Aparna Mukherjee is a clinical researcher working at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. She has been studying and working on tuberculosis as a doctor and researcher for over ten years. She specialises in the field of paediatric tuberculosis and is working on developing blood-based tests to monitor the outcome of treatment in young patients.
In this podcast by The Life of Science, she talks to Adita Joshi about her current research and her transition from being a clinician to a researcher. She explains the differences between adult and paediatric TB, and why a unique approach is needed to diagnose as well as treat young TB patients.
After completing her MBBS from Medical College, Kolkata, Aparna went on to pursue paediatric medicine for her postgraduate specialisation. It was during this time that she got a taste of research and enjoyed it. This encouraged her to look for research opportunities in Delhi instead of following the conventional path of residentship after her MD. She joined as a research officer in the department of paediatrics and soon signed up for a PhD in the same department. Aparna finds her clinician-scientist career path highly satisfying and hopes her work will inspire a few medical students to come and join the research bandwagon.
Read the full interview with Aparna here.
(Produced in collaboration Josh Thomas)
