Face to Face: Into Africa

Cutaneous anthrax. Rubella. Malaria. AIDS.

These are just a few of the diseases that Dr. Megan Shaughnessy, a 2001 Saint Mary's College alumna, identified and treated while working in Tanzania during her fourth year of medical school at the University of Minnesota.

“I worked at a hospital run by an American doctor in partnership with Tanzanian doctors,” says Megan. “By Tanzanian standards, it was a decent hospital. But lab service was poor, pregnant women had to walk two miles for an ultrasound, x-rays were processed by hand, and all patients were in one big room. There was no isolation, even for highly contagious diseases like tuberculosis.”

A couple of times each week, Megan staffed a clinic in town and treated anyone who came through the door. “I was seeing patients completely by myself as a medical student, with no supervision. Even now, as a resident, I'm still supervised by a physician. In Africa, I was all they had. I learned to rely on exams and conversations with patients, because lab work and high-tech diagnostic equipment was just not an option.”

Megan, who is now in her second year of residency training through the University of Michigan Medical School and Health System, says that her chemistry studies at Saint Mary's got her excited about and interested in science. “Chemistry majors are a small, well-supported group. My four years at Saint Mary's went a long way toward preparing me for the future challenges in my life.”

After completing her four-year residency in internal medicine and pediatrics, Megan plans on doing an infectious disease fellowship—another three to four years of education. “I was inspired to pursue that course of study because of my time in Tanzania,” she explains. “The people there are friendly, loving, and in such need of medical help. I know it's going to be a long road, but I'm ready.”