About Dr. Acker
Rachael Acker is a PGY3 categorical general surgery resident. She graduated summa cum laude with a French major from the University of California, Berkeley (Cal). During her collegiate career, she swam Division I on the Cal Women’s swim team, earning both NCAA individual and team titles. She obtained her MD from Harvard Medical School where she developed a passion for surgical education. She intends to pursue surgical education research both in residency and in her career as an academic surgeon. She is open-minded about her future sub-specialty and is currently interested in surgical oncology.
Societies
- Association for Surgical Education
- Association of Women Surgeons
Awards
2016 - 2017
Fulbright Research Grant Recipient: Rennes, France
Research
June 2020 - present
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Dept. of Colon and Rectal Surgery, Boston, Massachusetts
Clinical Researcher
Principal Investigator: Dr. Evangelos Messaris
Project Title: “Institutional impact of NAPRC (The National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer) accreditation guidelines on outcomes in rectal cancer”
April 2020 - present
Massachusetts General Hospital, Urogynecology Department, Boston, Massachusetts
Clinical Researcher
Principal Investigator: Dr. Emily Von Bargen
Project Title: “Does the introduction of telemedicine during COVID-19 provide a model for building patient-centered care for Urogynecology patients in the ambulatory setting?”
March 2020 - present
Harvard Medical School
Massachusetts General Hospital, General Surgery Department, Boston, Massachusetts
Medical Education Researcher, First Author
Principal Investigator: Dr. Roy Phitayakorn
Project title: “OR Etiquette: Minimizing awkwardness and optimizing learning”, as part of the Massachusetts General Hospital Surgery medical education series of “Video Based Modules”
March 2020 - present
Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Gynecologic Oncology Department, Boston, Massachusetts
Clinical Researcher
Principal Investigator: Dr. Michael J. Worley
Project Title: “Association of statins on tumor response in women with ovarian cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy”
January 2020 - present
Massachusetts General Hospital, Gynecologic Oncology Department, Boston, Massachusetts
Clinical Researcher
Principal Investigator: Dr. Oladapo Yeku
Project Titles: “Incidence of immune related adverse events in patients with gynecologic cancers; A multi-institutional twenty-year retrospective review” and “A multi-institutional retrospective analysis of the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in gynecologic cancers”
October 2019 - present
Harvard Medical School
Massachusetts General Hospital, General Surgery Department, Boston, Massachusetts
Medical Education Researcher
Principal Investigator: Dr. Roy Phitayakorn
Project titles: “Finding my people: Effects of student identity and stereotype threat on fit and belonging in surgery” and “Eyes of the beholders: Medical students’ perceptions of surgeons and a surgical career”
September 2016 - July 2017
Université de Rennes, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Rennes, France
Molecular Biology Researcher
Principal Investigator: Prof. Gilles Salbert
Project Title: “CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock out of the mouse Tdg gene in P19 embryonal carcinoma cells”
Presentations: Annual “Rapport de stage” (internship presentations) with first-year Master’s students at the University of Rennes, June 2017.
June 2013 - July 2016
University of California Berkeley, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Berkeley, California
Molecular and Cell Biology Researcher
Principal Investigator: Prof. Rebecca Heald
Project Titles: “Paternal chromosome loss and metabolic crisis contribute to hybrid inviability in Xenopus” and “Hybrids Provide Insight Into Cell and Organism Size Control”
Publications
- Gibeaux, R., Acker, R., Kitaoka, M., Georgiou, G., van Kruijsbergen, I., Ford, B., … Heald, R. (2018). Paternal chromosome loss and metabolic crisis contribute to hybrid inviability in Xenopus. Nature doi.org/10.1038/nature25188.
- Gibeaux R, Miller K, Acker R, Kwon T and Heald R (2018) Xenopus Hybrids Provide Insight Into Cell and Organism Size Control. Front. Physiol. 9:1758. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2018.01758.
Abstracts (manuscripts in progress)
- Acker, R., Healy, M., Vanderkruik, R., Petrusa, E., McKinley, S., Phitayakorn, R.. Eyes of the Beholders: Medical Students’ Perceptions of Surgeons and a Surgical Career. Association for Surgical Education Annual Meeting. (Podium presentation April 30, 2021)
- Acker, R., Healy, M., Vanderkruik, R., Petrusa, E., McKinley, S., Phitayakorn, R.. Finding my People: Effects of Student Identity and Fear of Discrimination on Fit and Belonging in Surgery. Association for Surgical Education Annual Meeting. (Podium presentation April 30, 2021)
- Dombek,G., Acker, R., Allar, B., Storino, A., Whitlock, A., Pastrana del Valle, J., Fleishman, A., Messaris, E.. Institutional impact of NAPRC guidelines on surgical margin status in rectal cancer. American College of Colon and Rectal Surgeons Annual Meeting. (Accepted for presentation April 24-26, 2021)
- Acker, R., Ramos, M., Penson, R., Bouberhan, S., Castro, C., Bregar, A., Liu, J., Spriggs, D., Yeku, O.. Incidence of immune related adverse events in patients with gynecologic cancers; A multi institutional twenty-year retrospective review. Society of Gynecologic Oncology Annual Meeting. (Poster presentation March 19, 2021)
- Acker, R., Ramos, M., Penson, R., Bouberhan, S., Castro, C., Eisenhauer, E., Liu, J., Spriggs, D., Yeku, O.. A multi-institutional retrospective analysis of the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in gynecologic cancers. Society of Gynecologic Oncology Annual Meeting. (Poster presentation March 19, 2021)
- Kim,Y., Acker, R., Ortega, M., Valentine, K., Ayati, E., VonBargen, E.. Synchronous telemedicine model in urogynecology: are women willing to continue telemedicine in the post COVID-19 pandemic era?. The 47th Society of Gynecologic Surgeons Annual Scientific Meeting. (Accepted for presentation March 21-March 24, 2021, Palm Springs, CA.)