From a scholarship student from Ethiopia to a physician at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, USA, his journey began at the First Faculty of Medicine of Charles University. Dr. Zelalem Temesgen now leads collaborative research efforts and clinical trials that impact the management of infectious diseases globally. During a recent visit to his alma mater, he reflected on the strong foundations that shaped his career, his path to HIV and tuberculosis research, and the unique experience of studying medicine in Czech in the 1980s.
Looking back at your time studying at the First Faculty of Medicine, what helped you the most in your later career?
I grew up in Ethiopia and received a scholarship to study at the First Faculty of Medicine. Before coming here, I didn’t know much about Charles University or the faculty itself. However, once I arrived, I realized I was studying in a very well-established environment with a long history, excellent professors, and strong laboratory facilities. This provided a solid foundation for my later career as an internist and infectious disease physician.
Many students dream of working at top institutions abroad but aren’t sure if it’s realistic. What would you say to students who are thinking about taking that leap?
It is very important to have a strong foundation and a solid knowledge base at the beginning of your medical career. The more you are exposed to a well-developed, well-organized medical school environment, the better prepared you are for future opportunities. Studying at a top institution is not an absolute requirement for success, but it is certainly a very good start.
Your journey took you from Europe to the U.S., and now you are leading global programs in HIV and tuberculosis. What shaped your decision?
Like many medical students, I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to do after finishing medical school. I studied medicine at a time when the HIV epidemic was just beginning, with the first reports emerging during the early years of my studies, when HIV became a global problem. I also come from a country where tuberculosis is endemic—a very poor country—and I have always been drawn to diseases that affect large numbers of poor and marginalized people. My interest in HIV and TB is therefore very much a consequence of my background. I have also always enjoyed detective and mystery stories, and infectious diseases come closest to that kind of work in medicine—piecing together different facts and clues to solve complex problems. That is why I chose infectious diseases and why I do what I do.
When you think back to your time as a medical student, what did you find most unique and memorable about studying medicine in the Czech Republic?
Because I was far away from my family and friends, I had to build new relationships in the Czech Republic. Some of my friends were Czech, while others were international students in the same situation as I was. There were students from many different countries, which created a very supportive professional and personal environment during my studies at the faculty.
What language did you study in?
In the 1980s, there was no English-language program, so we studied entirely in Czech. All lectures and all exams were in Czech. For that reason, I had to spend a year at a language school in Mariánské Lázně to learn Czech well enough to be able to study medicine in the language.
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