed to more
00:21critical care focused with some neuro.
00:24And Yale is one of those types of programs.
00:28I knew that the program is one that
00:31is always trying to improve on itself.
00:34Every year there are some major improvement,
00:37usually based on or often based
00:40on feedback from the fellows.
00:41And I really liked that aspect.
00:43I also love that.
00:48There's the opportunity to work
00:49with these giants in the field.
00:51People that are brilliant that are amazing.
00:53Clinicians, world renowned researchers
00:54but yet everybody is on a first name
00:57basis and you can text anybody anytime
00:59you vice chair of the department,
01:01the division chief of Nikku or any other
01:03subdivision and just ask for their
01:04opinion at any time and and they're
01:06more than willing to just chat with you.
01:08So it it sort of checked all my boxes
01:11and was the best of kind of all worlds.
01:14It's very balanced curriculum
01:16for fellows you got.
01:17As to all the major technologies and
01:20your ICU, but then you also develop
01:23a very solid clinical background,
01:25and I also like that there are.
01:28But you know, large diversity
01:30of attendings from all different
01:31perspectives who have trained
01:33in all different places.
01:36Actually, there are a lot of reasons.
01:38I thought the yellow would
01:40be the best program for me.
01:41Yeah, it's a really well rounded
01:44and covering every aspect of
01:47the critical care. I chose
01:49Yale for fellowship because it was where
01:51I had made my home over the course
01:54of residency and chief residency.
01:56I'd grown to appreciate my
01:58relationships with people there
02:00and enjoy my life in New Haven.
02:02I'd had a sneak preview of the
02:04neuro ICU and it's at Yale.
02:06That I decided on this career path so
02:08it just felt natural to go for it.
02:10Exactly where my interests have
02:12been captured in the 1st place,
02:14I knew that at Yale I would see
02:17everything learn from incredible
02:19people from across disciplines.
02:21And of course I don't need to tell you.
02:23Yale has a reputation, it's a good one.
02:26So training at Yale comes with the long
02:28term benefit of that stamp of solidness.
02:30Wherever you go afterwards.
02:36I felt very well prepared.
02:37Nothing surprised me.
02:39The first year I didn't really
02:41see anything that I hadn't
02:43seen before. As a fellow,
02:44my fellowship gave me a great foundation
02:47and all the tools I needed to find
02:49my way through any new experiences.
02:51I really realized every day how
02:54well I was trained as a neuro
02:57intensivist at Yale Fellows
02:58are going to be in many cases.
03:01Of course you are going to staff
03:02a patient, so we are attending,
03:04but you have a lot of. Anatomy.
03:10So when I realized that there
03:11was sort of a burgeoning field
03:13of critical care, EG it seemed.
03:17Like an amazing opportunity
03:19for me to sort of meld my two
03:22interests and sort of be able to.
03:25Have that bit of epilepsy
03:26and EEG that I love,
03:28but still be able to practice
03:29in the NICU with the high acuity
03:31patients and it was just an
03:33opportunity I couldn't pass up.
03:39I left fellowship with so
03:41many memories that changed
03:43me and will be with me forever.
03:46I think for me the most memorable thing
03:48was really the camaraderie with the AP.
03:52Our food all the time
03:54when you take care of so many patients
03:56that are so sick and such a variety
03:58of diagnosis, there are a lot of.
04:01A lot of patients that
04:02stick out in your mind.
04:04I think the the one that sticks out the
04:06most to me though is it was actually
04:08not so much the patient but their family.
04:11It was the first time as it was an older
04:14gentleman he came in with a pretty
04:16terrible brain bleed unfortunately.
04:18But the interaction with the family and
04:21sort of helping them through the process of.
04:25Having a loved one who's critically ill
04:27and and who's really not getting better
04:29and sort of going through the decision
04:32making process about goals of care.
04:34I just for whatever reason,
04:35I just really connected with this family.
04:37I saw myself and my family in them
04:40and it was the first family that I
04:42gave my personal cell phone to it.
04:45Sort of helped remind me in in those
04:47moments where patients aren't going
04:48to do well and it's gets you down that
04:50you know you still can make a really
04:52big difference for the families who do
04:53go on and and really need somebody to
04:55help them through the those tough times.
04:57And so even though it wasn't a great,
05:00happy,
05:00uplifting story or an uplifting outcome,
05:03it's still.
05:04Was an inspiration for me.
05:10I'm really going to miss it that I when
05:12I leave, I think you know there's.
05:14There's a lot of great
05:15institutions out there.
05:16I'm really excited to kind of go
05:18out into the world and and finally
05:20be an attending and practice
05:21in different places.
05:22But there's not going to be
05:23anywhere that's quite like.
05:24You know,
05:25you can make your own path.
05:26I think there are so many
05:29electives that I did a lot of Miku
05:31and I did a lot of EG as well.
05:34And I even took. A week or two
05:39to learn how to do bronchoscopy.
05:40So I think I would say you can
05:43actually turn it into whatever.
05:44Like you can turn the fellowship
05:46into whatever you want it to be.
05:48Goal where the opportunities and
05:49resources exist and then don't waste them,
05:52you are going to be super
05:55strong neuro intensive based.
05:56Please be who is going to be
05:59confident on anything and.
06:03Yeah, so you have to come to Yale.