Kathleen Dass doesn't want what happened to her grandmother to happen to her future patients. With her father (an internist), Ms. Dass has had a lifelong interest in medicine. But it was a misdiagnosis of her grandmother that cemented her decision to pursue a medical career.
"My love of medicine solidified when I was in high school and I watched a physician show very poor bedside manner to my maternal grandmother, attributing her headaches to something that comes with old age. Instead, she died a week later due to brain hemorrhaging," she explained. "I never wanted a patient or their relatives to go through what my family went through."
She immediately began shadowing physicians in different disciplines, taking classes at Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital, and volunteering in the emergency room at St. Joseph Mercy hospital in Pontiac and Royal Oak Beaumont Hospital. "I was inspired by the drive and compassion all of the physicians had that I encountered. I learned to integrate the science of medicine with the art of medicine."
Dass, who just completed her first year of medical school, is from Bloomfield Hills. The 24-year-old completed her undergraduate studies at Wayne State University.
Based on her clinical experiences thus far, Ms. Dass said she is drawn to the field of neurology, but is also interested in a primary care-related field, with a possible fellowship in cardiology or endocrinology.
Ms. Dass recently received an honorable mention in Blue Cross Blue Shield's Excellence in Research Award for Students. The award goes to a graduate student who is the first author on a paper. She submitted a copy of her paper, "Evolving role of uPA/uPAR system in human cancers," as well as a letter of recommendation from the professor she worked with, Dr. Fazlul Sarkar of the Karmanos Cancer Center. The paper was also published in Cancer Treatment Reviews.
Ms. Dass served this year as the student chairwoman for "the most successful" HealthFOCUS (urban pediatrics) conference in the history of the program. She helped plan the World Health Student Organization's global health week, as well as coordinate programs locally in the beginning of the year. She also served as secretary for the American Medical Association and attended the 2007 Michigan State Medical Society House of Delegates meeting as a student representative. She participates in community health fairs, and plans to continue to do so after graduation.
"I see myself completing residency and helping my local community by continuing to work at free local health fairs," she said. "Also, I want to be in a position where I can help patients to my fullest potential, regardless of their insurance situation, just as I have seen other physicians do."
As an undergraduate at Wayne State University, Ms. Dass served as the student coordinator for the B.S./M.D. program, MedStart. That position allowed her to attend seminars taught by medical school professors, converse with WSU-associated physicians and explore Scott Hall monthly. "There was such a comfortable and intellectually-engaging environment that I couldn't imagine myself elsewhere," she said.