Alumni Spotlight

Bijiibaa’ Garrison arrived in Boston in the summer of 2004 eager to study at Harvard Medical School and participate with the Four Directions Summer Research Program (FDSRP)., Two thousand miles  from her hometown of Kayenta, AZ, which is on the Navajo Reservation, Bijiibaa’ quickly found a mentor in Dr. Tom Sequist and life long friends in her FDSRP classmates.

The opportunity to work in Dr. Lawrence Madoff’s infectious disease laboratory and interact with different speakers throughout the summer opened Bijiibaa’s eyes to varied specialty areas and career paths.  Memorable speakers presented a formal picture of the disparities in healthcare that Bijiibaa’ had witnessed growing up.  After her summer experience in Boston, Bijiibaa’ finished her undergraduate degree in Nutrition at the University of Arizona and proceeded to an internship in Senator McCain’s Office, which focused on American Indian policy and general health policy.  This exposure to politics was proof for Bijiibaa’ that the root for lasting and meaningful change lay in transforming public health policy.  Her next career step was a post-baccalaureate position at the NIH for 2 years that focused on genetics and congenital heart defects.  With exposure to issues of minority health, Bijiibaa’ understood the requisite steps to achieve her ultimate goal of becoming a physician at a community health center: taking the MCAT and completing medical school applications. Bijiibaa’ is halfway through her first year at Harvard Medical School, and returns to FDSRP this summer as one of two program coordinators for the 15th Anniversary of the Four Directions Summer Research Program at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

A unique goal is to become fluent in the Navajo language and in Navajo medical terminology because Bijiibaa’ realizes the importance of educating the Navajo Nation on diabetes and other diseases that plague the population.  As she sees it accomplishing her goal of becoming a primary care physician and obtaining yet another academic degree in public health will enable her to make significant personal impact treating people locally, and simultaneously achieve far-reaching goals to change public health policies to reduce the disparities that exist in healthcare across the nation.