Previous Member Spotlights:

Name: Virali Patel
Major: Neuroscience; Minors: French and Chemistry; Certificate: Conceptual Foundations of Medicine

Activities: "Outside of AMSA, I am a member of Women in Healthcare and the Imagination Project. I am also a volunteer at the Children's Hospital in the NICU and let me tell you, it is the BEST volunteering position I could ever ask for. I get to go in every week and hold a baby or play with a sibling, and it is such a rewarding position and by far the best part of my week. I am so grateful to have this position and I would definitely encourage students who are interested in fetal, neonatal, or pediatric medicine to check it out!"

Research: "I do neurogenetics research in Dr. Quasar Padiath's lab in the Graduate School fo Public Health. My project is to study a mutation in the TUBB4A gene and see how it affects oligodendrocyte function and how this overall relates to the mechanism of action of Hypomyelination and Atrophy of the Basal Ganglia and Cerebellum."

Who would you meet in history? "I would definitely want ot meet Elizabeth Blackwell. I think that she is such an inspirational woman, being the first female to get her MD. She is a symbol of perseverance and strength and I think that being able to talk to her and hear about her experiences would be priceless."