Keynote Speaker

Ruby Patel

Ruby is a graduate of Nanuet Senior High School (Class of 2014). She earned her Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2018. While at UNC, she helped design custom 3-D printed prosthetic hands for children with traumatic injuries.

Interested in pursuing medicine, Ruby spent significant time outside the engineering classroom shadowing physicians and volunteering. She went on to receive her medical degree from New York Medical College in 2022 and subsequently matched into orthopedic surgery residency. She is currently a fourth-year orthopedic surgery resident at Westchester Medical Center and plans to pursue a fellowship in hand and upper extremity surgery.

Ruby is passionate about orthopedic surgery because it brings together problem-solving, hands-on work, and patient care. She enjoys finding creative solutions to complex challenges and finds it especially rewarding to see how new ideas and technology can directly improve a patient’s

quality of life.

Throughout her training, Ruby has been fortunate to learn from supportive mentors who encouraged her curiosity and growth. She is committed to paying that support forward and enjoys mentoring students who are interested in science, engineering, medicine, and orthopedics.  In her free time, she enjoys going to the gym, listening to audiobooks, and traveling.

Awards/Honors

• Adrian E. Flatt Scholarship Recipient (2025)

Travel scholarship for the American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual 

Meeting

• Cor et Manus Award, New York Medical College (2022)

Recognized for excellence in leadership and community service

• Merit-Based Scholarship, New York Medical College (2018–2022)

• Honors in Biomedical Engineering, UNC Chapel Hill (2018)

Honors thesis presentation and defense

• Biomedical Engineering Department Leadership Award, UNC Chapel Hill (2018)

• Buckley Public Service Scholar, UNC Chapel Hill (2014–2018)

Completed 300+ hours of community service

• Honors Carolina Laureate & Dean’s List, UNC Chapel Hill (2014–2018)

• Valedictorian, Nanuet Senior High School (2014)