Kimberly Carter M.D. Currently: 2nd Year Medical Resident Previous Education: Xavier University; Medical College of GA Hometown: Decatur, GA

Kimberly Carter definitely has deep roots in the South, being originally from Decatur, GA and with most of her family calling Alabama and Mississippi home. Growing up in a close knit family of six, education was a very important part of the Carter family experience. Her parents are the first college graduates in their generation and both are successful college professors in Economics and Statistics.

Proudly she has followed in her parent's footsteps and in pursuing her education in medicine. In fact, her sister just completed dental school and her younger brother is considering also entering the medical field. Clearly medicine runs in this generation's blood. Carter attended Xavier University in New Orleans where she completed her undergraduate studies before attending medical school at the Medical College of Georgia.

Carter acknowledged that her family is the main reason she decided to enter the field of medicine. "The subject of healthcare came up frequently at the dinner table. I heard so many comments from my extended family about what they didn't understand regarding their healthcare, from accessing the system to managing their own diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure. I really wanted to answer those questions and those many discussions at the family dinner table encouraged me to become a doctor."

Carter's family is obviously excited about having a doctor in the family. For her it's very personal, and she gains a lot of satisfaction from knowing that family members can now call her if they have general health questions or if they end up in the hospital and don't understand the nature of their treatment.

Family influences regarding healthcare have also guided her in the development of her principals for patient treatment. "I want to do the best job I can to help patients understand the disease they have by tailoring their education to a level that is comfortable to that individual patient. I hope to guide them in their treatment, for example, making sure they know that chronic disease can be managed." She continues, "I also realized that a lot of healthcare is tied to socioeconomic class and a lot of socioeconomic class is tied to education. If you're not familiar with the ways in which you can improve those areas of your life, you need guidance from someone and I hope to assist in that area as well."

Surprisingly, she first learned of Nashville and Vanderbilt University through a friend from elementary school who also shared a desire to become a doctor. "My friend and I have stayed in touch since we were young and when she attended Vanderbilt University for her undergraduate studies I would come to visit. She also attended medical school here so I ended up learning a lot about the city and what a wonderful place Vanderbilt University is."

Based upon that familiarity, Carter applied to the Vanderbilt Department of Medicine for her residency. "When I met the staff, and in particular the program director, Dr. John Sergent, I could tell they were all very intent on educating physicians, nurturing our career goals and were all very willing to do whatever they could to mentor and guide us along the way." After my interview day, I was completely sold on this amazing institution."

Carter would like to pursue a career as an Academic Primary Care physician and is currently performing her internal medicine residency in the Veterans Administration hospital ward. On days that she is admitting patients, she performs pre-rounds with the patients that are on her service and takes time to discuss with the residents if anything has changed or if there have been any significant overnight developments.

"We go on rounds with our attending physicians and then have bedside teaching rounds where the patient is presented with their overnight events. Patients love this method because they are intimately involved in their care and treatment and they are working right along side us to make the decisions." She continues, "After patient rounds we have time to do patient related care activities such as procedures, orders, imaging studies or diagnostic tests and depending on the day, there are also morning reports, conferences to attend and specialists who visit and present case studies for review and discussion."

The ancillary support staff is an integral part of the process and makes Carter's job less complicated, she explains. "The nursing staff with whom I interact with at Vanderbilt are some of the smartest, most dedicated and compassionate people I have ever met. They are very in tune with the patients and very supportive of the residents."

According to Carter, she is impressed with the fact that the Department of Medicine also wisely invests in their IT and computer systems. "Our computer access system is phenomenal. As soon as lab work is entered the results are displayed instantaneously around all the departments in the hospital. It's convenient and allows me to be the most efficient doctor I can be. In addition, our radiology department is very timely and there is always someone available to interpret a test for us. The support we receive here at Vanderbilt--from all departments--is second to none."

In her eyes, one of the best things about the Vanderbilt Department of Medicine is the willingness of the faculty to help you pursue your dreams in medicine. "They are there for you no matter what your interest or pathway happens to be."

During her free time Carter is committed to community service. "I volunteer at the Shady Tree Family Clinic, which is a free clinic in downtown Nashville near the coliseum which was founded by the medical students here at the Vanderbilt University Department of Medicine."

Writing is a hobby Carter has also been developing in her spare time. "While in medical school I wrote a few children's books titled, Sunday's at Grandma's House and My First Trip to the Doctor. I've enjoyed writing them and I have quite a few small cousins and a nephew who is seven who enjoy them as well." Family and friends are also a very big part of Carter's life and she spends time with them as much as possible in order to maintain a good balance between her personal and professional life.

Carter says she likes Nashville for the abundance of activities and lack of gridlocked traffic she experienced while living in the Atlanta area. "This is a good sized city and there is so much to do here regardless of your interest. It's a very culturally diverse city as well and you don't have to go far to be exposed to all genres of entertainment. There are a lot of different churches catering to a wide variety of religious backgrounds so you can be sure if you come to Vanderbilt that no matter what your background is, you will find a place that is comfortable for you."

"At The Vanderbilt University Department of Medicine you learn good medicine. I appreciate the fact that the Department lives by the highest ethical standards and the dictum here is to do the right thing for the patient and take care of that patient as if they were your own family member. That is something that stays with you your entire career--no matter what specialty you are in."