Trevor Cady, left, and Meredith Redick, right, University of Michigan Medical School students, came away from the inaugural “Primary C.A.R.E. (Community, Advocacy, Research, Education) Summer Team Immersion Program” with more than just an appreciation for how family medicine research can help doctors improve patients’ lives. They also took away ‘Best Poster’ at the poster presentation showcase in late September.
The two presented their research poster, “Food Affordability and Dietary Decision-Making among American Adolescents and Young Adults,” under the mentorship of Tammy Chang, MD, MPH, MS, associate professor of Family Medicine. They used data gathered through the MyVoice text-based poll, which takes the pulse of young people aged 14 to 24 living in the U.S. on a wide range of issues that affect their lives and health.
“Presenting our work at the Primary Care Immersion Program Symposium was a really rewarding experience,” said Cady, a former social worker and 2029 doctoral candidate who is considering specializing in family medicine. “We explored how adolescents’ and young adults’ perceived affordability of food impacts their eating habits and well-being. I think it is a topic of significance for many, as inflation continues to affect people’s lives on a daily basis.
“We were able to share findings that I think are interesting and important for a wider audience to be aware of. I saw how decisions regarding food, and simply having access to a regular meal, can impact nearly every aspect of a person’s life,” he added.
Redick, a second-year medical student who lived in a rural southeast Alaska island community and worked as a volunteer EMT before starting medical school, called the experience “so motivating.”
“I felt very supported in creating the research presentations and felt that the milestone assignments along the way … helped to keep us on track,” said Redick, who is interested in family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics. “The actual event felt really special because it was an opportunity to share our work and to learn about other teams’ work.”
This summer, the Departments of Family Medicine, Pediatrics, Internal Medicine, OB-GYN, and Med-Peds jointly launched the pilot “Primary C.A.R.E. (Community, Advocacy, Research, Education) Summer Team Immersion Program” for medical students.
In this 14-week program, students who were between their M1 and M2 years were placed on a Community of Practice, Education or Scholarship project team, based on their interests. In this pilot year, 15 students were paired with faculty mentors across primary care departments and worked on 10 total projects.
“I am so inspired by the enthusiasm and passion that Meredith and Trevor brought to our team,” Chang said. “I’m extremely proud of the important work they are doing and know it will have a significant impact in our understanding and ability to support youth to live their best lives.”
The immersive experiential program is dedicated to developing community and teamwork throughout U-M’s primary care programs through mentorship, scholarship, clinical skills development, and community health advocacy and engagement.
Both Cady and Redick said they were inspired by Chang and learned a lot from her.
“Beyond being knowledgeable, she is also very kind, encouraging, and supportive beyond the project itself,” Cady said. “I was also inspired by the work she has done to develop the MyVoice polling and research protocols, and it was very rewarding to have the opportunity to use the data collected through this project. We hope to continue developing this project into an academic manuscript and conference presentation, and I feel lucky to be part of that team.”
Redick said she appreciated Chang holding regular and frequent meetings with her and Cady, providing consistent constructive and positive feedback, as well as clear guidance on the project.
“Dr. Chang was a phenomenal mentor, and I consider myself fortunate to know her,” Redick said. “I really loved getting to shadow her at the Ypsilanti Corner Clinic. I hope that one day I will be as skilled, enthusiastic and empathetic as Dr. Chang is with her team and patients.”
The Primary C.A.R.E. (Community, Advocacy, Research, Education) Summer Team Immersion Program planning team consisted of Family Medicine faculty Clinical Fellow Elainee Sears, MD; Beth Jones, MD, clinical associate professor; Alex Belakovskiy, MD, clinical assistant professor and assistant clerkship director; Greg Shumer, MD, clinical assistant professor; Marie Claire O’Dwyer, MB, BCh, BAO, MPH, MSCP, clinical associate professor; Arrice Shipley, MD, MPH; Kate Hughey, MD, clinical assistant professor; Preston Zacharias, fellowship program director; and Clerkship Coordinator Andrea Murawa; as well as Heather Burrows, clinical professor of Pediatrics; Alli Ruff, clinical professor of Internal Medicine; and student representatives Anna Harmeling and Carly Martin.
Read the story about the launch of the Primary C.A.R.E. Summer Team Immersion Program on the Department of Family Medicine website.
