Grace Kajita, MD
September 29, 2014 - BRONX, NY - On October 15, 2014, Dr. Grace Kajita will assume the role of Program Director of the Montefiore Internal Medicine Residency Program at the Wakefield Campus. Dr. Barry Fomberstein, Association Professor of Clinical Medicine and Associate Director and Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program for 22 years, will assume an active clinical role with a deeper involvement in his subspecialty of rheumatology.
Dr. Kajita's interests focus on effective identification and remediation of lapses among residents and on developing novel curricula for systems-based practice and practice-based learning.
"I am excited to meet the housestaff, and to get to know all of them individually and foster their educational and professional development," Dr. Kajita said.
Dr. Kajita completed a bachelor's degree at Barnard College, Columbia University, a medical degree at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and a primary care medicine residency at NYU School of Medicine. Following residency she became an attending physician for the Department of Veterans' Affairs, New York Harbor Healthcare, where she also served as firm chief for the Department of Medicine and associate program director for the Internal Medicine Residency. In 2005, she was appointed clinical instructor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center, where she also served as associate program director for the Internal Medicine Residency. Dr. Kajita's broad range of teaching, administrative, and clinical experience includes the development of a global health elective for internal medicine residents and service as a TB unit supervisor and medical referent for Médecins Sans Frontières in South Sudan. She is a fellow of the American College of Physicians, MSF-USA Association, and the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine. Additionally, Dr. Kajita has received multiple teacher-of-the-year awards at NYU.
"During my time at NYU and the VA, my work with residents was enlightening, humbling, and inspiring," Dr. Kajita said. "I came to appreciate the challenges for any program trying to reinforce the fundamentals while preparing its graduates for the rapidly evolving medical landscape. At Wakefield, I hope to balance the best of what has already been well established with additional skills to enable our residents to deliver outstanding patient care, pursue academics, and maintain professional engagement beyond graduation and well into their careers."