For nearly two years, Vidant Health and Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University team members have demonstrated their resiliency and dedication to the patients and communities we serve throughout eastern North Carolina.
Vidant is proud to announce Dr. Nupur Sharma, senior resident physician in pathology in the Brody School of Medicine and Vidant, was awarded the David C. Leach Award from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).
The Leach Award recognizes residents and fellows who have fostered innovation and improvement in their programs, advanced humanism in medicine and increased efficiency and emphasis on educational outcomes.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Sharma has adapted and innovated to help her colleagues continue to learn. While the pandemic limited clinical interactions for medical students and residents, Dr. Sharma began an online reading group with nearly 100 participants for other residents on hematopathology, the study of diseases of the cells that make up the blood.
Based on notes from these group discussions, Dr. Sharma and her colleague Dr. Akanksha Gupta, a hematopathology fellow from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, co-authored a board-review book.
“The most important mission at ECU is to provide high-quality education to its students,” Dr. Sharma said. “We use innovative learning strategies and delivery methods to maximize access. Now, residents can access these modules anywhere, anytime, making learning flexible. My work in the form of this comprehensive curriculum and an easy-to-read, board-review book reflects that mission and provides students with an innovative approach to learning.”
Dr. Sharma will be honored during the virtual 2022 ACGME Annual Education Conference being held March 30 through April 1, 2022.
Dr. Sharma’s efforts to support her colleagues and fellow physicians is an example of the dedication Vidant team members continue to display in the care they provide in the midst of enduring an ongoing pandemic.
“I hope that my journey motivates students to see opportunity in adversity,” she said. “The idea is to find creative solutions to challenges in education. I hope medical students will find my story inspiring and consider it as a career choice.”
The David C. Leach Award was created in 2008 to honor Leach, the former executive director of the ACGME (1997-2007), and his contributions to resident education and physician well-being. This award acknowledges and honors residents, fellows, and resident/fellow teams and their contributions to graduate medical education.
Dr. Sharma’s innovative leadership is an example of how Vidant and ECU work together to meet the combined mission to improve the health of eastern North Carolina. Through high-quality, mission-focused initiatives, Vidant and ECU are building upon the shared vision of creating the national model for rural health care.
Dr. Philip Boyer recommended Sharma for the award alongside Dr. Ann Sutton, clinical associate professor in pathology and Sharma’s mentor.
“Dr. Sharma has made truly exceptional contributions to curriculum development and teaching with an impact both locally in Greenville and nationally and internationally,” Dr. Boyer said. “She is developing skill sets that will serve her well as a fellow and as an academic pathologist.”
Please join us in thanking Dr. Sharma for her innovative work and all health care heroes for their lasting legacy as leaders in our communities.