Dr. Katharine McGinigle, Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, reflects on her experience as ALPS Traveling Fellow 2022. With a unique perspective that bridges clinical excellence and public health systems thinking, Dr. McGinigle shares how the fellowship influenced her approach to multidisciplinary limb preservation and why she thinks anyone working in limb preservation could benefit from applying.
“Back at UNC, I’ve been able to advocate more effectively for systems-level changes using what I learned. It also sparked new global collaborations” – Dr. Katharine McGinigle
ALPS: What inspired you to apply for the ALPS Traveling Fellowship?
Dr. McGinigle: I became deeply involved in limb preservation at UNC through our existing vascular, podiatry, and wound care program. But it was my colleague from a different university, Dr. Samantha Minc, who encouraged me to attend DFCon. At a time when I was mainly focused on ischemic wounds, she told me, “You can’t separate diabetic foot ulcers and ischemic ulcers. It’s all limb preservation.”
That first DFCon was transformational. I immediately felt energized and inspired. I knew I wanted to be part of this community. Since then, I haven’t missed a meeting.
By 2022, I had been in practice for seven years. I wasn’t necessarily looking to refine my surgical techniques. I wanted to study how limb preservation systems are built and sustained at scale and across different contexts. That was my inspiration for applying for the ALPS Traveling Fellowship. I wanted to identify the essential building blocks of a successful limb preservation program, from hospitals with vast resources to smaller community settings, in the US and abroad: What makes a center of excellence work? And how do we build models that can be adapted globally?
ALPS: What led you to pursue a career in vascular surgery?
Dr. McGinigle: I knew from a young age that I wanted to be a doctor. No one in my family worked in healthcare, but I grew up surrounded by strong STEM education and knew several physicians. Initially, I wasn’t thinking about surgery, but during my medical training, I was drawn to the impact and precision of surgical care.
I chose vascular surgery because it combines technical complexity with deep, long-term patient relationships. Many of our patients face serious, life-changing challenges, and being part of their care journey is incredibly meaningful.
ALPS: You also have a background in public health. How has that shaped your work in limb preservation?
Dr. McGinigle: While in medical school, I took an extra year to earn a Master of Public Health degree. At the time, very few surgeons pursued public health, but even back then, I knew I was interested in systems-level change and population health.
Limb preservation is a perfect match for the intersection of surgery and public health—it’s clinically complex, technically challenging, and deeply tied to issues like healthcare access, equity, and infrastructure.
Public health gave me the tools to think beyond the operating room and ask, “How do we build systems that prevent limb loss in the first place?”
ALPS: What was the process like – from application to experience?
Dr. McGinigle: It was straightforward. I wrote an essay outlining my goals, gathered a few letters of support from mentors and collaborators, and laid out the sites and experts I hoped to engage with.
The flexibility of the fellowship was wonderful.
With lingering COVID travel challenges, I spent a week visiting UCSF in person and supplemented that with virtual interviews across the globe.
I spent a full week at UCSF with Dr. Michael Conte, focusing on their role as one of the first centers to complete the American College of Surgeons’ Vascular Verification Program. I was fascinated by the hospital-wide commitment to institutionalizing quality and sustainability in vascular care.
Beyond that, I connected with:
- Dr. Andrea Casini and Dr. Giacomo Clerici (Milan, Italy), who have a well developed limb preservation program
- Dr. Alberto Settembrini (Milan, Italy), who is disseminating Enhanced Recovery After Surgery in vascular surgery in Italy for patients who need aortic or leg bypass surgery
- Dr. Ahmed Kayassi (Toronto, Canada), who works in limb preservation in the city, but also in remote First Nations communities
- Dr. Beatrice Moreno (Chile), a surgeon with peripheral vascular expertise at the University hospital, who is also working through their national society to improve vascular health education and training
Each experience offered a different perspective – academic centers, public hospitals, remote clinics. It helped me understand what’s possible with both abundant and limited resources and it gave me a deeper appreciation for non-clinical factors that impact care, like administration, infrastructure, and policy.
Back at UNC, I’ve been able to advocate more effectively for systems-level changes using what I learned. It also sparked new global collaborations. Through ALPS, I’m working to help define scalable models of excellence in limb preservation that can be used in both high-resource and underserved environments.
ALPS: Who would you encourage to apply for the ALPS Traveling Fellowship?
Dr. McGinigle: Honestly, anyone involved in limb preservation. The fellowship is flexible by design. Whether you’re early in your career and want to shadow clinical masters, or you’re more senior and want to focus on systems or research partnerships, it can be tailored to you.
Because ALPS brings together diverse disciplines – vascular, podiatry, wound care, infectious disease – everyone has something to learn and contribute. The Traveling Fellowship is a powerful way to grow, both professionally and personally.
“Dr. McGinigle’s accomplishments exemplify the far impact of the ALPS Traveling Fellowship” said ALPS CEO, Georgia Krehbiel.
About the ALPS Traveling Fellowship:
The ALPS Traveling Fellowship is a unique initiative that supports early- to mid-career healthcare professionals in expanding their expertise within the field of limb preservation. With up to $7,500 in funding, fellows are given the opportunity to visit two international centers of excellence, each for one week, to observe, learn, and collaborate across specialties. The goal is to strengthen interdisciplinary, team-based approaches to patient care—an essential part of ALPS’s mission to eliminate preventable amputations.
Fellows are encouraged to select host institutions that not only align with their own field (such as vascular surgery, podiatry, infectious disease, or rehabilitation), but also expose them to complementary disciplines. While the fellowship is not designed to fund research projects, it frequently opens the door to impactful academic and clinical collaborations.
Applicants must be active members of ALPS in order to apply.
To see what this journey looks like in practice, read about the experience of Dr. Michael Siah, the 2023 ALPS Traveling Fellow, who visited world-renowned limb salvage expert Dr. Roberto Ferraresi in Milan, Italy:
Bridging Borders, Saving Limbs: Dr. Michael Siah’s Journey with the ALPS Traveling Fellowship
For full details on how to apply, visit the official ALPS Traveling Fellowship page here:
https://limbpreservationsociety.org/traveling-fellowship