As Sloane Murphy held the patient’s organs, she never imagined her journey at the University of Florida Emerging Pathogens Institute would land her in an operating room halfway across the world.
Murphy, a fourth-year microbiology and cell science major, minoring in health disparities and medical geography, dove into research at UF as soon as possible. Guided by her mentor, Gabriela Hamerlinck, Ph.D., she applied for the University Scholars Program, which allows undergraduate students to conduct research projects.
In no time, she launched a project studying medical geography and infectious disease. This soon led to an additional lab internship studying opioids and a mentorship in insect biology. Through a series of connections, a door opened to the EPI, where she became part of the first cohort of the EPI Ambassador Program.
The EPI Ambassador Program empowers undergraduate students passionate about public health to become the next leaders in infectious disease research. For Murphy, the program offered much more than a title; it became a launchpad for new experiences, connections and travel.
“I love research, and I’m really interested in infectious disease as a medical specialty,” said Murphy. “The unexpected part was the opportunities I got through the program … You really can make it what you want.”
Beyond the lab: What the EPI offers
In her work with kissing bugs, the insects responsible for spreading Chagas disease, Murphy explored how weather and climate influence kissing bug behavior. When most college students were relaxing, Murphy crouched in Florida backyards chasing kissing bugs with “The Kissing Bug Doctor,” EPI member Norman Beatty, M.D.
“We made the same route every night around dusk, trying to collect kissing bugs,” Murphy said. “Within 48 hours after heavy rain, we found almost no bugs feeding. That kind of insight can directly inform public health messaging, like knowing when it’s safer to do yard work.”
Once Murphy established her research foundation with the EPI, she took advantage of the EPI Ambassador Programs’ professional development stipend to participate in a clinical shadowing program in Ferrara, Italy. From 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., she and her peers immersed themselves in the hospital’s wealth of knowledge, rotating through various departments within the teaching hospital.
“My personal favorite was the robotic surgery that I was able to shadow,” she said.
In the hours after their shadowing, Murphy and others in the program explored Italy, enjoying group dinners and excursions. They traveled to nearby countries like Switzerland and took the train across Italy to see the House of Juliet in Verona.
Inside the hospital walls, Murphy encountered unexpected cultural perspectives on healthcare. This challenged her to think critically about the differences between American and Italian medical training.
She explained that in Italy, students go directly from high school to medical school, so the physicians’ expectations exceeded her capabilities. While difficult, she was encouraged to explore topics typically unavailable to American undergraduate students. Italian physicians treated her as a peer, inviting her and her colleagues into operating rooms and encouraging them to ask questions mid-surgery.
“It was very centered around, ‘Come watch, ask me questions as I’m doing it, tell me what you want to learn,’ that kind of thing,” she said. “It was really cool.”
The power of mentorship and communication
At the EPI, Murphy has explored clinical work inside and outside the laboratory. Shadowing at UF Health, studying entomology, conducting field research and volunteering at community clinics helped her uncover healthcare’s scientific and human dimensions.
The EPI Ambassador Program also gave Murphy something less expected: A chance to improve her science communication skills. Through outreach, tabling events and creative social media projects — including Instagram posts like “Five things I wish I knew about undergraduate research” — Murphy learned how to make complex topics relatable and engaging.
“I used to struggle with explaining my research,” she said. “So having the creative outlet with (the) EPI and understanding how to make people want to listen, want to learn, has been very helpful.”
A glimpse into the future
After graduation, Murphy plans to pursue a Master of Science in Health Education to eventually become a physician and educator. She’s especially interested in infectious diseases, primarily in making medicine more accessible, empathetic and informed by research.
“My whole motivation for medicine is giving people second chances, especially when they don’t see one for themselves,” she says. “Research has shown me how to connect the dots between climate and disease, between culture and care, and between science and storytelling.”
It wasn’t just UF’s resources that shaped her path; it was the people. Her curiosity found mentorship in professors like Hamerlinck, who first introduced her to medical geography, and Beatty, who acted as her gateway to infectious disease research. Murphy’s multidisciplinary research experience gave her a deeper understanding of what it means to pursue science that touches lives.
“Getting to work with people who are so successful in their fields, learning from them, seeing how I can be a great doctor, how I can be a great researcher … I think for the rest of my life, it’ll be one of the most unforgettable opportunities I’ve had,” Murphy said.
Written by: Sydney Burge