The fifth annual Trainee Research Day at Rush University took place on February 19, featuring research presentations and discussions among trainees. The event included both oral and poster sessions, culminating in a lecture by Christine Kennedy, PhD, RN, FAAN, John L. & Helen Kellog Dean College of Nursing during the award ceremony and reception.
Second-year medical student Shrishti Shrivastava presented her work on brachytherapy for central nervous system salvage therapy. “My research is focused on a new technology for treating recurrent central nervous system tumors,” Shrivastava said. “Generally, this technology is called brachytherapy, where they put a source of radiation next to the tumor, and it’s supposed to help reduce rates of local recurrence and be safer to use in the brain.” She completed her summer research fellowship at Rush and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to present: “I put a lot of hard work into this over the past year, so I am really grateful to be here presenting.”
Another presentation came from second-year medical student Jessica Dorcelien, who studied experiences of major discrimination among older Black adults using data from the Minority Aging Research Study. This study focuses on older African Americans with an aim to prevent issues related to aging such as memory loss and weakness. Dorcelien implemented a new survey examining discrimination in various areas like employment, housing, and education. Her goal was to understand participants’ experiences and their impact. “It was a topic that I’m really passionate about,” Dorcelien said. “I’ve had great mentors throughout this process, and so finally getting to see all the information presented so concisely, I really enjoy it, and I’m excited for the rest of the research we have to do.”
Neel Matiwala, MD, clinical resident, shared his case report on a patient with refractory hepatic graft versus host disease—a condition where donor white blood cells attack recipient tissues after stem cell or bone marrow transplant. “It’s a little nerve-wracking as we’re getting our presentation skills ready,” Matiwala said. “But as a resident, it’s really exciting to get to connect with the medical students and see what work is going on with the other care provider teams and their education systems.”
Trainee Research Day is held annually each spring at Rush University.
Rush University Medical Center is located in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1837 and serves as both a training hospital and pediatric facility under its current president Dr. Omar Lateef.
