Alexandra Burgess

Alexandra is a second-year medical student studying at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in Rhode Island. She received her BA with honors in Public Health from Brown in 2022. Her senior thesis was focused on population genetics of mitochondrial disease using biostatistics and RNA-seq analysis. She is passionate about global health, pediatrics and medical equity, and she looks forward to deepening those interests with the Ben Kean Fellowship. At Brown she is the leader of the ophthalmology and global health interest groups, volunteers at a free student clinic and teaches elementary school students in Providence. In her free time she enjoys exploring New England beaches, cooking and swimming.

What does the Kean Fellowship mean to you?
I am honored and grateful to receive the Ben Kean Fellowship. This award has granted me the unique opportunity to become involved in schistosomiasis research and learn from established physicians in the field. The ability to join an international partnership and gain firsthand experience in global health research is an immeasurable privilege. The Ben Kean Fellowship plays an important role in fostering young, compassionate, globally minded future physicians. I am beyond thankful to join those ranks.

What do you anticipate learning?
Through my project I aim to learn more about how schistosomiasis causes anemia in children under age 4. Leyte, the Philippines, is a unique place to study this topic as it is home to rice farming villages endemic to the parasite. Traveling to the field site will grant me the unique ability to become immersed in the culture and daily lives of people living in this region. Young Filipino children are excluded from mass drug administration campaigns in Leyte. These children are not screened or treated for schistosomiasis despite being especially vulnerable to disease. My research project will emphasize the long-term impacts that parasitic infection has on the growth and development of these children. Hopefully, the results will highlight why this population cannot be overlooked in future public health initiatives and treatment plans. In addition to research, I aim to learn about how to conduct a successful global health project and foster long lasting international collaborations.  

What interests you about tropical medicine and what problems are you interested in solving?
My interests in tropical medicine and global health stem from a passion for health equity. Growing up moving between different countries abroad, I developed an intimate understanding of various medical systems. There is a disproportionate burden of disease in low resource settings, especially for young children. Pediatric populations are at the mercy of medical systems and public health infrastructure. Simple, sustainable and accessible solutions are desperately needed to address this disparity. I aspire to help bridge this gap and facilitate effective knowledge transfer between vulnerable communities and academic institutions.