Princeton University Athletics
Jen Babik '95 MD / Softball & Field Hockey
City, State / Workplace / Title
San Francisco, CA/UCSF/Associate Professor of Medicine
Medical Specialty / Other Degrees (MBA/MPH, etc.)
Infectious Diseases/MD, PhD
What made you choose a career in healthcare?
I was very interested in molecular biology and how it applied to medicine. More importantly however, I learned through personal experience the value that healthcare workers can bring in guiding patients (and their families) through critical illnesses.
What is the focus of your work today?
I am a specialist in infectious diseases. I spend about 50% of my time doing direct patient care and about 50% doing teaching and educational leadership. In terms of educational leadership, I am an associate program director in our internal medicine residency program and infectious diseases fellowship program.
How has your work changed in the face of COVID-19?
I feel inspired in the stories of how people have come together to support each other during this time. I am also inspired by how my kids have shown compassion to others and have been thankful for the silver lining of more family time during shelter-in-place.Jen Babik
I served on several Working Groups and Task Forces to develop clinical and operational guidelines around taking care of patients with COVID-19. I did additional clinical time serving as the COVID Infectious Diseases Attendant at our hospital, providing triage and clinical recommendations for all COVID patients admitted to our hospital. Lastly, I contributed to the education of faculty and trainees through development of clinical guidelines (including one that was distributed through Twitter and translated into multiple languages); giving multiple talks both locally, nationally, and internationally; and contributing to clinical and educational research around COVID.
How did being a Princeton student-athlete prepare you for the challenges you’ve faced?
A few things I learned in being a Princeton-student athlete: (1) I learned principle that "you can only control what you can control" - this was the mantra of our softball coach, Cindy Cohen; (2) I learned how to multi-task and work hard in both academics and athletics; (3) I learned how to handle pressure and also deal with (and bounce back from) mistakes. All of these skills helped me to get through medical training in general and also to approach the challenges of the pandemic as a healthcare worker. In addition, I really feel that our hospital took a team approach to taking care of patients with COVID and dealing with the uncertainties early in the pandemic. In general I think that medicine is very much a team sport - we work in teams all the time taking care of patients, and these teams include both physicians, nurses, and staff. Being a collegiate athlete at Princeton helped me figure out how to work well within a team that is striving towards a common goal. This team approach was critical during the pandemic.
What keeps you inspired as you look ahead?
I feel inspired in the stories of how people have come together to support each other during this time. I am also inspired by how my kids have shown compassion to others and have been thankful for the silver lining of more family time during shelter-in-place.
Medical School / Other Affiliations
Stanford School of Medicine; Internal Medicine Residency and Infectious Diseases Fellowship: UCSF
Tiger Heroes
In partnership with RWJBarnabas Health, the official health care system of Princeton Athletics, “Tiger Heroes” honors front line workers and health care leaders from our alumni community. This digital and social series highlights alumni from all 37 varsity sports programs who have risen to the challenge since the onset of COVID-19. We also recognize special Princeton friends and family. Nominations may be sent to Jess Deutsch, Princeton's Associate Director, Student-Athlete Services: jdeutsch@princeton.edu