Photo: Hallie Leo
A near-death childhood experience with meningitis inspired first-generation student Stefan Malek, BSN, RN, to pursue a career in nursing, ultimately enrolling in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at the Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing at UMass Chan Medical School. Malek, a member of the Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Track, is slated to graduate in 2027.
“I was often sick as a kid because my parents would travel from Europe to the Middle East to visit their families and my immune system was weaker,” said Malek, whose father is Egyptian and mother Romanian. “I had bacterial meningitis and secondary pneumonia in Port Said, Egypt, and it took five hours from the ferry to the nearest hospital; my mom didn’t think I would make it. Since then, I wanted to do something in health care.”
Malek has lived in Massachusetts for most of his life, graduating from Worcester Technical High School with a certificate in environmental science and earning his undergraduate degree in nursing at Fitchburg State University. Prior to enrolling at UMass Chan, he worked in a substance use detox facility at Spectrum Health Systems, Inc. and in a cardiothoracic unit at Milford Regional Medical Center. He now works as an RN on the cardiac floor at UMass Memorial Medical Center - University Campus.
“Being there for people during the worst time in their life is something I’m grateful to do,” said Malek. “I chose acute care because seeing complex cases and the high multitude of comorbidities in patients leads to never ending learning opportunities. I love being in the hospital.”
“In nursing school, we’re taught to do an EKG, give aspirin, nitroglycerin and morphine for patients with chest pain,” continued Malek. “As a DNP student, I’ve learned about many various tests to rule out cardiac ischemia depending on age, demographic, if they’re pregnant, past medical history, or if they’re able to do a cardiac stress test on a treadmill, a chemical stress test or a percutaneous coronary intervention. This program has expanded my knowledge.”
For his scholarly project, Malek hopes to combine what he’s learned in substance use facilities and on the cardiac floor to create an educational module, detailing cardiac risks when methadone, an opioid used to treat severe chronic pain as well as opioid use disorders, and suboxone, a prescription medicine used to treat opioid addiction, interact with the many cardiac medications given to patients.
“I see a lot of patients with substance use disorders, whether that’s alcohol, opioids or fentanyl,” he said. “Some patients are in remission and take certain medications to help stay out of withdrawal. A lot of those meds have interactions with cardiac medications and drips we use on the floor.”
Three years ago, after working as a nurse and seeing how patients carrying excess weight suffered complications such as musculoskeletal disorders and hypertension, Malek sought to improve his own health through exercise and ultimately lost 120 pounds.
Outside of the hospital, he can be found hanging out with friends, traveling and spending time with his two cats.
The Student Spotlight series features UMass Chan Medical School students in the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing and T.H. Chan School of Medicine. For more information about UMass Chan Medical School and how to apply, visit the Prospective Students page.
