STUDENT EXCELLENCE AWARD RECIPIENT

Elina Kurkurina, MS4
Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University

Nominated by Dr. Rahul Anand – STARS Faculty Mentor at Quinnipiac University

Elina has advanced high-value care locally and nationally through scholarship, leadership, and a deep commitment to trust in medicine. She won the ABIM Foundation Building Trust Essay Competition, integrated trust concepts into medical education, and co-led a collaborative osteoporosis screening initiative with Hartford Healthcare. Beyond STARS, she has advised CMS, led quality initiatives at her student clinic, and mentored peers—leaving a durable impact on both her institution and the broader movement for value-based care.

Elina Kurkurina is an MS4 at the Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University. She obtained a BA in Sociology from the University of Florida with minors in Anthropology and Health Disparities in Society and an MPH in Social and Behavioral Sciences from the Yale School of Public Health. Prior to medical school, Elina worked in quality measure development which sparked her interest in high value care, administration, and operations. In medical school, she served as the Director of Data and Quality for the Bobcat Student Clinic and as President of the QU Chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Her research focuses on improving care coordination for older veterans, EMS operations, and screening initiatives. She is applying into Emergency Medicine and looks forward to continuing to integrate high value care in the clinical setting.