Josh Kennell had long been interested in brain science and, after a lecture-and book-heavy first year at KU School of Medicine-Wichita, wanted to see real patients and real care over the last summer break he’ll get for a good while. He found the right match for both interests at KU Medical Center during a month-long neuroscience rotation in June and July.

Kennell is the second recipient of the Akakpo-Ulloa Family Neuroscience Scholarship, created by Kansas City faculty member Carol Ulloa, M.D., and her family in honor of her physician father, a neurologist and psychiatrist, and designed to foster interest in those specialties and provide exposure to multidisciplinary care.

Mission accomplished in Kennell’s case. He observed psychiatry consults and inpatient rehabilitation, watched Ulloa, an epileptologist, in clinic, and saw numerous examples of doctors working together to provide care. He worked with veteran physicians and residents, too, including some from the double-board internal medicine/psychiatry program.

I did quite a bit of shadowing and some history taking as well,” said Kennell, noting how hands-on care comes later in medical school. “It was designed to give you a good, comprehensive look at neuroscience,” Kennell said. “They really had me bouncing around.”

Busy as they kept him, Kennell did have time to enjoy Kansas City, including the chance to nerd out and tour the medical center’s Clendening History of Medicine Library — “I love a good book,” he said.

Collaborating on care

Kennell saw epilepsy and stroke patients, some with the rare conditions a big academic and referral center sees, and others with more common conditions like functional neurological disorder, or FND, in which there is a disruption in the way the nervous system is functioning without typical physical or structural abnormalities of the brain, resulting in tremors, difficulty walking and other effects. It doesn’t have a “cure” but can be treatable with physical and behavioral therapies.

“It was cool to see doctors who really took the time to explain conditions to patients and work with them to move toward as much treatment as you can,” Kennell said.

Ulloa said that’s just the kind of experience she hoped the scholarship, which provides a housing stipend, would help make possible.

“As an epileptologist, I get to work very closely with many of these disciplines — including neurosurgery, psychology and psychiatry — and wanted the rotation to highlight how this collaboration helps patients with complex issues achieve the best outcomes,” Ulloa said.

“Our medical system can be very fragmented,” Kennell said. “It was refreshing to see an example of a continuous care model with a lot of collaboration. It showed me what is possible as I continue forward in my career, and as I am eventually in charge of patients. And how I could have some influence in how I'm organizing my practice.”

The chance to explore paths

Son of a registered nurse and a high school psychology and social studies teacher, Kennell approached the rotation interested in psychiatry and neurology as a specialty and saw both in action in Kansas City. He hasn’t wavered from those paths but isn’t ready yet to pick between the two.

“I've got a couple years before Match and having to make those sort of final decisions,” Kennell said. “But I was definitely impressed with the program and enjoyed the people there.”

As the scholarship and rotation intend, fostering interest is a goal.

“All it takes is one positive experience to change the course of someone’s career,” said Ulloa, who went to medical school at UMKC, did her neurology residency at Boston University and completed a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology and epilepsy in New York City. “As a medical student, I rotated at the NYU comprehensive epilepsy center due to my interest in neurology and in training on the East Coast. That month influenced me to become an epileptologist. That’s a big deal, and I’m hoping that this neuroscience rotation can similarly impact students.”

As for Kennell, Ulloa thinks the rotation affirmed his interest in psychiatry while piquing his curiosity about neurology. “I’m happy with him choosing either!” Ulloa said. “Our region is in need of both.”

Above, right: Joshua Kennell