What is your role in the Department of Internal Medicine?
I serve as the director of operations for BRIDGE-U: Liberia, which is a five-year USAID-funded partnership to advance the University of Liberia College of Health Sciences (ULCHS) as a globally recognized leader in research utilization, meaningfully connecting academics with policymaking, innovation, and clinical practice. Key aspects of my role include strengthening the ULCHS offices of Sponsored Research Services and of Fiduciary Support, launching the ULCHS Experiential Learning and Assessment Lab, and liaising between Yale central offices and USAID to ensure the project is achieving outlined objectives in compliance with relevant rules and regulations. In addition to ULCHS, our collaborators include Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), the Consortia for Improving Medicine with Innovation and Technology, the African Health Innovation Centre, the Liberian Ministry of Health, the National Public Health Institute of Liberia, and the Liberia College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Why did you decide to work at Yale School of Medicine (YSM)?
YSM plays a primary role in the BRIDGE-U: Liberia project. I was managing the project aspects that fell under VUMC and was honored to be asked to transition over to Yale as the director of operations.
Have you been involved in any projects that you are particularly proud of?
I couldn’t be prouder of the work our team is currently doing in Liberia. BRIDGE-U: Liberia has an overarching goal of enhancing research utilization across Liberia, made possible through eight activity streams of the project. These include operationalizing the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Innovation (CTLI) at ULCHS; launching a CTLI-supported secondary school program, Camp xSEL, for young Liberians, especially girls; initiating an interprofessional capstone course; developing the Experiential Learning and Assessment Lab (ELAB); creating a certificate course in evidence-based health policy for current policymakers; establishing innovation programming focused on identifying, cultivating, and supporting female entrepreneurs in developing commercial applications of health-related research; collaborating with national regulatory bodies to establish policies and curricula for evidence-based continuing professional development; and strengthening ULCHS’s offices of Fiduciary Services and of Sponsored Research Services to establish and reinforce support to faculty in pre- and post-award activities.
Still in my first year at Yale, I look forward to finding ways to further contribute and learn more about the important research endeavors throughout the institution.
What do you love about working at Yale?
My team, which spans multiple partner institutions and is primarily based in Liberia, has a foundation of mutual respect, ensuring our host-country partners have a seat at every table to guide our work.
What is the most rewarding part of your career?
Watching team members grow in their own personal research and research administration careers as they gain access to a more equitable share of resources is by far the most rewarding aspect of my work. While international funding is slowly correcting course to focus more on directly funding host-country institutions in low and middle-income countries (LMIC), there is still so much room to grow in this regard. I’m honored to be a part of that transition and help advocate for our LMIC partners.