 Alumni Interviews:
Naser and Catherine Payvandi
Medical Scholarships
"The spirit of the university, and particularly
the UI Carver College of Medicine, has always been global. In my
own case, foreign doctors were always treated with great warmth
and respect, which resulted in long-term friendships
and strong professional bonds. Our hope is to promote this multicultural
dimension of the medical school and the university as a whole,
and help insure its presence in the lives of future medical professionals." -
Naser Payvandi
Doctors without borders—it's a concept that Naser and Catherine
Payvandi have greatly invested in.
That investment continues to grow, as another Naser and Catherine
Payvandi Medical Scholarship was presented to a University of Iowa
Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine student at the
2002 Student Scholarship Awards Luncheon November 15.
Naser, a 1973 UI resident in internal medicine and 1975 UI fellow
in cardiology, and Catherine, who received her Ph.D. in English
literature from the University of Iowa in 1978, created the Naser
and Catherine Payvandi Medical Scholarship fund in 1999 to help
students interested in international medicine.
In establishing the fund, the Payvandis hope to attract motivated
and gifted students to the UI Carver College of Medicine, especially
students who show interest in promoting global medicine and who
value the principle that doctors have no borders.
"The spirit of the university, and particularly the UI Carver
College of Medicine, has always been global," Naser said. "In
my own case, foreign doctors were always treated with great warmth
and respect, which resulted in long-term friendships and strong
professional bonds. Our hope is to promote this multicultural dimension
of the medical school and the university as a whole, and help insure
its presence in the lives of future medical professionals."
Both Naser and Catherine are grateful for the training they received
at the UI, and "giving back seemed a natural way of helping
others fulfill their academic and professional dreams as we have," Naser
said.
As parents of a UI medical student, the Payvandis also recognize—first
hand—how meaningful scholarships can be for students.
"Our daughter is a first-year medical student, and we can
clearly see how important it is for students to have the opportunity
to devote all their energies to the academic program without the
added stress of financial anxiety," Catherine said.
Following graduation, most UI medical students will carry tens
of thousands of dollars in debt, despite the UI having one of the
lowest in-state tuition rates in the Big Ten.
"Because the costs of medical education are so high and personal
resources and funding opportunities are limited, scholarships are
necessary in order to insure quality performance and peace of mind
for medical students," Naser said.
Naser is a cardiologist with United Heart Associates and medical
director of the Nassif Heart Center at St. Luke's Hospital in Cedar
Rapids. Catherine is an adjunct professor of English at Coe College
in Cedar Rapids, where she teaches 19th century British fiction
and Middle Eastern literature.
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