When I discovered that it was possible for medical students to be involved in the admissions committee that was one of my goals that I  Immediately set for myself. I love the idea of being able to get involved in the college of medicine. I liked the idea of being accountable for helping t select the next class who would uphold the same values of community, altruism and integrity that i loved about Ohio State. I chose Ohio State for several reasons; I loved idea and culture that already existed but also the capacity for change that I saw. One of the things that I love about OSU is Dr. Capers. He saw a problem with the amount of diversity that there was in a medical schools, and thus the physician workforce and set out to change it. So at the same time I served on the admissions committee I also served as the admissions committee liaison for SNMA. Basically in this position my role was to reach out to all URM students who were interviewing and answer any questions that they may have and give them a general welcome. I hosted them when possible and found other URMs if not and most importantly I made sure either myself or another SNMA member was there to help to greet them at the interview lunch. Interviewing for medical school is not only about finding a place where you’ll get great training but also finding where you feel welcome. I liked being a small part of helping students who journey into the owls of medicine where they don’t see a lot of themselves represented feel welcome.

I firmly believe that as physicians we have a duty not to just treat our patients but to be their champions and lend our voices to the issues they face outside of our hospitals. A big part of my attraction to SNMA is their commitment to serve the community in which our school based. SNMA for me encapsulated a lot of the values that I held and gave me an opportunity to help fight for them. We did everything from volunteer at health fairs, offer multi level mentoring and landed our voices for many issues facing our community. We formed telephone lines  to call our senators in protest of the new healthcare bill that would have stripped insurance away from millions of our patients.

 After the numerous senseless killings of unarmed African-American men in our country we discussed and planned and eventually this led to the creation of a branch of White Coats for Black Lives. The organization was started in several medical schools across the country by with people with similar beliefs: that racism is a public health issue that threatens the lives of our patients daily. As physicians we must recognize that racism and racial bias is a threat to the well-being of our patients of color. Our organization staged a die in to protest police brutality and the senseless loss of lives with the FULL support of our deans. A goal of our organization what’s with knowledge they racial bias exist within our medical centers across the country in the lead to differences in healthcare and outcomes.  Having full support of our Dean here at Ohio State (something that did not occur many other places) Service school and really underlined that people were willing to try. Every time I turn on my TV or use my computer I can see a rundown of social injustices that are plaguing our country and our world. As physicians we cannot, I cannot simply standby and watch these injustices continue to occur and be unmoved. No matter what role I play in the healthcare system, be that medical student or physician, I will always lend my voice to the fight.