Mount Sinai and GLG Announce 2017 Global Health Scholars

Partnership to Advance Transformation in Medical Education Expands in Second Year

(New York—January 24, 2017) The Arnhold Institute for Global Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group, Inc.) today announced the 2017 class of Mount Sinai-GLG Global Health Scholars. Three additional scholars will join the program, now in its second year. The program leverages GLG’s learning platform and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai’s progressive environment for medical education. It creates a groundbreaking educational program for the next generation of global health leaders that connects curious and dedicated Mount Sinai students with the power of one-to-one learning through GLG.

“Our mission is to transform the way the world’s top professionals share expertise and learn. Last year we announced our partnership to extend this mission into professional education at the highest level,” said GLG CEO Alexander Saint-Amand, who is also a member of the Friends of Mount Sinai Advisory Board. “We are now honored to welcome three new scholars, each of whom brings a passion for their field and new learning approaches.”

“The purpose of training great clinicians is for them to see clearly the world around their patients and to help them root their practice in that space,” added Prabhjot Singh, MD, PhD, Director, The Arnhold Institute for Global Health, Chair, Department of Health System Design and Global Health, Icahn School of Medicine. “The Arnhold Institute is committed to training the next generation of health leaders to create lasting global health impact at scale. Armed with the pioneering tools at their disposal, Mount Sinai-GLG Global Health Scholars can maximize their impact by better understanding and navigating the increasingly complex world around their patients.”

The program supplements traditional medical education by partnering scholars with GLG research specialists and faculty at The Arnhold Institute, under the direction of Program Director for Education Renee Bischoff, to create individualized learning plans based on the scholars’ unique research interests within global health. These plans include one-on-one interactions with experts from GLG’s membership – including policy specialists, global business leaders, and other top professionals – as well as catalytic learning opportunities in the classroom and in the field. The new scholars are Ahmed Elsayyad, Samuel “Gus” Ruchman, and Neha Sikka, all first-year medical students at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. They will join the seven 2016 Global Health Scholars:

• Ahmed Elsayyad studied Public Health and Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University. His thesis, “Investigating Patient Views on Alternative Consent Models,” earned the top thesis prize in the honors department for public health studies. Through GLG, Mr. Elsayyad intends to learn about how innovative transportation companies can remove barriers in healthcare transportation on the local and global levels.
• Samuel “Gus” Ruchman focused on African Studies at Harvard University. Ruchman conducted fieldwork on public health projects in Senegal, Uganda, and Zanzibar. In 2015 and 2016, he worked for UN Special Envoy Ray Chambers on global health strategy and governance. At The Arnhold Institute for Global Health, Mr. Ruchman works on efforts to launch a Non-Communicable Disease Action Center. Through GLG, Mr. Ruchman intends to learn about how simple communications platforms coupled with social incentives can promote the spread of best practices in medical care.
• Neha Sikka studied Biomedical Engineering at Rutgers University where she developed smartphone technology to diagnose malaria in point-of-care settings. At Mount Sinai, Ms. Sikka advocates for various underserved populations in the East Harlem community as a Human Rights Social Justice Scholar. Through GLG, she intends to explore how doctors can implement sustainable solutions abroad in addition to serving on finite medical missions.

GLG Social Impact Director Jen Field said: “Neha, Gus, and Ahmed bring unique experiences in startups, multilateral organizations and engineering to the group. Their perspective and interests will enhance the learning experience for everyone.”

Over the past year with the help of GLG, the 2016 scholars have pursued personal missions around public health. For example, scholar Isaiah Levy worked on prosthetics for people who have lost limbs from land mines and improvised explosive devices. Through GLG, Mr. Levy has spoken with experts in prosthetics development and distribution. He has also engaged with experts in robotic-assisted surgery on the technical challenges and economics of scalability. Scholar Mimi Smith has pursued interests in health and nutrition by learning from experts on human gut microbiome therapies, the adoption of health technologies among geriatric populations in the United States, and how to integrate clinical nutrition into medical school curricula. Other scholars have consulted with experts on a broad range of topics including traumatic brain injury in the NFL, cervical cancer screening tests in low-resource settings, and preventive health interventions for HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia and other African countries.

About GLG / Gerson Lehrman Group

GLG is the world’s leading membership for professional learning. Business leaders, investors, consultants, social entrepreneurs, and other top professionals rely on GLG to learn in short- and long-term engagements from more than 500,000 members and other experts. Clients partner with GLG to address their most complex strategic challenges, make better business decisions, and advance their careers through conversations, mentorships, small group convenings, surveys, and other interactions—all within a rigorous compliance framework. Global, technology-driven, and nimble, GLG’s approximately 1,300 employees work in 22 offices in 12 countries. For more information visit www.GLG.it.

About GLG Social Impact

GLG Social Impact is an initiative of GLG to advance learning and decision-making among distinguished nonprofit and social enterprise leaders. The GLG Social Impact Fellowship is our flagship program, providing learning resources to a select group of nonprofits and social enterprises, at no cost. Our clients include: leading foundations, impact funds, consultancies, nonprofits and social enterprises. To find out more, visit www.GLGSocialImpact.com.

About The Arnhold Institute for Global Health

The Arnhold Institute for Global Health at the Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Health System, seeks to improve the health of people and the communities they live in, both in the United States and abroad. The Arnhold Institute serves as a global arm of the Mount Sinai Health System, leading research on the design of more equitable and effective care models that are disseminated through digital products, training systems and input on policy design.

About the Icahn School of Medicine

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is an international leader in medical and scientific training, biomedical research, and patient care. It is the medical school for the Mount Sinai Health System, an integrated healthcare system which includes seven hospitals and an expanding ambulatory network serving approximately 4 million patients per year.

The School has more than 1,800 students in MD, PhD, and Master’s programs and post-doctoral fellowships; more than 5,600 faculty members; over 2,000 residents and fellows; and 23 clinical and research institutes and 34 academic departments. It is ranked among the highest in the nation in National Institutes of Health funding per principal investigator. The School was the first medical school in the country to create a progressive admissions approach for students who seek early assurance of admission through the FlexMed program.

The Graduate School of Biomedical Science trains PhD and MD/PhD students, and offers master’s-level programs in areas such as genetic counseling, clinical research, biomedical sciences, and public health, and an online master’s degree in healthcare delivery leadership. The seamless connections between our medical school, graduate school, and hospital campuses provide an extraordinary environment for translating scientific discoveries into clinical treatments.

For more information, visit http://icahn.mssm.edu or find the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

Contact: press@glg.it