Joey Kurtzman
![Joey Kurtzman, Third-year MD student](https://cdn.atriumhealth.org/-/media/wakeforest/school/images/page-content/catalyst/spring-2024/features/student-profiles-joey-kurtzman-800px.jpg?h=257%25&w=100%25&rev=1d90052584194104aa00d30ec8638538&hash=8BA7C4B5D2EBED7C8B2D196BF060A999)
Third-year MD student
Research: Kurtzman has built impressive research credentials, with involvement on at least 24 published research articles or manuscripts. One recent example: She was one of 11 authors on “Reducing Opioid Prescribing after Ambulatory Breast Reconstruction Surgery,” published in the Journal of Surgical Oncology in August 2023.
Her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis, bilateral mastectomy and reconstructive surgery sparked an interest in plastic surgery for Kurtzman, a former communications major at Tulane University who completed a post-baccalaureate program at Columbia University to prepare for a career shift into medicine. New York-based plastic and reconstructive surgeons, B. Aviva Preminger, MD, MPH, and Steven Koehler, MD, served as Kurtzman’s mentors, providing her with clinical, surgical and research opportunities. Kurtzman held research fellowships in plastic surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, in hand and microsurgery at Montefiore Medical Center and in clinical research at State University of New York Downstate.
At the School of Medicine, Kurtzman got involved with the plastic surgery department during her first week in school and found “a wealth of resources for students, research fellows and residents.” Her faculty advisers have included Adam J. Katz, MD, FACS, vice chair of research, director of the Plastic Surgery Research Laboratory and the Michael J. Morykwas Endowed Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. He is also a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and with Wake Forest Institute of Regenerative Medicine. Kurtzman has spent the 2023-24 academic year in Charlotte for third-year clinical rotations.
Kurtzman says: “Coming to Charlotte, there’s a wealth of plastic surgery research opportunities. There are six plastic surgeons here whose volume for breast reconstruction is extremely high and at the level of major cancer centers in this country. This has generated a huge amount of data. For example, there was a student before me who created an amazing database of breast reconstruction cases. I was lucky enough to be able to use that database to create a project.
“Here in Charlotte, my most recent project involved reducing the time that patients are in the hospital after a microsurgical breast reconstruction. Nobody wants to be in the hospital for longer than they need to be, and it takes a lot of resources, time, energy and cost for the hospital and for the patient. We looked at ways we can help make that happen, starting with pre-op, counseling patients that they’ll be leaving in one or two days, letting them know what level of pain to expect and that we will be giving them a pain block. Preparing them for a shorter length of stay benefits everybody.
“I enjoy the process of research. I like the group mentality with everyone having their job and getting to work with so many people. I like reading what other people have done as a part of my own research. It keeps me in tune with what’s going on and tells me about the history of the specialty as well as new innovations in plastic surgery. It’s amazing to learn about that and even more amazing to get to contribute to that.”
Katz says: “Joey is an exceptional student and researcher with a laser-focused ambition and vision. Her ability to build teams around an idea is enabled by her authentic personality, her tremendous work ethic and remarkable maturity. I expect her to build an outstanding career as a leader and contributor in whatever field of practice she chooses.”