Profile: Vincent Covelli, MD

Division of Infectious Diseases & International Health
FELLOW PROFILE: Vincent Covelli, MD

Vince and his wife, Asefeh.

I grew up in the suburbs of New York City, in Westchester County. I made my way upstate to (a very snowy) Syracuse for college, and then went back downstate to Long Island for medical school. I then decided it was time to leave the hustle and bustle of New York for good, going on to complete my internal medicine residency at the University of Connecticut. I started my three-year infectious diseases fellowship at UVA in July and am currently completing a dedicated research year focused on better understanding antimalarial-resistance mechanisms. I know I will be well prepared to enter a career in academic infectious diseases after my training. I currently live in downtown Charlottesville with my wife, Asefeh, surrounded by an overabundance of fantastic restaurants, friends and cultural activities.

 Why infectious diseases?

The field is unbelievably fascinating and ever-expanding! Becoming an ID physician will allow me to become the quintessential “disease detective,” providing me with constant intellectual challenges throughout my career. Most importantly, I chose infectious diseases as a specialty because I will often be able to truly cure patients of their life-threatening diseases. What other specialty has the potential to be as fulfilling?

What do you like most about Charlottesville?

The vibrant people, hands down. Charlottesville has been newly recognized as the happiest city in the U.S., according to its residents. I now understand why. A close-knit community that allows for innumerable opportunities to enjoy the outdoors, farm-to-table agriculture and a burgeoning music scene that parallels Nashville — I am proud to call Charlottesville my home.

What opportunities do you have at UVA that made you choose to come to UVA?

The Division of Infectious Diseases at UVA is internationally renowned, with a long history of training highly successful clinician-scientists. The passion and dedication to both mentorship and patient care among the faculty and my colleagues is unparalleled, and is what ultimately led me to choose UVA to complete my training.

Best advice anyone ever gave you?

Choose a career path that is not influenced by financial gain, but will forever make you happy.

What about you would surprise us?

You would think from my name that I would enjoy cooking and eating Italian-influenced foods the most; however, I am an Indian spice enthusiast. My claim to fame is a signature curry, vindaloo, which contains ghost chilies, aromatic spices and an assortment of vegetables, meat and potatoes, which are all slow-cooked to perfection.