Yvette Calderon

Calderon was raised in a housing project in Hell's Kitchen. Her parents both emigrated to Manhattan from Puerto Rico. Her father was a member of Borinqueneers, the 65th Infantry Regiment who served during the Korean War. She was mentored by a philanthropist who created a program to keep students off the streets, and had the opportunity to visit the Mount Sinai Health System. She eventually attended Brown University, then earned her medical degree at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She completed her internship in internal medicine at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center, before moving to the Jacobi Medical Center for her residency. == Research and career ==

Calderon started her career at the Jacobi Medical Center. Her career has focused on elimination of HIV/AIDS amongst at-risk populations and underserved communities. In the 2010s in The Bronx, where Calderon spent part of her childhood, over 23,000 people were living with HIV/AIDS, and around one quarter were not aware they were carrying the virus. Calderon made HIV testing part of routine medical care in NYC Health + Hospitals. She developed Behavioral Intervention-Rapid HIV Testing Education & Follow-Up (BRIEF), which looked to improve awareness of HIV through rapid testing. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Calderon was Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the Mount Sinai Beth Israel Hospital. Calderon's father died from the disease. This motivated her to ensure all hospitalized COVID-19 patients would be able to hear the voice of people they knew. She investigated health disparities during COVID-19, and tried to persuade reluctant community members to get the vaccine. Calderon developed the first digital HIV diagnostic and counseling program, which has been deployed in various clinical settings. ==Awards and honors ==

• 2003 Inducted into Leo M. Davidoff Society • 2013 The Linda Laubenstein Award for Excellence in HIV care • 2015 New York City Health and Hospital Corporation: Doctor’s Day Award • 2019 Crain Communications Notable Women in Healthcare • 2021 Crain’s New York Champion of Change Award • 2022 Elected Fellow of the National Academy of Medicine == Selected publications ==