Maria Kim

For the past fifteen years, I have worked as a pediatrician, researcher,educator, and public health practitioner focused on designing, delivering & evaluating interventions to improve outcomes for children and families affected by HIV in Malawi, a country in East Africa. I am the Co-Founding Director of Tingathe(meaning "together we can" in the local Chichewa language), a program which has been supporting HIV and psychosocial programming at >120 health facilities in Malawi. In this role, I have helped garner and manage clinical programming and research grants including those from USAID and the NIH (K01, R01s). I also started and directed a research fellowship program that sought to support and develop young scientists in Malawi. I have led studies examining adolescent depression, healthcare worker burnout, intimate partner violence, adverse childhood events, and the impact of a tele-mental health support program. My career in Global Health/Pediatrics has been an incredible adventure. However, developments in both my personal and professional life have gently but persistently drawn me towards mental health and psychiatry (happy to share the longer version). While I find it very exciting that psychiatry is a field that is actively evolving, with immense potential for innovation, growth, and impact, it is the unique opportunity and privilege to accompany someone in their mental and emotional healing that most motivated me to pursue training in psychiatry. When I first arrived in Malawi, I was receptive to whatever the experience would bring -and I could never have imagined the journey would unfold so beautifully. Therefore, as I start residency, I am open, curious, and excited for what the training experience will bring and so grateful for the opportunity to train at Yale and to be amongst this amazing group of residents. I hope that I will be able to make a meaningful contribution. In my non-work time, I enjoy moving (yoga, running, hiking, dance, snowboarding), meditation, nature, singing, reading, and deep conversation and laughter with family and friends.