Dr. Taranjeet Ahuja received her Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed her pediatric residency at Stony Brook University Hospital located in Stony Brook, NY. While there, she was selected to be chief resident and became highly recognized for her skills not only as a clinician, but also as a medical educator.
Following time in private practice, Dr. Ahuja assumed a position in academics as an Assistant Professor of Science Education & Pediatrics at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. In this role, she is currently the Director of the Initial Clinical Experience (ICE). ICE is an integral part of the pre-clerkship, first 100 weeks, curriculum that affords students direct, meaningful patient responsibilities while learning to apply scientific, social, and behavioral patient care principles. She is also the Director of the continuity clinic component of the Advanced Clinical Experience, which provides the outpatient longitudinal experience in the MS3 year.
Dr. Ahuja is also the Co-Leader of the 4- year longitudinal Communications Curriculum and is responsible for designing, implementing and assessing the communication skills aspect of medical student training. She also serves as a facilitator for small-group sessions for the non-biological sciences as well as PEARLS, a course designed to help students learn the key concepts of biomedical science embedded in real patient cases.
Dr. Ahuja has given numerous presentations on topics in pediatric medicine and undergraduate medical education. She is board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Association of American Medical Colleges, as well as the International Association of Medical Science Educators.
Drs. Ahuja and Fornari have collaborated to launch, implement and evaluate Tell Me More, a Arnold P Gold Foundation registered program, with medical students. This program is offered in the summer between the MS1 and MS2 years as well as an elective in the MS4 year. It provides the opportunity for students to engage in conversation with hospitalized patients and nurture a connection via the patient’s story. This program has been presented and published in the Patient Experience Journal of the Beryl Institute.