Press Release

Date: 07-01-11
Name: Jerry Carey
Phone: 856-566-6171
Email: careyge@umdnj.edu

UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine Student Selected for CDC Fellowship

STRATFORD, NJ—Farhad Modarai, a third-year student at the UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine, has been selected to be one of just eight medical students in the country who will participate in a one-year fellowship program at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. Each year, the CDC Experience Applied Epidemiology Fellowship program selects a small group of medical students to participate in this prestigious fellowship from among hundreds of students across the country who apply.

During his fellowship year, Modarai will be conducting research under the mentorship of Dr. Karin Mack, a senior behavioral scientist at the CDC. The CDC Experience program is designed to provide the selected fellows with an in-depth understanding of the role of epidemiology in medicine and health and the role of physicians in the public health system. Among their activities for the year, the students will receive hands-on training and work experience at the CDC, attend monthly seminars and participate in field investigations, including travel to areas where disease outbreaks have occurred.

While at the CDC, Modarai expects to work on a number of projects that range from prescription overdose and issues arising from polypharmacy (the use of multiple medications) to falls prevention in the elderly and injury prevention in children and teens. He also will pursue his interest in “Epi-Aids” which are epidemiologic assistance investigations that the CDC conducts to assist U.S. health departments and overseas health organizations with emergency responses to infectious and environmental disease outbreaks or pandemics.

At the UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine, Modarai and fellow medical student Hyun Hong co-founded Project REACH (Revitalizing Education & Advancing Camden's Health) – an innovative, multifaceted approach to addressing the needs of the youth of Camden. Project REACH implements youth-initiated community health service projects in Camden using a problem-based learning approach to teach preventative health in the city’s middle schools. In 2011, Project REACH will celebrate its third year with a planned expansion that will likely include student volunteers from another South Jersey university.

The UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine is dedicated to providing excellence in medical education, research and health care for New Jersey and the nation. Working in cooperation with Kennedy University Hospital, its principal affiliate, the UMDNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine places an emphasis on primary health care and community health services that reflect its osteopathic philosophy, with centers of excellence that demonstrate its commitment to developing clinically skillful, compassionate and culturally competent physicians from diverse backgrounds, who are prepared to become leaders in their communities.