Page 5 - RUSM Fall Quarterly ENews

ALUMNI KEYNOTE SPEAKER PROFILE

populations that aren’t traditionally focused on. I wanted to be part of the equation that
solves for rare and different diseases. We help prolong life and ensure a better quality
of life — it was the holy grail of my medical days. I could help the entire medical

community jump through hurdles. This is where I was going to make the biggest

difference.”

And the purpose-driven leader has done just that. Dr. Bhatia has been instrumental in a
variety of groundbreaking medical advancements including an oral anticoagulant and

now is knee-deep in the promise of gene therapy. “We’re opening Pandora’s box to
utilize learnings and create medicine through the development process so we can

change how we view diseases and transform a patient’s journey. Science keeps evolving.
We fail and learn more. Patients have so much hope and we’re figuring out how we can

meet their hope.”

The board member of the American Heart Association (AHA) and NYC’s AHA Go Red for

Women, also mentors at Pfizer and STEM Goes Red, a campaign dedicated to inspiring
young women to pursue STEM careers and live their dreams. The active mom of two
maintains a healthy lifestyle in New York City and enjoys traveling, reading and crafting

new cocktails. As Dr. Bhatia reflects on her journey, she offers advice to current RUSM

medical students.

“Don’t assume your end journey is being in an office and seeing patients. If your journey
doesn’t feel right, take a pause and try to pivot to a new path Define your journey to

meet your purpose and if you know what you want, be the one to lead it, even if it’s not
tried and tested.”

The FALL 2022 RUSM White Coat Ceremony took place on Friday, September 9 at the Lloyd

Erskine Sandiford Centre (LESC). To watch the recording of the celebration and catch Dr.
Bhatia's heartfelt keynote address on Ross Med's Facebook or YouTube accounts.

I began to question — are we really serving patients or are

we just prescribing what was there and not thinking about

the future?