Victoria Avanzato
Vicky is an MD/PhD student at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. She developed an interest in global health and tropical medicine while studying Immunology and Infectious Disease, and Toxicology at The Pennsylvania State University, Schreyer Honors College, where she was a member of the Global Medical Brigades. She volunteered in Panama, Ghana and Nicaragua, providing community clinics and assisting with public health projects, such as building latrines.
During her first two years of medical school, she served as the president of Emory Health Against Human Trafficking, an organization focused on raising awareness of the effects of human trafficking locally and globally. She led the team’s annual trip to Thailand, where they partnered with the Volunteers for Children Development Foundation, a children’s home in Chiang Saen, to help provide care for children at high risk of trafficking.
Vicky also earned her DPhil in January 2022 through the NIH Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program, mentored by Dr. Vincent Munster (NIH) and Dr. Thomas Bowden (University of Oxford). Her research initially focused on characterizing antibody epitopes on the Nipah virus surface glycoproteins, but with the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, she pivoted to study the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidates in animal models, including the AstraZeneca ChAdOx-1 nCoV-2019 vaccine.
Through her experiences, she became passionate about responding to infectious diseases of global concern and plans to apply to research track residency programs to become a physician-scientist focused on infectious disease. Outside of work, Vicky plays the French horn and enjoys spending time with her cat, Rhys.
Creating a Neonatal Sepsis Care Cascade to Improve Sepsis Identification in Ethiopian Hospitals
Bahir Dar University
Ethiopia
What does the Kean Fellowship mean to you?
I am extremely grateful to receive the Benjamin H. Kean Travel Fellowship in Tropical Medicine. During the earlier years of my training, I looked up to the Kean Fellows and was always inspired while reading about their diverse and impactful projects. Now, as a fourth-year medical student, the Kean Fellowship allows me to spend a summer in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, pursuing research on neonatal sepsis outcomes. I am excited for the opportunity to learn from mentors who work in a different part of the world and to gain experience planning and conducting field work. More broadly, I am honored to be joining a community of medical students and professionals who are also passionate about global health and combating infectious diseases, and I look forward to my continued growth along with my colleagues.
What do you anticipate learning?
During my field work this summer, I learned about the burden of neonatal sepsis in Ethiopia. Through the chart review and focus group discussions, I learned a lot about the current care practices in place surrounding neonatal sepsis at Tibebe Ghion Specialized Hospital, as well as the barriers to care and the challenges faced with diagnosis and treatment. I also learned about a healthcare system different from what I have trained in and appreciated the time I got to spend with the Ethiopian nurses, attendings and residents. I also learned valuable skills in planning and conducting field work with international collaborators. My mentors from Emory and Bahir Dar University have provided mentorship, teaching and advising on international research, multidisciplinary collaborations and approaching global health projects effectively and ethically.
What interests you about tropical medicine and what problems are you interested in solving?
Tropical medicine provides opportunities to advocate for, work alongside and empower communities. There is opportunity for meaningful interdisciplinary, international collaborations to achieve impactful solutions. Through my PhD work and global health experiences in medical school, I became passionate about emerging infectious diseases and the global burden of infectious disease in vulnerable populations. During my career as an infectious disease physician-scientist, I hope to respond to infectious diseases of global concern. I am interested in understanding the causes and etiologies of infectious diseases, and want to ensure that solutions, such as diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines, are globally accessible to the populations that need them.