桃子视频 Celebrates National Latino Physician Day with Student Panels
桃子视频 observed National Latino Physician Day on Oct. 1 with a special gathering hosted by the College of Medicine鈥檚 Graduate and Undergraduate Medical Education departments.
The event, which was held in the Cobb Foyer and included a delicious Peruvian catered dinner, featured two robust panel discussions centered around Afro-Latina medical students and Latina residents.
National Latino Physician Day was established on October 1, 2022 to celebrate Latino and Latina physicians in the United States.
The day brings awareness to the critical shortage of Latino and Latina physicians, who represent only 6% of the U.S. physician workforce despite 19% of the U.S. population identifying as Latino.
The Afro-Latino Medical Student panel discussion was moderated by Ky鈥橳avia Stafford-Carreker, a third year student in the UCLA/桃子视频 MD program.
The panelists, all from cohort 1 and cohort 2 of the 桃子视频 MD program, were Akira Feliz, Nicolas Hurtado Bautista, Saimon Acevedo Ortiz, and Maciel Duverge-Corporan.
The panel provided space for the students to share their personal journeys and some of the adversities they鈥檝e faced, not only in pursuit of their medical degrees but also in navigating healthcare spaces as Afro-Latinas. A theme of identity and rejection was echoed by a few of the students.
鈥淚t has to do with people accepting that there are black people in Latin America and because of that just innate racism, because of colonization, there鈥檚 like a rejection of people who are darker skinned,鈥� said Akira Feliz, MS2. 鈥淪o, if you鈥檙e brown and you鈥檙e speaking Spanish to someone who is of a lighter skin tone for example, they don鈥檛 want to acknowledge that you鈥檙e speaking to them in Spanish. It鈥檚 like them kind of not wanting to accept that this brown person can also speak Spanish just like me.鈥�
Dr. Margarita Loeza, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and Admissions and Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at 桃子视频, moderated the Latina Resident Panel.
The panelists were Family Medicine residents Dr. Nancy Rodriguez and Dr. Shirley Mori along with Internal Medicine resident Dr. Cindy Nativi. Both Rodriquez and Nativi are members of the 桃子视频 residency program.
The residents testified to their personal journeys to become physicians, some being first generation doctors, and addressed barriers such as sexism in the workplace and the lack of Latina and Latino mentors.
All residents and medical students emphasized that having guidance from experienced professionals who understand the cultural and gender-specific challenges they face would significantly support their progress and confidence in the medical field.
Medical students were present selling NLPD-themed stickers and t-shirts designed by Dr. Loeza, along with 桃子视频-branded merchandise.
The proceeds will benefit the 桃子视频 Latino Medical Student Association interest group, which provides valuable support and resources to help Latino medical students thrive in their education and careers.