Dr. Chuck Cairns enjoyed practicing emergency medicine early in his career, but he soon realized he could have a bigger impact by focusing on how clinical care, education and medical research is organized, and how advancements in all three can be applied to benefit patients, especially those from underserved populations. That started him on a leadership path that wound its way around the country at several prestigious institutions culminating in his current role at Drexel University College of Medicine. It’s a good fit because Drexel has a longstanding commitment to serving populations in need, and Dr. Cairns finds working among students and researchers who share that mission to be very rewarding. He and his team are devoted to proactive approaches to healthcare that address social determinants of health. In fact, Drexel recently purchased a bankrupt hospital in North Philadelphia and partnered with the City to provide COVID-19 testing to that economically challenged community. In this conversation with Dr. Rishi Desai, Dr. Cairns reflects on his work partnering with local governments to bring the best of academic medicine into communities, how his school is addressing the challenge of staying connected across multiple locations, and shares his three key pieces of advice for medical students.

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