Murina appointed assistant DIO for Graduate Medical Education

Andrea Murina, MD, is the first doctor in her family. So it’s not surprising that until Murina began her dermatology residency at Tulane University School of Medicine, she had not heard the term “academic medicine." The field combined her love for teaching and mentorship alongside her new career of caring for patients. Murina earned the title of Chief Resident while completing her training, stayed on at Tulane as faculty and has served as the dermatology residency program director since 2021. 

Murina’s experience as a physician and educator recently evolved into another new role as an Assistant Designated Institutional Official (DIO) for Graduate Medical Education. She now joins Chi Dola, MD, on the team led by the Tulane DIO, Paul Gladden, MD. As an Assistant DIO, Murina’s focus will be on patient safety and quality improvement.

“Promoting safety and quality improvement is part of any medical practice, but during medical training we want trainees to learn how to report concerns and propose solutions as key team members of the medical staff,” said Murina. “This requires more than lectures and textbooks.  We need to show how ongoing assessment and small changes can improve systems for doctors and patients. Our plan is to teach residents, fellows, and faculty how to utilize quality improvement initiatives to create a better clinical learning environment for everyone.”

Another responsibility Murina is assuming will be to collect regular feedback about programs and activities that are sponsored through the Office of Graduate Medical Education. Reviewing such feedback from residents and fellows is critical to improve the learning environment as well, Murina said.

Once a trainee at Tulane, and now a leader, Murina is excited about her new role as Assistant DIO.

“Helping residents learn and grow as physicians is a lot of fun,” she said. “This is a very rewarding job.”