Reflections from PC3 Alumni

We asked graduates of the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track) about their time as medical students at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU). Read more about their experiences below. 

Maeve Mersman, MD ('22)

Maeve is currently a 3^rd year chief resident in the Pediatrics Residency Program at Cooper University Health Care. In 2022, Maeve earned her Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree as a member of the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track) at CMSRU.

Note: In the photo below, Maeve [left] is featured alongside one of her classmates from the PC3 Track – Morgan Epley MD ('22), now also a chief resident [right]. 

Why did you choose to pursue a career in Primary Care?

I chose Primary Care because of the relationship I had with my pediatrician. I always thought of him as "my doctor" and I still sometimes think of him as my doctor when people ask me! I felt he truly cared about my health and well-being, more than other doctors I had seen who want to solve their specific issue as a specialist. He visited my brother in the hospital many times because he cared about his outcome. I want to be this type of advocate for my patients in the future.

What did you appreciate about the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track)?

I really appreciate the relief of knowing where you will be for the upcoming years in the accelerated track, and the support system that comes with it. I always have a network of people I can rely on who have a similar experience through the PC3 program. It was helpful for my family as well, because we did not have to relocate for residency or risk relocation if I did not match nearby.

What extracurricular activities were you involved in during your time as a medical student at CMSRU?

My activities at CMSRU included Playpals (a club where we played with children in the hospital or "cuddled" NICU babies), Global Medicine (a club where we met to discuss global health outreach), Project Parenthood (a club where we taught new mothers in and around Camden about parenting subjects they asked to learn about) and fostering dogs!

What do you like about your residency program at Cooper University Health Care? 

I love the people in my residency! I feel like my group of interns are my family. We support each other so much which is so incredibly helpful because residency can be stressful at times and you need all the support you can get.

What are your plans after residency?

After residency, I plan to go on to primary care! I am not sure yet where I will work, I've thought about rural and urban settings, and everything in-between and they all sound wonderful. No matter what, I am excited to practice what I have worked so long and hard to do, to care for children.

Christian M. Bruni, MD ('19), MS

Christian is currently a general pediatrician at Cooper University Health Care, as well as an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU). In 2019, Christian earned his Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree as a member of the inaugural cohort of the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track) at CMSRU. He was a 3^rd and 4^th year chief resident in the Cooper University Health Care Pediatrics Residency Program.

Note: In the photo below, Christian [left] is featured alongside Morgan Epley, MD ('22) [right]. 

Why did you choose to pursue a career in Primary Care?

I have always been drawn to primary care by the connections I am able to make with patients and their families. It is such an honor to be able to work with families and to have the opportunity to watch patients grow up! I am also passionate about preventative medicine - being able to make small changes to a patient's life by counseling a family on dietary changes or exercise at a young age can make such a huge difference to their overall health and well-being. I couldn't imagine being in any other field. 

What did you appreciate about the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track)?

CMSRU is a welcoming, supportive environment. Throughout my time in the PC3 program, despite its fast pace, I always felt supported by faculty members checking-in with me and offering to help in any way that they could. Through the accelerated track, I was able to spend more time focusing on pediatrics-specific experiences (such as the pediatric patient centered medical home). I was also able to begin establishing continuity with patients, as patients that I met as a PC3 student soon became my patient as a resident and now continue to be my patient as a pediatric attending physician. The accelerated track helped me to reach my goals of becoming a pediatrician faster and allowed me to focus my medical school training on more pediatric-specific experiences. 

What extracurricular activities were you involved in during your time as a medical student at CMSRU?

Student Government - I was vice president of our medical school class. I also served as president of the pediatrics interest group and social chair of our advisory college (Blackwell = "Best"well!) I enjoyed community service experiences at Cathedral Kitchen and working with students at ECO charter school where I was involved in a program called PUP (Primary Urban Partnership). 

What do you like about your residency program at Cooper University Health Care? 

I love the pediatric residency at Cooper. My favorite part of our program is definitely the people. We have an outstanding pediatric faculty that I was able to learn a broad base of pediatrics from! As the only male in my residency class, I always say that I gained 9 sisters through this program - my co-residents were always so supportive, compassionate, and genuinely cared about each other. When I had a hard day at work, I could expect text messages from my co-residents just checking-in and asking how I was doing or if there was anything they could do to help. Our residency has a close-knit, family atmosphere which cannot be matched! 

What are your plans after residency?

I have had such an incredible experience with Cooper, I am happy to say I will be staying at Cooper as an attending physician and assistant professor of pediatrics! It is an honor to continue to serve the people of Camden, NJ. 

Matthew Nelson, MD, ('19)

Matthew completed a fellowship in geriatrics at the University of Rochester in 2023 and is now a geriatrics attending in Rochester. In 2019, Matthew earned his Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree as a member of the inaugural cohort of the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track (PC3 Track) at CMSRU.

Note: In the photo below, Matthew [right] is featured alongside Christian Bruni, MD ('19) [left]. 

Although 'Primary Care' is partitioned in the medical field into the domain of only a select few specialties, it's always felt to me that it's more of an ethos. When the newly created accelerated primary-care track was announced to our entering class in 2016, it was a no-brainer to apply. My only internal conflict on applying was that Family Medicine was not offered (Cooper did not have a Family Medicine residency back then), but this did not hold up my decision for long and I haven't looked back. It was the best decision I made.

Completing medical school and then having a residency spot guaranteed in the same place made the transition from student to resident much smoother and less stressful than it was for the majority of my classmates. Taking a 'non-traditional' pathway through medical school and then primary care training at Cooper also opened my mind to completing a fellowship in Geriatrics, which I am currently near to finishing at the University of Rochester. Helping our aging population age well and die well is a passion of mine that grew out of the experiences that I had while training at Cooper and the Accelerated Three-Year Primary Care Track.