Future Family Medicine Physician Eager to Help With Coronavirus Response
Megan Kelly is anxious to continue her medical training in June with the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix Family Medicine Residency program.
“Right now our Arizona hospital systems have not stated that they need our immediate help, but as we have seen over the past few weeks, things are constantly evolving,” Kelly said. “In the meantime, I wanted to help with other initiatives in the community that don't necessarily involve direct patient care, but are still efforts to help with the COVID-19 response.”
She began volunteering April 13 with the statewide COVID-19 hotline, where she answers calls from the community that address health concerns and coronavirus-related symptoms.
Kelly, who grew up in Phoenix and graduated from Notre Dame Preparatory High School, said her family supports her decision to forego commencement with the rest of the Class of 2020. “They understand the oath that we take to be a physician and the call to serve, especially during this time of immense need.”
She said that starting her residency training during a global pandemic involves many unknowns, but she is ready to get to work.
Kelly credited the College of Medicine – Phoenix with recognizing some students’ requests to begin serving immediately.
“They listened to our needs and were instrumental in recognizing that our community may need additional members of the work force in the coming weeks,” she said.
About the College
Founded in 2007, the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix inspires and trains exemplary physicians, scientists and leaders to advance its core missions in education, research, clinical care and service to communities across Arizona. The college’s strength lies in our collaborations and partnerships with clinical affiliates, community organizations and industry sponsors. With our primary affiliate, Banner Health, we are recognized as the premier academic medical center in Phoenix. As an anchor institution of the Phoenix Bioscience Core, the college is home to signature research programs in neurosciences, cardiopulmonary diseases, immunology, informatics and metabolism. These focus areas uniquely position us to drive biomedical research and bolster economic development in the region.
As an urban institution with strong roots in rural and tribal health, the college has graduated more than 1,000 physicians and matriculates 130 students each year. Greater than 60% of matriculating students are from Arizona and many continue training at our GME sponsored residency programs, ultimately pursuing local academic and community-based opportunities. While our traditional four-year program continues to thrive, we will launch our recently approved accelerated three-year medical student curriculum with exclusive focus on primary care. This program is designed to further enhance workforce retention needs across Arizona.
The college has embarked on our strategic plan for 2025 to 2030. Learn more.