Presenter: Hailey Gauck, Neurobiology and Physiology, Global Public Health Scholars
Hi! My name is Hailey Gauck and I am a sophomore here at UMD pursuing a degree in Neurobiology and Physiology with the hopes of matriculating into medical school after graduation. For my practicum project for CPGH, I was a research intern at the Developing Brain Institute within Children’s National Hospital in D.C. This research organization is committed to understanding the developing fetus, particularly the brain so that clinical interventions can take place either before or after birth to prevent long-lasting effects of clinical conditions and abnormalities. I worked alongside my supervisor, Dr. Yuan-Chiao Lu, to analyze the data from hundreds of fetuses and newborns to take measurements of the fetal and neonatal MRI scans of their brains and present graphs and trends to the team. I have great interests in the field of neuroscience and maternal-fetal medicine so I was really drawn to this research position. I have aspirations to become a physician someday and research is a huge part of that journey so I wanted to get exposed to that aspect of medicine. I also chose this research because the lab was located inside the hospital and its close proximity to campus. This research is very closely connected to public health as it aims to improve current imaging techniques to diagnose and treat neurological and developmental disorders of the fetus and newborn. We are working to improve the way we analyze MRIs so that more information can be gleaned from them in the hopes of seeing things we couldn’t have before. Our subject pool is large and diverse so we also look into how socioeconomic background plays a role in fetal and neonatal health and what different interventions need to be made for these groups. This research goes beyond medicine and aims to change the way we approach maternal-fetal health.