Physicians hold successful Medical Scholars Summit at Rutgers

0
- ADVERTISEMENT -
Share
2025 Medical Scholars Summit leaders. ALL PHOTOS: AAPI-MSRF

The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, AAPI, along with its medical students wing, MSRF, hosted the annual MSRF & Premed Medical Scholars Summit at the Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ from January 25-26, 2025.

Organized by the MSRF Executive Board, led by Priya Uppal, president of MSRF; President-Elect Priyanka Kolli; Vice President Sohi Mistry; Priyal Shah, treasurer; and Drishti Patel, secretary of MSRF, a press release from AAPI-MSRF said.

2025 Medical Scholars Summit members pose for a photo

The MSRF & PreMed Medical Scholars Summit was led by an Executive Board comprising of President Manan Pancholy; Vice President Rohan Chopra; Prerak Shah, secretary; Arjun Gangasani, treasurer.

- ADVERTISEMENT -

The AAPI – MSRF is a national organization representing medical, dental, and podiatry students and resident physicians of Indian origin in North America, founded with the objective of providing a channel of networking, support, and open communication among its members.

“We had over 100 attendees at the two-day event, with highlights that included our residency and fellowship panel – where attendees had the opportunity to ask questions directly of these program directors from a variety of surgical and non-surgical specialties, our medical school admissions Q&A from the Dean of Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and an MCAT advice lecture from a 520+ scorer,” Dr. Uppal is quoted saying in the press release.

This year, the event had High School attendees encouraging young scholars to start their pre-medical journeys early. The research symposium consisted of oral and poster presentations and arts and humanities. Cutting-edge research and parent AAPI judges provided informative and insightful feedback.

One of the panels at the 2025 Medical Scholars Summit.

“The 2-day-long Summit was packed with academic sessions that were interactive, with participants having an opportunity to actively engage in discussions and enhance their knowledge on a wide range of topics relevant to Medical Students and Residents, who seek guidance on ways to pursue their careers most effectively,” said Dr. Sunil Kaza, Chair of APPI BOT.

On January 25, the Summit began with a session on Leadership in Medicine by Dr. Mihir Gupta, and the session on Public Health Practice in Medicine presented by Jaya Satagopan, PhD. Novel Technologies in Orthopedic Surgery was presented by Selene Parekh, MD, MBA. Functional Medicine was jointly presented by Subbarao Bollepalli, MD, & Chanakya Bavishi, DO.

Niraj Kothari, MD presented a session on Pioneering Advanced Practices in Medicine. Deepen Modi offered insights on Financial Wellness. Samir Pancholy, MD led a session on Service Project Pursuing Graduate Medical Education.  Global Medicine and India: Lessons, Opportunities, and Challenges for the Next Generation of Physicians was presented by Dr. Kumar Belani.

As the President-Elect of AAPI, the largest ethnic medical organization in the United States, Dr. Amit Chakrabarty said, “I strongly believe that acquiring new knowledge is crucial for professionals, especially for the physicians in a changing healthcare environment. This Medical Scholars Summit provided insights on pursuing a career and how best to utilize the resources and, help out next generation of Physicians of Indian origin achieve their goals.”

The Judges Panel at the Medical Summit consisted of: President of AAPI Dr. Satheesh Kathula, Hematology-Oncology; Dr. Sunil Kaza, Interventional Cardiology; Dr. Raj Bhayani, Otolaryngology; Dr. Arunabh Talwar; Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine; Dr. Sumul Raval, Neuro-oncology; Dr. Zeeshan Mansuri, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; and, Dr. Kinjal Solanki, Infectious Disease.

Dr. Kathula said his priority has been to engage the second-generation physicians and foster mentorship to ensure AAPI’s continued relevance and vitality