Rabkin Fellowship Leadership

About Our Fellowship Co-Directors

Anita Vanka, MD

Dr. Anita Vanka is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a Hospitalist in the Department of Medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Originally from Champaign, Illinois, Dr. Vanka received her Bachelor of Science in Molecular & Integrative Physiology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She graduated with Honors from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in 2005. Dr. Vanka subsequently completed her internship and residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in 2008, followed by her primary care chief residency year. She joined the Division of General Medicine as an attending hospitalist in 2009.

Dr. Vanka spends the majority of her time in medical education. Having completed her Rabkin Fellowship in Medical Education in 2012, she served as an Associate Program Director for the Internal Medicine Residency at BIDMC from 2011-2019. She has held several major leadership positions at Harvard Medical School & Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, including several advising and course directorship roles. She currently is the Director of the Practice of Medicine course at HMS, the Associate Director and Advisor of the Hinton Society at HMS, and the Co-Director of the Rabkin Fellowship in Medical Education at BIDMC.

Celeste Royce, MD

Celeste Royce MD is a generalist in obstetrics and gynecology, and practices at the Bowdoin Street Health Center, a community health center providing comprehensive medical care to a predominantly immigrant, culturally diverse and socio-economically challenged population in Dorchester, MA. Dr. Royce is the Clerkship Director for the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and the co-director for the second-year Transitions to Clinical Experiences course at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Royce serves on the Trauma-informed Care Steering Committee Committee and as Co-Chair of the Gynecology Leadership Committee and is a member of both the BIDMC Academy of Medical Educators and the Academy at Harvard Medical School, where she is the Co-Chair of the Critical Thinking Interest Group. Her scholarly interests include critical thinking, patient safety initiatives, professional identity development, curriculum development and student assessment. She has taught and mentored medical students, residents and junior faculty. She has held leadership roles in both undergraduate and graduate medical education in Obstetrics and Gynecology and has won numerous teaching awards. She currently serves on the national UME committee for the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics.