DR. BRINTHA VASAGAR (CLASS OF 2012) RECEIVES AAFP AWARD

[From Spartanburg Medical Center and the American Academy of Family Physicians]

Out of 3,500 applicants, Spartanburg Medical Center family medicine resident Dr. Brintha Vasagar (Class of 2012) was one of 12 applicants recognized with the 2015 Excellence in Graduate Medical Education Award by the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and the only resident in the southeast to receive this award.

“It is quite an honor to be selected,” Dr. Vasagar said. “As a family medicine physician, I’m passionate about being in the community to help educate the public on prevention. I want to leave a community better than I found it.”

The AAFP’s Excellence in Graduate Medical Education Award recognizes outstanding family medicine residents for their leadership, civic involvement, exemplary patient care, and aptitude for and interest in family medicine.

Dr. Vasagar, a family physician from Hatfield, PA, will receive the award at the American Academy of Family Physicians annual meeting in Denver, CO. The AAFP Family Medicine Experience (formerly AAFP Assembly), one of the largest gatherings of primary care providers in the country, will be held Sept. 29 through Oct. 3, 2015.

Dr. Vasagar is a third-year family medicine resident at Spartanburg Medical Center (SMC), part of Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Along with caring for patients, Dr. Vasagar serves as a liaison between faculty and residents as chief resident of SMC’s Family Medicine Residency Program.

“Since coming to us, Dr. Vasagar has stepped up to the plate and helped lead the Family Medicine Program. This recognition is another feather in her cap,” said Jeffery Swartz, MD, SRHS Family Medicine Residency Program Director. “This award also gives some attention to our program and shows that we have outstanding residents that will become well-trained family physicians.”

Dr. Vasagar is a graduate of Georgetown University, American University of Antigua, and Johns Hopkins University. She also spent a year completing a post-doctoral fellowship in clinical research at the Center for Celiac Research at Harvard. Dr. Vasagar was drawn to Spartanburg Medical Center not only because of the professionalism of the program, but also the friendliness of the area.

Dr. Vasagar has written for numerous publications, made scientific presentations, and on-camera appearances regarding public health and medicine. In the future she hopes to become Surgeon General of the United States and revolutionize the way we view health. A survivor of the 2004 tsunami which devastated South Asia, she has spoken before members of Congress and the United Nations about international health issues and disaster preparedness.

“Helping educate on preventive healthcare through writing or speaking on television is my ultimate goal,” she said. “I also have a desire to start a free clinic and work with local homeless shelters to care for those individuals.”