Dr. Sadeep Shrestha P '22, '23

Q: What challenges have you faced working during the COVID-19 pandemic?
A: Transitioning from traditional face-to-face meetings to all online and virtual meetings was a major challenge in the beginning, but over time I am keeping up with the technology and getting used to it. However, I sometimes worry about how and when things will be normal, but we are all in this together and will fight this through together.

Q: How has your work changed during the COVID-19 pandemic?
A: I have been re-introduced to my virtual administrator and colleague name “Zoom.” Some days are quite hectic, jumping from one zoom meeting to the other. I travel a lot for work as well and had two travels scheduled during this time and obviously had to cancel them both. 

Q: What successes have you celebrated during the COVID-19 pandemic?
A: Academic achievements of my students, submitting research manuscripts, and grant applications are some of the work-related celebrations. I’ve participated in several projects and working groups related to COVID-19. While all of these are work-in-progress, it has been an honor to be part of these committees and exchanging ideas to understand the new virus. However, there are times when I was able to take some time off and reflect on the hectic lifestyle we as a family have had before the pandemic. We’ve been able to talk to each other more and spend some quality time together, and that has been the most successful celebration for me. 

Q: What has been your most challenging moment working in healthcare?
A: As an epidemiologist, I get a lot of questions from family and friends. While not on the frontline as our doctors and nurses in the health field (who I truly admire), trying to read to understand this virus and the dynamic of the pandemic has been very challenging and frustrating. Data is pouring by the day from all over the world, and the dynamics of the infection and the disease outcome is also changing by the day. Keeping up with that is quite intriguing. Being in public health our priority is in preventing infections and figuring out what the best practices are and how to convey them to friends, family and the general public has not been easy since it is a drastic change in our daily behaviors that we all have to go through and now get accustomed to. 

Q: What has been your proudest moment working in healthcare?
A: There is no single proud moment, but every success of my students makes me very proud. It makes me feel that I was able to make a difference in somebody’s life such that they will make a difference.

Q: When and how did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
A: I knew I wanted to do something in science but did not know exactly why. I was a biology major coming out of college. I took different classes to weigh in and figure out my interests in environmental health, biochemistry, biotechnology, and a few other biology-related careers. I was in Maryland at the time, and they had just started the Human Genome Project, and one of the major labs was around the area. With that in mind, I thought I was going to study genetics in graduate school. I took a class called “Infectious Disease” as an elective in my Master’s program. The class introduced me to the book “The Coming Plague” by Laurie Garrett. I just got glued to that book and was my “Aha” moment. That is when I decided that I wanted to combine genetics and infectious disease and developed a “newfound passion.” My alma mater, Johns Hopkins University, and my mentors really helped me understand and appreciate the field of public health. That passion keeps me going every day with my research, teaching, and academic activities.

Q: What advice would you give Springs students who want to pursue a career in healthcare?
A: I think you need to have a passion for whatever you want to do, not just in healthcare. You can’t force yourself to any professional career. If you are passionate about what you do and enjoy it – guess what, you will always get up early in the morning with a jolly good mood to go to work. Mental health is a big factor both at home and work – you need to be happy doing your job. Think of your favorite class – you always look forward to going to that class, right? It’s the same feeling about a career in public health or healthcare. Also, keep connected with your friends, teachers, and Springs community - alumni is a strong family that will help you down the road, personally and career-wise. 

Q: What can the Springs community do to help during the COVID-19 pandemic?
A: I think we all need to learn from this pandemic. There are uncertainties in life, and we all need to learn and teach how to deal with such events. There are other issues created by humans like “climate change.” If we don’t pay close attention to them, another pandemic-like situation could likely happen due to such human negligence. I hope that we teach the young generation about their responsibilities. And some of that starts from being aware of others and practicing preventative measures such as washing hands, keeping the distance, not crowding, wearing face-mask. Such discipline is required during the “public health” crisis.