FQHC TRACK RESIDENT: PROSPECT HILL
Hey all! My name is Sheridan. I am a true New Englander with this being my first experience living below the Mason-Dixie. I grew up in Connecticut though with family roots in upstate NY and NYC, would call my household one of quirky (and loud) New York Jews. I attended University of Rochester in upstate New York for my undergraduate degree in Brain & Cognitive Sciences. I was not pre-med undergrad and spent much of my time doing advocacy work for various organizations. Unsure what I wanted to do “when I grew up,” upon graduation, I started work as a Research Coordinator at a lab called the Yale Stress Center, coordinating a Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Group Therapy program for lower-income women with young kids. It was in this role that I discovered my love for clinical work and developing relationships with the program participants, who I came to think of as my patients. I knew that I had found my calling and that I had to pursue medicine.
From there, I enrolled in classes at a local community college and finished up my remaining pre-medical requirements while working. At that time, I also realized that my interest in medicine was grounded in people (not science, though the science is admittedly cool) and that I wanted a public health perspective to frame the way I understood and practiced medicine. I decided I wanted to get my Master’s of Public Health to consolidate this foundation so I matriculated into the Yale School of Public Health. There I had the opportunity to conduct research in breastfeeding, live in Mexico for several months working with a community nutrition NGO, develop and implement a University wide climate-change grant, and participate in projects around food insecurity. I also met my now partner, Ezra during my time in New Haven.
My journey then took me back up north to the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont for medical school. There I was heavily involved in Social Medicine work and participated in our rural track longitudinal integrated curriculum for clerkships, moving back to a rural FQHC in upstate New York. I also had plenty of time and opportunity for skiing, biking, swimming and generally exploring the outdoors — which is part of what brought me to UNC!
I never considered any other specialty besides Family Medicine and our residency here at UNC is unrivaled. As a future rural physician, I wanted a full-spectrum training with an emphasis on OB and MCH that would allow me to have the future practice I aspire to. As well as a place that values diversity, health equity, and fostering physicians as advocates. I am glad to be here at UNC to train and continue on that journey.
Outside of medicine, you’ll find me outdoors running, swimming (I do triathlons! of which there are many here in NC), biking (road & mtb), doing yoga, hiking and exploring the beauty this part of the world has to offer. Please feel free to reach out and hope to meet you soon!
Interests in Medicine: Reproductive Health/Justice, Maternal & Child Health, Health Equity, Advocacy, Rural Health, POCUS, Climate & Health
