Sarah E. Pajka

I’m grateful to be considered for the role of medical student representative on the AGEM Executive Committee. I am currently a third-year medical student at the Ohio State University College of Medicine with plans to pursue a career in emergency medicine. My interest in geriatric care began in college, when I worked as a resident aide in an assisted living facility. Shortly after, I joined a social gerontology research lab and eventually graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in History of Science, Medicine, and Public Health and published a thesis on the origins of hospice care in the United States. Prior to matriculation to medical school, I worked for two years as a research assistant in the emergency department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. There, I served as team lead for several studies and was introduced to the idea of geriatric emergency medicine, working to coordinate and publish work with Dr. Kei Ouchi on the use of brief negotiated interviews for advance care planning in the emergency department.

During my time as a medical student, I have served as the co-president of our geriatrics in medicine interest group and helped to organize several events to introduce students to the field. In 2020, I was selected for the Medical Student Training in Aging Research Program and presented original research with Dr. Rebecca Sudore investigating behavioral determinants to advance care planning for certain vulnerable populations. Additionally, I have helped to investigate the potential for arranging hospice care from the ED. I have been a member of SAEM since my first year of medical school and have seen the benefits that can only come from connecting a community of individuals with great ideas and strong motivation to enact them. I hope to join the AGEM executive committee to not only witness this exchange, but to contribute to it. If elected, I hope to establish clearer pathways and additional opportunities to involve medical students in the existing AGEM community through educational opportunities, discussion groups, and mentorship opportunities. Furthermore, I would like to help foster connection between current medical student trainees to build relationships and support a strong network of future geriatric EM physicians.