Medical Library Programs Coordinator Tiffany Moxham just marked her three-year anniversary at the UCR Library on July 1, 2017. Her presence has been auspicious for the inaugural class of 40 students who graduated from UC Riverside’s School of Medicine this June.

The UCR Library played an integral part in the formative years of UCR’s School of Medicine (SOM), and Moxham has been involved almost since the beginning. “I was very fortunate to be on the search committee for Tiffany’s position, and she just jumped out right away,” said Dr. Michael Nduati, CEO of UCR Health and Senior Associate Dean of Clinical Affairs. Nduati believes that hiring her was “the best decision we could have made for the library and the medical program.”

While clinical faculty may be the core of the program, Moxham has been their unwavering ally in her role at UCR Library. “We are supporting multiple clinical sites and campus locations because it embraces our community aspect,” Moxham explained. “This allows the library to align as a core piece of the research and educational programs, modeling integrated library services.”

Dr. Nduati credits many achievements by School of Medicine students directly to Moxham’s contributions. “Tiffany has been a godsend to the SOM and our medical education program,” he commented. “She meets one-on-one with the medical students to work with them on how to do literature research. A lot of these students have published and presented nationally, and a large part of their success is due to her.”

Moxham also devotes her time to collaborations with and mentorship of faculty. “A lot of faculty would be lost if they didn’t know how to access the resources they need at the library,” Nduati added. He witnessed her commitment to the faculty: “She would go to their offices to set up their computer and walk them through how to access articles. They can’t meet during regular office hours, so she would meet with them at nights, on weekends.”

Moxham has also presented at conferences nationwide with her School of Medicine colleagues. “You feel part of something bigger even though your piece of it might be small,” she said.

The outcome speaks volumes. “One hundred percent of our inaugural class matched,” said Moxham. “This means they all got into a residency program. This does not regularly happen!” Impressive results for a new medical school, indeed.

 “The piece that amazes me about the match is that we tried to do things differently,” Moxham explained. “When you see innovation in practice that allows for such great results in the end, being able to witness that effect on the students, that’s great.”

Retention of high-quality medical practitioners in Riverside and San Bernardino counties is a high priority for the School of Medicine. According to Moxham, “This school was built on the mission of improving the local community and getting more doctors here. We have a huge shortage of doctors here in the Inland Empire. Most of the scholarship money going toward the students was aimed at getting more of them to stay here.” Of the 40 graduates, 33 will complete their residencies in California, and ten of those will remain in the Inland Empire.

View photos from the 2017 School of Medicine Commencement