Clinical Alumni Committee

Welcome!

The UCLA Pathology Clinical Alumni Committee was established in 2011 to represent the alumni of the pathology residency program. The committee has  established many goals, including:

• Educational opportunities for current residents and fellows through ongoing lectures and workshops. Topics focus on areas such as professional development, interviewing, understanding contracts, and practice management. Practical slide sessions are also popular with residents.
• On-site mentoring opportunities, whereby residents and fellows have frequent access to alumni, and the option to spend time at their clinical practices. The committee is working to provide residents and fellows with much needed insight into professional life training.
• Alumni connections are often among life's most valued and treasured, so we have developed several new communications tools to help keep us connected and informed. In addition to this webpage, we also have a Facebook page - please visit often, and be sure to invite your fellow alumni. A periodic newsletter is also providing updates on ongoing activities as well as a "Spotlight" on alumni. If you would like to be featured, we would love to put the spotlight on you! We encourage you to send us your accomplishments and life events so that we may share them in one or more of these communications.
• Fundraising. Fundraising. We are excited to be able to further support our residents and fellows through the establishment of the Pathology Clinical Alumni Fund. Within the realm of pathology residency, this fund will support travel to conferences, the purchase of textbooks and other educational resources, publication and/or presentation of research, as well as other appropriate professional development opportunities. As always, we are very thankful to all who have provided generous donations which allow our residents and fellows to benefit from these vital programs.

Recently, we sent our members a letter and survey requesting contact information, and are thrilled by the truly remarkable response received. Your response reflects the vibrancy of our members, and we encourage everyone who has not already done so to not lose this opportunity to stay involved and informed alongside your fellow alumni. Our developing database will store up-to-date contact information for all alumni and residents and make possible valuable networking and social opportunities. The directory will be mailed to the alumni in the database soon, except for those alumni that have opted out. In 2013 we joined forces with the Research Clinical Alumni Committee and will plan events and publish the newsletter with them.
 
The Pathology Clinical Alumni Committee is delighted to represent the alumni and ensure the link between us and the UCLA Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine remains strong. We look forward to hearing from you and working together on many worthy projects in the future.

Valerie McWhorter, MD
Chair, UCLA Pathology Alumni Committee

Meet the Clinical Alumni Committee Chair

Dr. Valerie McWhorter
Affiliated Pathologists Medical Group

Dr. Valerie McWhorter is the Clinical Alumni Committee's first Chairperson.  She works with the Committee to develop alumni connections, build networks, support mentoring relationships between alumni and residents, organize learning opportunities for residents with alumni, and raise funds to promote the above activities.  The Committee has been sending out surveys to clinical alumni, and the response has been great so far.  We have established an alumni directory to allow easy communication for alumni and residents alike, which will be sent out very soon. In recent years we have participated in the graduation celebration in June, and we look forward to planning more events where alumni can get together.  We have facilitated several alumni teaching sessions for residents, and plan to do more.  We have recently joined forces with the Research Alumni Committee, and will be coordinating our outreach efforts and our newsletter with them.  We love to include alumni news in the newsletter, so please let us know of any event, accomplishment or newsworthy item to include.  Also check us out on Facebook (UCLA Pathology Alumni), and let us know what you are up to!  Our efforts also include fund-raising.  The Clinical Alumni Fund, still in early development, will be a mechanism for recognizing outstanding residents by funding research-related activities, educational activities, and/or networking opportunities.

In her other life Dr. McWhorter is a GI Fellowship-trained pathologist and member of Affiliated Pathologists Medical Group (APMG) based in Torrance, California. She has recently transitioned to a locums lifestyle, working several months per year and spending the rest of the time sailing and enjoying the outdoors in Bellingham, Washington.  She can be reached by email.