Latinos in Medical School: Family, Faith, and Friends

There’s no question that Latinos and African-Americans are woefully underrepresented in the nation’s medical schools.  For the select few that have the opportunity to recite the Hippocratic Oath – an oath taken by doctors to practice ethical medicine – the road to M.D. is an arduous one.  Once admitted, students are subjected to rigorous training and an academic curriculum that leaves little time for stress relief.  The pressure to succeed at these elite institutions is so great that 25.1% of medical students have considered suicide according to a recent study by the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Juanita (name changed for privacy), a student at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston, is in her last year before residency, a period of clinical training for new doctors.  She always wanted to be a doctor since she was a child, and wants to open a clinic for the immigrant community in Houston.  As a first generation Mexican-American, she has found that the culture in medical school completely clashes with her family values.  The result has been four years of isolation from both communities. “When you get to medical school, the other students are supposed to become your family.  They spend holidays together, go on vacations together, and depend on each other for everything.  I wasn’t raised like that.  I only have one family.”  Her reluctance to conform to medical school culture has handicapped her both academically, socially, and left her unable to fulfill her familial obligations. “Truthfully I don’t want my story told yet.  I haven’t survived.  It’s not over for me yet.  I don’t know if I will.”

David Alonzo, whose family is from Jalisco, Mexico, just got matched to a Urology residency program in Miami.  He moved to Houston from Alamo, Texas to attend Baylor College of Medicine, one of the top 10 medical schools in the country.   Having never been away from his family, David calls his mother everyday.  ” It’s just my mom and myself in the immediate family and we are very close. I call her each and every day whenever I get a chance and I think we have gotten even closer with more than 400 miles distance between us these 4 years of med school.”  The initial transition to life in the big city without family was difficult and almost caused him to fail a block of tests. David regained his composure because he realized his family was rooting for him and Rio Grande Valley would benefit from his M.D. “My dream was always to become a doctor and return to my home. It is ridiculously medically underserved and I would not be able to do that if I failed out of medical school,” says David.  Family and faith are his main priorities.  When he isn’t talking to his mother, he tried to go to church every week. “If I could sit an hour in front of the TV, I could sit an hour in church or call my family.”  David advises future Latino medical students to set their own priorities and find time to have fun.

Another Baylor student, Daisy Gracia, had the opposite experience.  Daisy’s family is from Mexico, but she was raised in South Texas.  She feels the relationship with her family has not changed, and talks to them daily.  The transition from undergraduate to medical school was not a difficult one for Daisy.  ”I have been used to taking a lot of courses and studying,” she explains. Her finances are taken care of through a  scholarship that covers her tuition and fees.  The biggest obstacle for Daisy was a health issue that caused her to become hospitalized.  Even after the time off, she was able to get back in school just in time to graduate with her class.  Daisy advises that anything can be achieved if students take advantage of opportunities, work hard and study early.  “I always thought becoming a doctor was only a dream but now it’s my reality.”

The court decision of Hopwood v. Texas (1996) prohibited programs at universities in Texas from using race as a factor in admissions and financial aid.  At the University of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio, the decision decreased the number Hispanics accepted from 35 students to less than 15.  Since then, the school has spent numerous resources in reversing this trend, and in 2009 the school admitted over 45 Hispanic students.  Robert Witzburg, M.D., Associate Dean and Director of Admissions at Boston University School of Medicine, says holistic admissions standards provide a supportive environment for  minority students because they “bring together a diverse student body constituted by academically gifted, highly motivated, resilient students who share a deep commitment to the values and goals of our profession.”  Medical schools have been so consumed with boosting their minority enrollment numbers that there is a lack of programs to support these students once admitted.  Fortunately there are various student organizations such as the Latino Medical Student Association where students find other like-minded individuals that can relate to their challenges in medicine.  To find a comprehensive support program at a prestigious medical schools is rare.  Latinos in these elite schools instead turn to an informal network of friends, family, and faith – the three pillars this community was built on.  Juanita says, “Most Americans would think I came from a disadvantaged household. My family is not perfect, but growing up I felt so blessed.  We have pride in our roots, treat our neighbors like part of the family, and a faith so strong that miracles are part of our reality.”

Links:

2009 Top 10 Medical Schools for Hispanic Students

Latino Medical Student Association