Research Associate Program in Critical Care and Emergency Medicine

Presenter: Rahil Haider, Physiology & Neurobiology, Global Public Health Scholars

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For my practicum opportunity, I worked at the University of Maryland Medical Center, specifically in the Shock Trauma Department. I conducted clinical research under the program "Research Associate Program in Emergency Medicine and Critical Care (RAP-EMCC)", a program affiliated with the University of Maryland School of Medicine that was designed to expose pre-health students to clinical research and prepare them for health professional school. This program taught me a multitude of clinical and research skills. I learned how to better communicate with patients, doctors, nurses, and families of patients. I learned new statistical analysis techniques through softwares such as REDCap and TriNetX. I also gained more familiarity with excel and using it in a clinical application. Finally, I learned how to format a research abstract, work with research IRB approval, and became familiar with HIPAA confidentiality.

My involvement in both RAP-EMCC and Global Public Health Scholars has allowed me to draw connections between my clinical research experience and public health. This practicum highlighted the critical role of clinical research in effective hospital practices and also advancing health equity. Many of the studies I worked on, such as those involving sedation outcomes and emergency care access, highlighted how vulnerable populations often face disproportionate risks. This experience allowed me to see clinical research not just as a tool for medical advancement but also as a way to identify systemic disparities and improving public health outcomes for a population.