Out of over 1700 national applicants, Dr. (Captain) Mackenzie Shribbs, MD, and MPH candidate at the University of Colorado, was recently named a Pat Tillman Foundation Scholar. Dr. Shribbs is a current US Air Force Active Duty physician, as well as Faculty and a Global Emergency Medicine and Public Health Fellow in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Colorado, Anschutz. As part of her Fellowship training she is helping to support the work of the Global Emergency Collaborative Initiative at the University of Colorado (GECI) and is actively pursuing her Masters of Public Health through the Colorado School of Public Health.
This scholarship, named in honor of former NFL and Army Ranger Pat Tillman, will further support Dr. Shribbs’ global and public health work. Her decision to pursue advanced training in global emergency care is based on extensive prior international experiences. She deployed to Niger as the sole physician in an austere military outpost to provide care to U.S. Special Forces, coalition forces, and local civilians as part of the Tactical Critical Care Evacuation Team. She has also provided medical care in Ghana, India, Ireland, Dominican Republic, and Mexico.
Once her studies are complete Dr. Shribbs intends to return to active duty with the US Air Force —having taken what she’s learned at the University of Colorado and the Department of Emergency Medicine to advance public health at an international level in a responsible and efficient manner while still maintaining global security. She aims to lead US military global health programs, make a positive footprint worldwide in the operational setting, and strategically highlight the important role public health has within security.
About the Pat Tillman Foundation
Pat Tillman was a former NFL player for the Arizona Cardinals, who left the NFL to join the Army Rangers soon after 9/11. The Pat Tillman Foundation (PTF) is named in honor of Pat Tillman who died in combat. The PTF supports academic scholarships for future world-class American military leaders from healthcare to business and policy. These scholars are making a difference in the fields of healthcare, business, public service, STEM, education and the humanities.
Dr. Mackensie Shribbs’ work is sponsored by the following University organizations, to learn more please visit the following: