Q & A with Associate Chief Resident Dr. Bryan Ashley (@BryanEAshley)
Q1: Bryan let’s start with you – tell us about yourself.
A1: I came to UNC as a lifelong South Carolinian. I completed my undergraduate work at the University of South Carolina, and then matriculated at MUSC for medical school. For residency, I felt it was important to leave my home state. While I didn’t move very far, developing a new support network is a healthy task to take on at least once. I am beyond thankful for the opportunities and experiences here in Chapel Hill. At the conclusion of the academic year, I will be returning to Charleston, SC to pursue a fellowship in interventional radiology.
Q2: And your chief’s portfolio?
A2: As an associate chief resident, my primary responsibility is to support our fearless leader and chief resident, Dr. Joshua Wallace. I am fortunate to work alongside the spectacular Dr. Monica Reddy, my co-associate chief resident. Surprisingly, the chiefs’ workload is enough to keep the three of us quite busy. My spheres of influence include resident well-being, medical student education, and social media.
Q3: Tell us more about @UNCRadRes – strong work by the way!
A3: In today’s medical community, the impact of social media cannot be overstated. I was first exposed to this at the 2016 RSNA meeting after attending a seminar regarding the use of social media in radiology practices. After joining Twitter I was surprised by the countless educational opportunities, such as cases of the day. Twitter also provides access to thought leaders in the field of radiology.
As a residency, I think it is important to maintain a social media footprint to reach new generations of applicants. Our top-notch departmental and residency webpages provide the nuts and bolts of the program, but through social media we may showcase the personality of our program. Whether tweeting an afternoon coffee outing, demonstrating our new standing desks, or highlighting an excellent conference, social media presence humanizes the program and gives applicants an inside look at our most valuable asset, our residents.
Q4: In two years, our residency ranking has made a leap to #32 in diagnostic radiology rankings (before any concerted effort on our part to boost our scores). Care to predict where we’ll be in two to three more years?
A4: Top 25, no doubt!
Post-residency, Dr. Ashley will begin subspecialty training in Vascular-Interventional Radiology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)