Jumping Into the Big Ocean
Next Generation is a Brigham Clinical & Research News (CRN) column penned by students, residents, fellows and postdocs. If you are a Brigham trainee interested in contributing a column, email bwhclinicalandresearchnews@partners.org. This month’s column is written by Jeong Yee, PharmD, PhD, a research fellow in the Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation and Immunity.
Jeong Yee, PharmD, PhD
I spent my 20s studying clinical pharmacy at Ewha Womans University, one of the largest female universities in South Korea. I was satisfied with my life at Ewha, as Ewha was the only institute I had worked at, and I’d already gotten used to my work, colleagues, its system, and neighbors. One day during the springtime, my PhD mentor told me, “You need to leave this small pond and jump into the big ocean. I recommend you go abroad and study.” At first, I felt confused, as I hadn’t thought about living outside of South Korea. After a few weeks of thoughtful consideration, I decided to work in the U.S., hoping to learn more about cutting-edge treatments and study methods, broaden my perspectives on research, build an international network, and grow professionally.
I remember the day I first met Dr. Karen Costenbader on Zoom for an interview. I was excited to have an opportunity to be interviewed, as I had seen her name on many articles. Prior to the interview, I knew that she was a rheumatologist and a clinical and translational investigator. She served as the director of the Lupus Program at the Brigham and currently sits as a chair of the Medical-Scientific Advisory Council for the Lupus Foundation of America. During the interview, she told me about her research, the project plans she had in mind and what she would expect from me. The position in her lab was exactly what I was looking for and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to be part of it. A year and a half later, looking back on my time at BWH, I’m so grateful to have learned even more than I expected.
Active Collaborations
The section of Clinical Sciences in the Division of Rheumatology, Inflammation and Immunity at the Brigham has around 60 people who share a love of studying rheumatology, but come from different backgrounds, such as medicine, public health, statistics, genomics, computer science, and more. I’m so grateful to be working with this amazing team, which can provide interdisciplinary collaboration. This diversity of expertise is a strength of our team. I love our weekly seminars, as we can discuss rheumatology from different perspectives.
Whenever I have questions, regardless of whether it is big or small, Dr. Costenbader not only gives me valuable insights, but also connects me to the related professionals who are in our section, at the Brigham, in Boston, and even in other states and other countries. For instance, during my research on cardiovascular risk in patients with lupus, I tried to find validated codes to identify patients’ comorbidities. The only one I could find through Google was the old version. When I asked Dr. Costenbader for help, she emailed a professor working on it directly. He provided me with some advice as well as the updated codes. Valuable input from various collaborators makes my research much stronger.
Global Leadership
BWH Rheumatology is one of the top-ranked specialties in the country and leads clinics and research in the field. My colleagues have led the way in rheumatologic studies and clinical trials and established guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of rheumatic diseases.
Last November, I went to American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Convergence, the biggest rheumatology conference in the U.S. I was surprised by how much BWH Rheumatology contributed. At the conference, our division members served as moderators for 14 sessions and presented over 100 abstracts, including two plenary abstracts and 30 oral abstracts. They gave the latest research findings and led sessions with great insight. I could see how the Brigham leads and globally influences rheumatology.
During the conference, Dr. Costenbader served as a moderator of the session titled, “Meet the Panel: The Latest in Lupus Treatment.” The session was full of people who had questions and sought answers for challenging patient cases and wished to learn more about lupus. She provided her opinions on specific issues, shared her experiences, and gave recommendations. Even though she was busy with other events and activities at the conference, she made an effort to help me learn about recent advancements in rheumatology, update my knowledge, and make connections with other rheumatologists and researchers outside of the Brigham.
Balancing Career and Family
Marriage and motherhood are some of the most valuable but challenging transitions a woman can go through. As I’ve heard about the many challenges women have faced at home, at work, and in between, I have vague worries about my career and my life as a woman. For me, Dr. Costenbader is a powerful role model for how to balance career and family life as a woman scientist. She is a physician-researcher at BWH and a mother at home with three adult children. While I watch how dedicated she is to her family and work, I’m learning how I might find balance in my own life. I’ve heard several stories from her, such as her experiences during pregnancy, child-rearing while working, and parenting her children to present day. Through my conversation with her, she has inspired me to become a professional at work and a mother at home, and has helped me find a way to stay afloat in the big ocean of the research world.