UMMC’s inaugural MD-MPH students aim to transform health beyond the exam room

UMMC's inaugural MD-MPH students aim to transform health beyond the exam room

UMMC medical students Allie Koenig, Alexisa Woodard and Rohinton Dossabhoy are among the inaugural cohort pursuing UMMC's new MD-MPH pathway. The program combines medical education with advanced training in population health. When Rohinton Dossabhoy first studied congenital syphilis disparities in Mississippi, he realized that many of the biggest influences on health begin long before a patient walks into a doctor's office.

For Allie Koenig, the COVID-19 pandemic underscored how misinformation, social inequities and public trust can shape the health of entire communities.

For Alexisa Woodard, the decision came after months of reflection and prayer, leading her to conclude that becoming a physician also meant finding new ways to serve people she may never meet.

Although their journeys began hundreds of miles apart, the three University of Mississippi Medical Center medical students now share a common destination. As members of UMMC's inaugural MD-MPH pathway, they are pursuing medical degrees alongside graduate education in population health, preparing not only to care for individual patients but also to improve the health of entire communities.

The students recently completed UMMC's summer Certificate Program in Population Health Science, which serves as the academic foundation before they officially begin the Master of Public Health curriculum this fall. Through coursework in epidemiology, biostatistics, qualitative research and public health principles, they are gaining skills that complement their medical education and expand how they think about health and disease.

Dobbs Dr. Thomas Dobbs, dean of the John D. Bower School of Population Health, said the students will benefit greatly from the program. He completed an MPH degree during his internal medicine residency and called it "transformational."

Dobbs added, "Earning an MPH deepened my understanding of the factors that drive health outcomes and how we can better help patients from both community and individual perspectives, recognizing that everyone is affected by the complex systems in which they live. The degree and its associated skill set also opened doors for me in research and leadership."

For Dossabhoy, medicine has always been rooted in service.

Raised in Shreveport, Louisiana, he grew up with the guiding principle of "good thoughts, good words, good deeds." That philosophy eventually led him to medicine, where he hoped to combine his love of science with a desire to help others.

His perspective broadened while working with the School of Population Health and the Myrlie Evers-Williams Institute, studying maternal health and congenital syphilis throughout Mississippi.

"There were those in my community who did not have access to the same luxuries and privileges I had," Dossabhoy said. "I wanted to ensure everyone could have the opportunity to have a joyful, fulfilled and productive life."

Research introduced him to the social determinants of health - the economic, environmental and social conditions that influence well-being.

"It helped me redirect my original motivation for a medical career," he said. "I want to help dismantle the barriers underserved populations face so everyone can have equitable access to high-quality care."

Meanwhile, Dobbs said, "Investing in clinical care alone will never solve Mississippi's health crisis. Nearly 80 percent of what drives health happens outside the clinic. We train our public health students to think upstream, understand those broader influences and develop strategies that create lasting improvements in health outcomes."

For Koenig, her introduction to health care came long before medical school.

Her father serves as a paramedic and firefighter, her mother is an emergency room nurse, and her grandmother works as a respiratory therapist. Listening to their stories inspired her to become a physician.

But another element continued to shape her interests.

"I have always been someone who asks 'why?' " Koenig said.

That curiosity intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic as she witnessed the rapid spread of disease, misinformation and social inequities.

"I wanted to understand the intersection of medical knowledge and socioeconomic factors and develop community outreach initiatives with tangible impact," she said.

The certificate program has challenged her to think differently than traditional medical education. Through online lectures, statistical analysis, coding and directed research, she has learned how population data can be translated into practical solutions.

For Koenig, understanding community barriers is important when caring for individual patients.

"Population health gives us the opportunity to improve outcomes for entire communities so that individual patients are cared for," she said.

Unlike her classmates, Woodard never expected to pursue an MPH.

The Tunica native earned degrees in psychology and biomedical science before entering medical school, but population health was not initially part of her career plan.

That changed earlier this year.

"After praying and searching for how I spend my last free summer of medical school, the certificate program was brought to my attention," she said.

The more she considered the opportunity, the more she recognized that its mission aligned with her reason for entering medicine.

"I realized that pursuing this pathway was the same reason for going to medical school, which is to help hurting people."

Working on an independent research project under Dobbs' mentorship while learning epidemiology, qualitative research and computer coding has broadened her understanding of how physicians can influence health beyond prescriptions and clinic visits.

Her interests are increasingly centering on health policy, expanding access to care for low-income communities, and strengthening disease prevention.

"This mission means that I have a responsibility to help not only those who I can reach, but also those who I may never come across in clinic," she said.

As the three future physicians help define what it means to care for patients one person at a time while improving the health of entire populations, Dobbs said, "An MPH degree embeds the skills and knowledge base necessary to truly impact the well-being of the community."

He added that the MPH has become an essential component of medical education at many schools throughout the country and that UMMC is proud to offer the combined pathway. "It enhances our students' competitiveness and prepares Mississippi's future physicians to succeed not only in clinical practice, but also in research, academics and leadership."