Scholars in Medicine provides funds for family and research

For doctors Miriam Baron and Jennifer Moye, the money couldn’t have come at a better time.Both women juggle a busy personal life with a hectic professional life, which includes seeing patients, conducting medical research, and supervising Harvard medical students and hospital residents.What they both needed was more time – and more money – to focus on their groundbreaking clinical research.This year, Baron and Moye will receive two of the 55 awards given to junior faculty members at the Harvard Medical School (HMS) as part of the Eleanor and Miles Shore 50th Anniversary Fellowship Program for Scholars in Medicine. Moye will receive the Dr. Lynne Reid/Drs. Eleanor and Miles Shore Fellowship in the amount of $25,000. Baron will receive $25,000 as the second installment of her two-year, $50,000 Edward and Amalie Kass Fellowship. The fellowships will be handed out at a special ceremony today (Sept. 29) at HMS. The Scholars in Medicine program was established in 1995 to celebrate a half-century of the admission of women to HMS and to acknowledge the important contributions of women to the School. As part of this celebration, a fellowship program was established to help junior faculty at the point in their careers when they must teach, do research, compete for grants, publish, or practice (if a clinical faculty member) at the same time they may be assuming increased family or other responsibilities. To date, 349 fellowships have been funded for a total of approximately $8,725,000.Baron and Moye are grateful for their fellowships, and for the boost it will provide to their medical careers. “I’m an infectious disease specialist,” explains Baron, instructor in medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “I’m interested in how bacteria affects certain people and not others, and what causes it to affect certain people sometimes and not other times,” she says. “Infectious diseases can be deadly, particularly for newborn babies. My goal is to prevent people from getting infected in the first place.”Baron’s award, she says, enables her to do twice her normal workload. “I’ve hired a research technician to do some experiments, which has in turn freed more of my time to attend meetings, learn what other experts are doing in the field, do more teaching, and focus more on patient care.”When she’s not in the hospital, the lab, or teaching, Baron maintains close relationships with family and friends in Boston and beyond. She also pursues her interest in music. In addition to working on solo (cello) repertoire, she rehearses and performs regularly with several chamber music groups throughout the region.Moye is a psychologist and the director of the Geriatric Mental Health Clinic at the Veterans Affairs Boston HealthCare System (the VA). “I’m conducting clinical work involving older medical patients who suffer from depression or anxiety related to their medical problems, and how they make decisions about their health care,” she says. “My research will also better inform doctors how to evaluate a patient’s competence to make their own health care decisions, and how to talk to patients and understand their values.” Moye’s work will help provide doctors with tools, such as interview guides, to help vulnerable patients make medical decisions consistent with their values.In addition to her research and caring for patients, Moye teaches interns and postdoctoral fellows pursuing their training at the VA. She also has a 7-month-old daughter, Ella Grace, and is overcoming a health scare of her own. “Five years ago, I was treated for cancer,” Moye confides. “Thankfully, it’s in remission now, but my experience as a patient fed my research interests, and made me think about things differently.”Moye says she is blissfully happy balancing two good things – her work and family life. “For me, having a daughter is very energizing, but there are pragmatic issues too,” she says. “Ella needs to be picked up from day care on time!”Her award money, she says, will go a long way to help balance her personal and professional life, and advance her career. “The money will permit me to hire a research assistant to support my project, and it will allow me to cut back a small amount on my patient load, helping me free up more time to pursue my project.”Sara Kiarsis, faculty development coordinator at HMS, is pleased that the program has helped an increasing number of scholars since its inception. The program has grown from 10 awards in 1996 to 55 this year. Fellowships provide funding of a minimum of $25,000 per year. Affiliated hospitals and private donors give money to fund the fellowships. The awards may be used for “mini-sabbaticals” during which the scholar might “buy-out” of clinical responsibilities long enough to write a grant, finish critical research, develop new curriculum, or prepare a manuscript. Awards may also be used to provide laboratory assistance at a time when a junior faculty member does not yet have independent funding. As in previous years, most Scholars in Medicine fellows are women. This support is intended to be an important part of HMS’s efforts to increase the representation of women at the higher ranks in the Faculty of Medicine. Indeed, the number of women faculty is increasing, and HMS is committed to continuing this trend. In the future, HMS aims to increase the number of fellowships given each year, and hopes to increase the amount and duration of funding. A worthwhile goal for more than just the thankful recipients, as Baron makes clear, “I’m very grateful for the support I’ve received for my work. If you work hard and think hard, you can help people in ways nobody’s thought of before. That’s the real award.” 2005 Scholars in Medicine Alice J. Adler Fellowship of the Schepens Eye Research Institute: Meredith S. Gregory-Ksander, instructor in ophthalmology Loreen Arbus Fellowship in Neuroscience: Rachel I. Wilson, assistant professor of neurobiology, Harvard Medical School Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Department of Radiology Fellowship: Barbara A. Appignani, assistant professor of radiology Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Ob/Gyn Foundation Academic Support Fellowship: Alison Zimon, clinical fellow in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Fellowship: Regina L. Sohn, instructor in medicine Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Dermatology Fellowship: Luzheng Liu, instructor in dermatology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Department of Pathology Fellowship: Anne W. Higgins, instructor in pathology Brigham and Women’s Hospital Faculty Development Award: Stacey A. Missmer, instructor in medicine Brigham and Women’s Minority Career Development Awards: Fidencio Saldana, research fellow in medicine; and Thomas D. Sequist, instructor in medicine Brigham and Women’s Hospital Obstetrics and Gynecology Foundation Fellowships: Lori R. Berkowitz, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology; Colleen M. Feltmate, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology; and Tanya Ghatan, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology Cambridge Health Alliance Department of Medicine Fellowship in honor of Thomas H. Glick, M.D.: Elizabeth H. Gaufberg, instructor in medicine, Cambridge Hospital Cambridge Health Alliance Department of Psychiatry Fellowship in honor of Margarita Alegria, Ph.D.: Pinka Chatterji, instructor in psychiatry, Cambridge Hospital Children’s Hospital Anesthesia Department Milton H. Alper Research Fellowship: Craig D. McClain, instructor in anaesthesia Children’s Hospital Faculty Career Development Fellowships: Kate G. Ackerman, instructor in pediatrics; Carmen M. Barnes, instructor in surgery; Adriana Donovan, instructor in pediatrics; and Nicole J. Ullrich, instructor in neurology Children’s Hospital Pathology Foundation Fellowship: Theonia K. Boyd, assistant professor of pathology Children’s Hospital Postdoctoral Career Development Fellowships: Cindy N. Roy, instructor in pediatrics; Kimberley R. Tolias, research fellow in neurology; and Xin Zeng, research fellow in neurology Children’s Hospital Robert M. Smith, M.D., Anesthesiology Faculty Development Award: Constance S. Houck, assistant professor of anaesthesia Claflin Distinguished Scholar Awards: Paola Arlotta, instructor in surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital; Irene Georgakoudi, instructor in dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital; Hadine Joffe, assistant professor of psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital; Camille N. Kotton, instructor in medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital; Pamela J. McLean, Ph.D., instructor in neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital; Nelly Pitteloud, instructor in medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital; Laurence G. Rahme, assistant professor of surgery (microbiology and molecular genetics), Massachusetts General Hospital; Cathryn A. Sundback, instructor in surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital; Anne N. Thorndike, instructor in medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital; Adele C. Viguera, assistant professor of psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital; and Lei Xu, instructor in radiation oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Fellowship: Larisa Litovchick, instructor in medicine Robert H. Ebert, M.D., Fellowship established by the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation: Grace M. Lee, instructor in ambulatory care and prevention Harvard Medical School Fellowship in honor of Eleanor and Miles Shore: Carole E. Landisman, instructor in neurobiology Harvard School of Dental Medicine Fellowship in honor of Aina M. Auskaps, D.M.D.: Arkhat Abzhanov, instructor in oral biology in the Department of Oral and Developmental Biology Priscilla and Richard Hunt Fellowship: Jianrong Li, instructor in neurology, Children’s Hospital Joslin Diabetes Center Fellowship in memory of Priscilla White, M.D.: Yu-Hua Tseng, instructor in medicine, Joslin Diabetes Center Edward and Amalie Kass Fellowships at the Channing Laboratory: Miriam J. Baron, instructor in medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Channing Laboratory; and Susan S. Huang, instructor in medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Channing Laboratory Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary Fellowship: Marlene L. Durand, assistant professor of medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine Fellowship: Shan W. Liu, instructor in surgery McLean Hospital Fellowship: Melanie T. Gentry, clinical fellow in psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital Morgan-Zinsser Fellow of the Academy: Elizabeth G. Doherty, instructor in pediatrics, Children’s Hospital Curtis Prout Fellows of the Academy: Graham T. McMahon, instructor in medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; and Grace Huang, instructor in medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Rabkin Fellowships in Medical Education: Charles S. Day, instructor in orthopedic surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Sigall Kassutto, clinical fellow in medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; and Sherry D. Scovell, instructor in surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Dorothy Rackemann Fellowship established by Vincent Memorial Hospital/Massachusetts General Hospital: Carla M. Digirolamo, instructor in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology, Massachusetts General Hospital Dr. Lynne Reid/Drs. Eleanor and Miles Shore Fellowship: Jennifer Moye, assistant professor of psychiatry, Veterans Affairs Boston HealthCare System The Scholars in Medicine Program was established in 1995 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the admission of women to Harvard Medical School, to acknowledge the important contributions women have made to the School, and to enhance the quality and diversity of the Faculty of Medicine.