ou never know where life’s opportunities will lead you. As a medical student at Stony Brook University in New York, I had the chance to observe attending physicians in the anesthesiology department. Joy E. Schabel, M.D., the medical student program director, organized opportunities for me to shadow anesthesiologists in obstetrics and the operating room. It was a great experience. The consultants and residents were helpful, taking me under their wings and exposing me to the excitement of anesthesiology. One of my most vivid recollections was walking into the operating room of a patient who was going to have a total knee replacement. As part of my exposure, I was allowed to assist in placing an epidural using a sterile technique. Participating in and witnessing the effects of anesthetics on this patient was an amazing experience and a major factor for my decision to enter into anesthesiology residency after graduation.

Dr. Fernandez with MSARF Program Director Donn M. Dennis, M.D., at the 2007 Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

During my first years of medical school, students had only limited opportunity for exposure to anesthesiology. In response to our desire to learn more, Michelle DiGuglielmo, a medical student colleague, and I strengthened our involvement with the department by reinitiating the anesthesiology interest group for medical students. The interest group benefited from the support of Dr. Schabel, department chair Peter S.A. Glass, M.D., and other staff members of the department. We held monthly meetings where anesthesia topics ranging from airway management to pain management were discussed. The department further supported our quest for growth by sponsoring a student workshop designed to teach students how to secure an airway using an endotracheal tube and a laryngeal mask airway.

During my fourth year of medical school, I received another unexpected opportunity to expand my growing knowledge: the FAER Medical Student Anesthesia Research Fellowship (MSARF) program. I submitted an application and to my delight was accepted as one of the first FAER medical student fellows. Members of Stony Brook University’s anesthesiology department were again very supportive and excited to help me with my research. For two months, I worked on several ongoing clinical projects and also on a personal project. I developed a questionnaire used to obtain patient outcome information following ambulatory surgery. It was intended for use in obtaining institutional review board (IRB) approval for pending research. By the end of my MSARF experience, I had developed the preliminary questionnaire and had submitted the request for IRB approval.

A second part of the MSARF program was my attendance at the ASA 2005 Annual Meeting, where I had the opportunity to give an oral presentation of my research project and to learn more about the specialty and the Society. The meeting was an eye-opening experience into the field of anesthesiology. I met residents and anesthesiologists who were encouraging and gave good advice about future career plans. Presenting my research project to a roomful of experts in the field of anesthesiology was very intimidating; however, it was an excellent personal growth opportunity. I gained insight from developing a project, obtaining data, presenting the project to an audience and experiencing the challenges common to such an undertaking.

In 2007, I was given the opportunity to attend the ASA Annual Meeting as a resident in the FAER/Abbott Volwiler and Tabern Resident Scholar Program. Although this was my second ASA meeting, I felt as if it was the first time I was attending the meeting. The resident component was very helpful with discussions ranging from the nuances of regional anesthesia to the differences and similarities of academic and private practice anesthesiology. Additionally, as a FAER scholar, I was able to attend refresher courses and meet experts in the field. It was a revelation to learn more about anesthesiologists involved in clinical practice as well as education, research, business and even law.

From Stony Brook University to the FAER MSARF program to the FAER Resident Scholar program, opportunities, one after the other, have led me to a career in anesthesiology.47 Today, I am a first-year anesthesiology resident at Georgetown University. Thus far, it has been an exciting, albeit at times overwhelming, experience. Most importantly, however, I am extremely glad to have chosen this specialty as a career. To the many anesthesiologists with whom I’ve interacted, thank you for sharing your time, expertise and enthusiasm; and a thank you goes to FAER for giving me the opportunity to expand my experiences and subsequently strengthen my resolve to become a clinician and future leader in anesthesiology.

Award Recipients approved by FAER from the August 15, 2007 application deadline.

Research Fellowship Grant

• Sara S. Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., University of Colorado Health Sciences Center

• Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston

• Hannah Wunsch, M.D., Columbia University

Mentored Research Training Grant

• Jae-Woo Lee, M.D., University of California, San Francisco

• Tobias Moeller-Bertram, M.D., University of California, San Diego

• Peter Nagele, M.D., Washington University, St. Louis

• Senthilkumar Sadhasivam, M.D., Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Research in Education Grant

• Sesh Mudubmbai, M.D., Stanford Medical Center

These seven new awards represent a funding commitment of $1,270,000.

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