May 15, 2015 - Michael Nedelman, a third year Stanford medical student, has been selected for the 2015-2016 Stanford-ABC News Fellowship in Media and Global Health. Nedelman becomes the second Stanford recipient of the fellowship, having been selected from a highly competitive pool of medical students, residents, fellows and clinical faculty from leading academic institutions across the country. 

Now in its fifth year, the global health and media fellowship was the first of its kind to demonstrate how multiple media platforms can have a significant impact on global health work. The Fellowship provides a unique opportunity for one physician or physician-in-training to receive 12-months of intensive education and experience in global health reporting from leading media organizations, including the World Health Organization and ABC News.

“As global health practitioners on the frontlines of patient care, we all have incredible stories to tell with the potential to change policies and influence funding,” said Michele Barry, MD, senior associate dean of global health and director of the Stanford Center for Innovation in Global Health. “This fellowship was designed to equip physicians with the fundamental skills to be able to tell their stories persuasively and therefore shift public perceptions, policies and inspire change.”

Nedelman brings a unique set of skills to the Fellowship having received his undergraduate degree in film studies from Yale University in 2008. Since starting medical school, Nedelman has continued to pursue his passion for film through a number of documentary projects addressing health and identity. His work – which includes projects on LGBT Veterans with PTSD, chronic disease and vision loss in Spanish Harlem, and preventable blindness in India – has been featured on networks such as CNN, and at local and international film festivals.