Seetha Monrad, MD

Dr. Seetha Monrad is an Associate Professor of Learning Health Sciences and Internal Medicine.  She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and her medical degree from Washington University in St. Louis. After internal medicine residency at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, she came to Ann Arbor for rheumatology fellowship, and has remained ever since. Her early career as a research fellow focused on bench research in rheumatology, studying dendritic cell phenotype and function in mice and humans, along with mouse models of lupus. She subsequently switched focus to medical education across the continuum, with a particular emphasis on medical student education and curriculum transformation. She has directed a number of preclinical medical school courses and currently serves as director of the first two years of the UMMS curriculum (the Trunk). She also coordinates rheumatology educational experiences for the internal medicine residency program. She is a former recipient of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Clinician Scholar Educator Award, and is pursuing a Master of Health Professions Education through the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Department of Medical Education. She also has been very active in the ACR, initially in maintenance of certification activities and most recently on the Committee on Rheumatology Training and Workforce Issues. She was the co-lead for the 2015 ACR Rheumatology Workforce Study, the decennial workforce analysis that helps inform strategic planning for the national society.