IVUmed Traveling Resident Scholar Report

Nitya Abraham, MD 

New York University 

 Kampala, Uganda – June 15-24, 2012 

Mentor: Dr. Susan Kalota 

Sponsored by: SUFU 

Through the generous sponsorship provided by the Society of Urodynamics, Female Pelvic Medicine and Urogenital Reconstruction (SUFU), Dr. Nitya Abraham traveled to Kampala, Uganda with mentor Dr. Susan Kalota to collaborate with the Urology Department at Mulago Hospital. While participating in cases and delivering lectures on female urology, Dr. Abraham was able to develop an understanding of the discrepancies in healthcare due to limited resources. As she now begins a female urology fellowship at Cleveland Clinic, her experiences in Uganda have helped shaped her career goals.

Reporting on her experience, Dr. Abraham stated:

“I saw the photographs, I read the books, I watched the documentaries. I knew the need for medical assistance was great in places like Africa. Now finally I would be going to Kampala, Uganda for a female urology workshop through IVUmed. I embarked on the trip with excited eagerness, cheerful enthusiasm, and grandiose hopes to transform lives. But my high expectations were replaced with unanticipated disappointment. I left with a heavy heart, feeling powerless. Our trip seemed to me a ‘drop’ of help when an ‘ocean’ was needed. My idealistic naïveté was humbled by the unexpected challenges I encountered.

“My disappointment and remorse at the end of my IVUmed trip to Kampala stemmed from my inability to provide world class care to the patients there. Why should there be such disparity in the treatment of my patient in Cleveland and my patient in Kampala? What always seemed to be an abstract aspiration has now become a concrete goal after the IVUmed trip: I want to bring world class care to places like Mulago Hospital in Kampala, Uganda. This endeavor will be expensive, require a lot of time and effort, and will be difficult to accomplish, but I do believe it is possible.

  “I am grateful to IVUmed and SUFU for providing me this invaluable experience. It has opened my eyes and has changed how I envision my future career. One trip is just not enough. I strive to include international health care as a long-term commitment and integral part of my career because ‘every life deserves world class care.’”

For more information about IVUmed's resident scholar program, including the current application and deadlines, please visit our website.