President-Elect
Carlie Stein Somerville, MD
Over the past nine years, I have had the privilege of serving as Med-Peds Chief resident, APD and currently as the Program Director to the UAB Med-Peds Residency Program. When I started my Med-Peds career, I found myself without dedicated Med-Peds mentorship or community. I attended my first MPPDA conference in Baltimore in 2017 as the only representative from UAB, excited but nervous. Over the years, I have now found a community of passionate educators and leaders, and the opportunity to learn, grow and define my career goals.
If elected MPPDA president, my goal is to support others to find this same network of mentors, sponsors, and leaders to continue to grow and advocate for Med-Peds nationally. I commit to first working with the executive team to revisit our organizational mission and conducting a needs assessment of our members and stakeholders. I will partner with leadership to create actionable goals to support our diverse Med-Peds programs in curriculum (with new ACGME changes), accreditation (with the new era of site visits), structured near peer mentorship for all members and recruitment (as we define and assess metrics related to signaling, virtual interviews and 2nd looks). In addition to organizing our annual meeting, I aim to create continued opportunities for discussion, innovation and community building through monthly organized webinars, town halls and newsletters sharing progress on goals and metrics.
My career mission has been to demonstrate the value of Med-Peds through clinical, educational and scholarly work. My most meaningful accomplishments alongside incredible teams include:
- Founding a healthcare transition program in 2020 which has now grown into a multidisciplinary medical home for adults with diseases of childhood, a lifespan down syndrome program and an inpatient consult service. I have secured over $1.5 million yearly in institutional funding to grow our team to over 20 healthcare workers representing 12 disciplines and committed to bridging critical gaps in medical, social and mental health resources.
- Founding our inaugural Med-peds section in 2023. As section chief, I work to ensure equitable compensation, support recruitment and retention, and provide mentorship to Med-Peds faculty. Last year, I launched our first institution-sponsored Med-Peds Grand Rounds, and I remain invested in building Med-peds pipeline through medical student education, advising, and mentorship.
- Securing national and local grant funding for innovative educational initiatives, including an experiential wheelchair advocacy curriculum, simulation-based upstander training, and healthcare transition curricula for students, residents, patients, families and healthcare workers.
These initiatives have required navigating multiple hospital systems and departments, reinforcing the importance of relationship-building, passion, and shared vision in advancing Med-Peds locally and nationally.
Looking ahead, my vision is to continue strengthening Med-Peds training by supporting program leaders through collaboration, transparency, and problem-solving; advancing educational practices; and building systems that improve transitions and outcomes for marginalized patients. I believe deeply in empowering others, sharing lessons learned and building Med-peds community. I am excited for this opportunity to build on our organizational strengths and continue to elevate Med-Peds and the value we bring.