Sarah Kellner ’16

Sarah Kellner ’16 participated in typical campus activities as a dance major at the College — performing arts groups, Hillel and being a resident adviser. But she also had a relatively uncommon extracurricular: working as a doula.

“I attended births, but also supported people through the full spectrum of reproductive health, including abortions and pregnancy loss,” Kellner says. “Gaining an understanding of the obstacles people face in the medical world really sparked my interest in being on the other side of it.”

Working to eliminate those obstacles from the medical system has continued to be a guiding principle for Kellner. While a student at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, she helped organize a town hall about healthcare policy with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who represents the school’s district. She also testified at a state hearing in favor of the New York Health Act, which would provide universal healthcare for all New Yorkers. Now a third-year resident with Montefiore Einstein Medical Center, Kellner is putting her advocacy background into practice as she provides care and stands up for the rights of her patients in the Bronx.

Her work goes beyond conventional clinical care and involves addressing social determinants of health for her patients. “I’m writing letters to landlords about safe carpeting and pest control and doing things that doctors don’t necessarily do. But without them, you can’t even begin to think about health,” Kellner says.

She is still passionate about reproductive healthcare, and provides services like contraception management and sexual health counseling. By having comprehensive training in reproductive medicine as a primary care physician, Kellner is eliminating a barrier to that care for her patients. She’s also able to get to the heart of family medicine: caring for a whole family.

“I take care of a patient and her mother, and that patient is now pregnant. I’m doing her prenatal care and hope to attend her delivery and then take care of the baby,” she says. “I’m thinking about what kind of support they need, and I’m going to have a part in that. It’s really exciting and just beautiful, pure family medicine.”

— Emily Dreihaus