Scholar spotlight: Helen Gut

Accelerating good health: Abigail Geisinger Scholar Helen Guo can’t wait to have a wellness impact

Helen Guo may seem like she’s in a hurry. She got her undergraduate degree and her master’s in public health (MPH) from a University of California at Berkeley accelerated “4+1” program. Today, as an Abigail Geisinger 3 + 3 Scholar, she’s keeping up the tempo. She’s now one year into the accelerated program that will place her in a Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center (GWV) internal medicine residency in just three years. And although now, just a few semesters removed from college, she’s hands-on in the clinic, Helen said her pace comes from peace, certainty and an eagerness to get started.

“I was really interested in Geisinger mainly for the Abigail Geisinger Scholars Program,” she said. “I feel like the 3 + 3 program made perfect sense. I’m certain about primary care, and I want the ability to finish one year sooner to start working in the community.”

Helen cites interest in the social determinants of health as the driving force behind both her MPH and her choice to pursue internal medicine. “What really attracted me to public health are the same things that attract me to medicine now. It’s the social factors that go into health.”

Nearing the end of Helen’s time at Berkeley for her master’s degree, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. She was studying infectious diseases and had a front row seat to see public health in action. “I was learning academically about the social determinants of health and after I graduated, I started working at the County of San Mateo in COVID-19 prevention. So, I was seeing everything play out — who was being affected, who was able to access resources, who was able to take time off from work, and who wasn’t — I think that’s what drew me to medicine. I wanted to make more of an impact and have more one-on-one connections with people. That’s really what drew me to Geisinger, too — that community aspect.”

Although she’s just one year into the 3 + 3 program, Helen is already a fixture at the GWV clinic where she’ll do her residency. A perk of the program is extended time in her longitudinal clinical experience (LCE). Helen said she’s using that time to polish her interpersonal skills.

“I know I’m getting a really good education at Geisinger because, for me, what’s really important is that patient/ doctor relationship,” she said. “I’ve had experiences myself personally where I’ve gone to the doctor and feel like I’ve brought up concerns that were laughed off. As a future doctor, I never want my patients to feel that way. I want them to know every concern of theirs is being taken seriously, that they are being listened to. And from shadowing Dr. (Michael) Fox in the GWV clinic, I feel like he is the embodiment of what I want to do in my future practice. He takes the time to ask his patients about their lives and gets to know them. They’ll even swap reading recommendations. That’s really what I want to do as an internal medicine doctor — just take the time to listen to the patient.”

For someone always choosing to accelerate, taking the time might sound out of character. But Helen said clarity about her future makes her feel comfortable about slowing down now and enjoying the journey. “I like knowing my colleagues and the clinic where my residency will be,” she said. “I already know who my residency mentor is, so I’ve been able to start building that relationship with Dr. (Wasique) Mirza. I’ve met all the residents there. It’s a wonderful, holistic program. The idea was to get us integrated into that setting a little sooner. I think it’s amazing to be able to see the patients who will be my patients and to practice some of the things we’re already learning.”