The Anita Mesi General Internal Medicine Summer Internship Program

Overview

In 2018, Anita Mesi, MBA, launched the General Internal Medicine Internship program. The internship is designed to provide high school, college and graduate students with exposure and familiarity with career opportunities in the field of General Internal Medicine and academic medicine.

The internship program:

  • Provides each intern with faculty and staff mentorship that aligns with their interests
  • Provides adequate/structured oversight in a safe environment with necessary tools to perform tasks
  • Promotes diversity and an equal opportunity to be selected as an intern
  • Recruits qualified candidates, creating awareness and enthusiasm that will lead to careers in academic medicine and general internal medicine
  • Increases collaboration across all divisional programs

Learn more about our summer 2023 program.

The following General Internal Medicine programs accept interns annually:

Patient Activated Learning System (PALS)

Research/Communication
A novel patient education platform that is highly engaging and easily understood by individuals with low health literacy. We have ongoing research projects that test various aspects of the system, as well as opportunities to learn content development under the guidance of a research librarian and physician. We also have ongoing content development that needs creative visuals such as GIFs, infographics, and videos. Please check out our platform at www.palsforhealth.com.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

REGARDS Program

Research
Large national epidemiology cohort study with 10 years of follow-up and rigorously adjudicated outcomes. Students and trainees interested in observational research methods can be integrated into a research team and participate in studies of health disparities. Students/trainees with statistical or mathematical skills would find this project of interest.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Southeastern Collaboration to Improve High Blood Pressure

Research
This large pragmatic trial enrolled 1,592 black Americans who live in the Alabama and North Carolina Black Belt regions. The trial tested peer coaching vs. practice facilitation vs. both vs. enhanced usual care to understand which, if any, of these interventions can best improve blood pressure control. Students and trainees can be integrated into a research team, conduct a literature review, analyze data collected from this cohort, and write a manuscript as a first author.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Quality Improvement Academy (QIA)

Research
Students from all health disciplines (medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health policy, and pre-health) with an interest in working together with a team to improve the quality and safety of patient care are encouraged to apply. The selected candidate will receive an introduction to the field of healthcare systems improvement through participation in a quality improvement project under the direction of a faculty member currently participating in the Quality Improvement Academy (QIA). The intern will:

  1. Develop an understanding of quality improvement and how it can be applied to improving systems
  2. Contribute to a QIA project in data collection, qualitative patient interactions, interviews, etc.
  3. Obtain a letter of recommendation to build their academic portfolio, if requested

Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Home Health Aides Caring for Patients with Chronic Diseases

Research
Students who have an interest in understanding the role of paid caregivers, home health care workers, and health care delivery should apply! Research team is large and includes community-based organizations in NYC. Students will have the opportunity to conduct surveys and interviews with home health aides and patients, as well as write medical educational material (for aides) and assist with data analysis.
Duration: 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Rheumatology and Arthritis Clinical Research Program

Research
Studies have found that around 80 to 90 percent of an individual's health is determined by social determinants of health. While the medical system impacts health during visits for injury or illness, the social determinants interact with health much earlier and on a day-to-day basis. Peer coaching, which is the use of lay individuals to deliver evidence-based behavioral interventions, has been shown to improve social determinants of health and chronic illness management. Our team aims to address this public health concern in individuals with Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who suffer from depression. Joining our team will allow you to learn more about the effects of public health on a chronically ill population. You will help in the development of patient-facing educational materials, data collection, peer coach training, and more. To get a better understanding of the standard of care for patients with RA, you will have the opportunity to shadow Rheumatologists, work on literature review projects related to the field of rheumatology, and have one-on-one mentorship meetings with Dr. Iris Navarro-Millan.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Cancer Health Services Research/Cancer Health Disparities

Research
Research intersection of primary care and oncology with a focus on minority health disparities.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Research Data Analytic Group

Research
Looking for a summer intern who is eager to learn more about the role of data in Health Services Research and population health and assist with current epidemiological and clinical research projects. The student will get exposure to secondary data sources pertaining to healthcare and population statistics from Census. Potential projects may involve statistical analysis using tools such as SAS, R and Stata. The candidate must be interested in working with data and familiarity with statistical software (i.e. SAS, R or Stata) is needed.
Duration: 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid or fully on-site

Team Dynamics and Group Decision Making in the Hospital

Research
Diagnostic error is the leading cause of preventable medical errors and is most attributed to faulty diagnostic reasoning. In teaching hospitals, medical decision making for hospitalized patients is performed in teams of small groups of experienced clinicians and trainees. Our program investigates team dynamics and group decision making in the hospital, and seeks to identify factors that influence team functioning and the incidence of diagnostic errors.
Duration: 6 weeks or 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF) Program

Research
The mission of the Program for the Care and Study of the Aging Heart is to improve the wellbeing of older adults with heart failure by developing, testing, and implementing novel patient centered strategies of care. Dr. Goyal first established this Clinical Research Program in 2017. Over the years, the program has been supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging, American Heart Association, the New York Community Trust, and the Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation. The research program is anchored by clinical programs dedicated to Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction and Cardiac Amyloidosis. Ongoing research projects are focused on addressing the challenges of polypharmacy, self-care, and healthcare utilization in heart failure. These efforts involve innovative methodologies such as N-of-1 trials, as well as integration of implementation science principles and theories of behavior change such as self-determination theory.
Duration: 12 weeks
Workplace: hybrid

Eligibility

This internship program is open to external and internal applicants in the United States.

  • Medical students
  • University/college graduates
  • Post-baccalaureate students
  • Current university/college students
  • Current high school juniors and seniors

Duration

The internship requires considerable commitment and is offered as a 6 week program and a 12 week program from June through August.

Payment

Interns not participating in other established programs will receive a modest stipend upon a successful completion of the internship program.

Important Information

  • Housing, food, and transportation expenses are not covered.
  • Candidates will be informed of their selection by March.
  • We are unable to sponsor visas.

Testimonials

Interns practice communicating medical concepts clearly and complete a literature review while writing for PALS, a patient health education website in development. Interns are also taught how to navigate useful programs such as Endnote and Qualtrics, in addition to others specific to one's research project. There are various opportunities to shadow doctors and gain exposure to a variety of jobs in the healthcare sector outside of medicine, too
—Lawrence Kwong, M.D. candidate, Class of 2026, Weill Cornell Medicine

I was placed in the Department of Pediatrics and had a wonderful experience learning from the administrative staff and clinical faculty. In just eight weeks, I learned so much about the role of finance and operations in academic medicine. I was also fortunate to experience many of the exciting initiatives within the Division, including the clinic integration project. I would definitely recommend this program to anyone with a business background who is interested in healthcare and medicine.
— Morgan Greifer, Class of 2023, Northwestern University

During my time as a GIM intern, I was able to learn about the field of public health research in deeply engaging ways, even while working remotely. This program allowed me to form lasting connections with my research team, gave me perspective on how I can contribute to the field of medicine in the future, and expanded my opportunities with valuable mentor connections. Altogether, I deeply value my time as a GIM intern and am grateful for the lessons I have learned from my team. 
— Julia Loughman, Class of 2023, Tufts University

The GIM internship provided me the unique opportunity to immerse myself in a field that closely aligned with my career goals and connect with professionals who feel have the same passion. This program provided me with exposure to the field of medicine and what a career in the field would entail.
— Matthew Luebke, Class of 2022, Cornell University

Through the GIM internship, I was able to participate in the research process from start to finish, observe medical student training sessions, and gain a broader perspective on academic medicine. I developed a strong relationship with my faculty mentor that has expanded my view on what it means to practice medicine and strengthened my desire to enter the field. I am thankful that I had the opportunity to participate in this program and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to learn more about the variety of career opportunities in Internal Medicine. 
— Karissa DiPierro, Class of 2022, Cornell University

My experience strongly reaffirmed my desire to pursue a career in medicine. By learning from and working with GIM faculty, I was able to hone my research skills and take advantage of the academic resources that a prestigious medical research institution like WCM has to offer. Through the internship, I developed an invaluable mentor relationship with a GIM faculty member, and learned how to collect and synthesize data from academic studies in order to write my first scoping literature review.
— Alex Zarska, Class of 2020, Cornell University

 

 

General Internal Medicine

Monika Safford, M.D., Chief

Blake Rambo, J.D., M.B.A., Administrator
Tel: (646) 962-5900
Fax: (646) 962-0508
GIM-Admin@med.cornell.edu

Events

Faculty

News

Related Links

PDF icon  GIM Fellowship Brochure