The Society is now accepting applications for the prestigious Benjamin H. Kean Travel Fellowship in Tropical Medicine. With applications due March 12, we checked in with 2013 Kean Fellow Nina Salinger Prasanphanich who is in an MD/PhD program at Emory University School of Medicine. For her Kean Fellowship, Prasanphanich conducted an eight-week research project in Kisumu, Kenya, at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI). A main goal of her project was to characterize patterns of anti-glycan antibodies in children infected with schistosomiasis. Prasanphanich updated a blog while she was doing research in Kenya.
1) What were some of the highlights of your Kean Fellowship?
I undertook an eight-week research project in Kisumu, Kenya, at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) for my Kean Fellowship experience. The main goals of my project were to characterize patterns of anti-glycan antibodies in children infected with schistosomiasis and to gain experience doing translational global health research.
Professionally, the best part was taking pride in a research project that I was able to see through from conception to preparation to completion (or as near completion as is ever possible in research!) I also really enjoyed sharing perspectives on science, religion, cultural differences and the struggles of graduate school with the Kenyan graduate student in our lab. My interactions with him, as well as some of the other staff and students at KEMRI, gave me a little insight into a completely different culture, one in which there is both great need and great generosity. Another highlight was when I got to visit some of the schools participating in our studies. The children are just amazing – so enthusiastic, energetic and really enthralled with foreigners.
Outside of the lab, I enjoyed spending time with the diverse group of global health-oriented ex-pats in Kisumu and seeing the amazingly varied landscapes and birds of Kenya.
2) Before you went to Kenya, you described what you expected to learn here. Did the experience differ significantly from what you anticipated?
The main areas in which I expected to learn and grow were how to become an effective researcher with limited time and resources, and in developing cross-cultural communication skills and cultural sensitivity. I think I achieved the first goal relatively well, and although not all aspects of the project went exactly as planned, I was able to prioritize getting at least the crucial parts done. I had to adjust to lab conditions that were somewhat different from what I was used to at home. I struggled with the challenge of minimizing variability from day to day, and the inherent variability in human samples. I think I learned that in doing this type of research, there is a balance between doing the absolute best quality science you can, and asking the most interesting question you can even if it means you have to do it without all of the perfect reagents or unlimited time. Data from human populations is incredibly precious, so even if the experimental methods aren’t perfect, as long as the data is presented fairly and honestly, it always has something to teach us. In the second area of cross-cultural communication, I feel I learned a lot but also dealt with unexpected difficulties. There is still a lot of room for misunderstanding even when you’re in an English-speaking country. In general, Kenyans are incredibly friendly, warm and welcoming. I regularly received invitations to meet people’s families, go dancing or try Mom’s homemade ugali. Because I was in a foreign culture, it was hard for me to learn how to trust and who to trust, even though I wanted to take advantage of these opportunities. This was made especially difficult by a wave of crimes against ex-pats while I was there. There is such great need for things like school fees and and other basic needs, and it seemed like many people viewed a kind American as their saving grace. It was really upsetting to be constantly faced with this need and not be able to help everyone, and it made me think a lot about the difficulties of direct, personal charity versus anonymous, organized giving. But it also convinced me how important it is to find a way to make a meaningful contribution that you can be confident in and comfortable with.
3) How, if at all, has the Fellowship affected your career plans and/or professional interests?
Receiving this fellowship has been incredibly meaningful to me. I am involved in NTD research because I want to address research questions that have the potential to make the greatest impact on the health of the largest number of people possible, and because I find the interplay between host and pathogen fascinating and endlessly complex. This was my first opportunity to get involved in the more translational side of schistosomiasis research. I now have a heightened sense of how difficult it is to conduct research on human disease immunology and translate results into meaningful knowledge that can be applied to vaccine and diagnostic strategies. A great deal of persistence and innovation will be necessary to develop a vaccine against this complex parasite or otherwise achieve lasting control in problem areas.
The fellowship has made me even more passionate about pursuing NTD research, either domestically or overseas. In spite of the difficulties, I think this experience has greatly enriched my sense of how to figure out the right questions to ask, how to execute a research project from start to finish, and it has certainly broadened my cultural understanding and travel know-how. I hope to return to Kenya or other endemic countries to pursue research that could someday result in improving the lives of people threatened by schistosomiasis, and also for the opportunity contribute to global health as a physician.
4) What advice do you have for other medical students who would like to apply to be a Kean Fellow?
I advise all interested students to go for it! The application process is not too complicated, and the potential for personal & professional growth is huge. Find a really supportive sponsor and find people who have worked in your destination for tips on living arrangements and other travel advice. Also, while you are there, take advantage of the experiences that you can only get overseas, such as talking to locals about their perspectives and seeing patients with tropical diseases.
5) Now for the fun question. You get the opportunity to go back in time. You can either have a conversation with any scientist who has ever lived OR observe a moment of scientific history. What would you choose and why?
Hmm . . . I thought of a couple ways to answer this question, and I’m going to go with the nerdiest one. Many great events in scientific history didn’t happen in a moment. I would go back over evolutionary time to the point at which the common ancestor of baboons and macaques diverged, and collect samples of DNA as one became a schistosome-susceptible host and one became a resistant host. (I would need a long, long, moment.) I would analyze their immuno-genome and look for genes that might make a difference in their ability to protect from schistosome infection. You said I’m allowed to take samples, right?
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