Riya Patel is a third-year dental student pursuing her Doctor of Dental Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine. In 2023, Patel participated in the Dental Fellowship during the Summer Undergraduate Mentored Research (SUMR) Program, where she collaborated with Dr. Emily Vail, Dr. Caoimhe Duffy, and Dr. Joan Gluch to examine the unique challenges female anesthesiologists face during pregnancy, childbirth, and the peripartum period.
Seeking to understand the broader implications of these challenges across professions, she expanded her research beyond anesthesiology into dentistry and continues this work with Dr. Kari Hexem and Dr. Cassandra Gafford. Patel’s interest in public health began during a visit to a dental clinic serving individuals experiencing homelessness. She was inspired to develop a deeper understanding of health disparities and strategies to enhance community health. Her experiences with LDI have strengthened her knowledge of health care policy and fueled her commitment to advancing health equity and delivering patient-centered care as a future health care provider. Patel earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Villanova University.
