THE RIGHT TYPE

Decision Medicine students enjoy an expert experience

BY JO ANN KIRBY

What do you want to be when you grow up?

The two dozen high school juniors learning to type blood on a recent summer day at Dameron Hospital already know the answer.

They are all interested in medical careers and were accepted out of more than 100 applicants to take part in Decision Medicine, a San Joaquin Medical Society summer program that provides a mix of interactive virtual and hand-on learning opportunities. Besides getting a glimpse at a day in the life of a doctor, they were able to ask physicians questions about the journey that led them to their careers, they gained insights about the pathway to medical school and witnessed the healthcare needs of the local community.

2021 Decision Medicine

Aderinsola Akintade Health Careers Academy

Paulina Barrera-Garcia

Tokay High School

Harmandeep Batth

Tokay High School

Priscilla Casique

Cesar Chavez High School

Saniya Dhanoa

Mountain House High School

Mariana Diggs

Aspire Langston Hughes Academy

Stacy Du

John C. Kimball High School

Arshdeep Gill

Stockton Early College Academy

Ahmad Karabala

Stockton Collegiate International School

Harleen Kaur

Aspire Ben Holt College Academy

Imaan Khan

Aspire Ben Holt College Academy

The goal is to inspire local students to pursue a career in medicine and come back to serve their community. It is designed for students from high achieving, underprivileged and under-represented students, who would not otherwise have the opportunity to interact with medical professionals for pathway advice. The thriving program is the brainchild of Dr. George Khoury, a radiologist, and Dr. Kwabena Adubofour, who practices internal medicine.

“We wanted to get kids interested in becoming doctors. If we grow our own, they would want to come home to practice,” Dr. Adubofour said.

Dr. Khoury and Dr. Adubofour said they realized if their own children expressed an interest in medicine, they had many contacts to reach out to for guidance and shadowing opportunities by virtue of being doctor’s kids. But what about students who don’t have a parent or relative in the field?

“As physicians, we can’t continue to complain that there aren’t enough of us if we don’t employ the strategies and programs to ensure students are interested in medicine and that our county is attractive with enough carrots that they want to practice here,” Dr. Adubofour said. Dr. Khoury said that Decision Medicine has enjoyed great fortune. “The support of the hospitals, medical groups and universities are key for our success,” he said, also praising efforts to grow the program from its original half dozen students to two dozen today.

The 2021 Decision Medicine program also featured a visit to various departments and interactions with medical students, residents, and physicians at San Joaquin General Hospital. At St. Mary’s Dining Hall students learned about the outreach to the less fortunate in our community and were excited to become CPR certified at St. Joseph’s Medical Center, among other fun activities. The cohort had a college prep session and took part in Zoom sessions with other program partners including UC Davis School of Medicine. One Zoom session featured renown pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu.

“We are now getting data on how many have entered medical school and it’s really exciting,”

“We are starting to see the fruits of our labor in that we have students graduating from medical schools, finishing residencies and returning to their home communities to start their practice,” Dr. Khoury said.

Dr. Adubofour said the results are fantastic. “We are now getting data on how many have entered medical school and it’s really exciting,” Dr. Adubofour said.

The statistics show that students who took part in San Joaquin Medical Society programs for young people include 25 now in medical school, five working in residency programs, and one practicing physician plus more than 210 students are studying STEM majors in undergraduate school.

Arshdeep Gill, a student at Stockton Early College Academy, applied to take part in Decision Medicine after hearing about the program from a neighbor.

“I always wanted to be in the medical field because my mom is a nurse but I’m thinking about being a physician,” he said. “This has been inspirational and motivational to me. Reading about being a radiologist on a blog and meeting one in person and watching them work is a lot different. It was so informative.”

Alma Limon

Health Careers Academy

Victoria Luna

Weston Ranch High School

Kathy Ly

Stockton Early College Academy

Giselle Murillo

Franklin High School

Alynna Nguyen

Health Careers Academy

Colleen Nguyen

Bear Creek High School

Morgan Peters Ripon High School

Liliana Ramirez Lincoln High School

Myriam Ramirez

Stockton Collegiate International School

Jasleen Sohal

Aspire Ben Holt College Academy

Veronica Sotelo

Weston Ranch High School

Angel de Jesus Tovar

Edison High School

Emily Villa

Edison High School

HPSJ Health Careers Scholarships

Decision Medicine Students Honored

During the 2021 Decision Medicine Celebration Banquet, at Stockton Golf and Country Club, Health Plan of San Joaquin leaders were on hand to present HPSJ Health Careers Scholarships to this year’s DM alumni. Pictured, from left to right, are DM graduate Andrea Ramos who will attend San Joaquin Delta College and major in biology with her ultimate goal to be a family practice doctor, HPSJ Director of Quality Management Andrea Swann, HPSJ Director of Community, Marketplace and Member Engagement Vena Ford, HPSJ Director of HEDIS and Accreditation Kathleen Dalziel, HPSJ Director of Provider Services Heather West, and DM graduate Heather Bastiansen who will attend UC Berkeley and major in microbial biology. Not pictured is Danish Khan who will attend UC Davis and major in microbiology, psychology and behavior with the ultimate goal of becoming a physician.

Health Plan of San Joaquin (HPSJ) has been a long-time supporter of the Decision Medicine (DM) program. Years ago, they began to offer a scholarship to alumni of the program, which later grew to two recipients. This year, with their unwavering commitment to the program, HPSJ leadership elected to award three scholarships totaling $9,000.

HPSJ Chief Medical Officer Lakshmi Dhanvanthari, MD, said: “We believe that during this pandemic and the ongoing shortage of local healthcare professionals, it is even more essential that HPSJ maintains our tangible support and encouragement to nurture this next generation. Beyond these important financial resources, the three awardees receiving the $3,000 HPSJ Health Careers Program scholarships will also have the benefit of a personal mentor from our professional HPSJ staff. The HPSJ mentors are eager for this opportunity to continue the mentor program we started several years ago.”

Gill said it was exciting to be able to speak with residents. “Most of the residents told us that when you go into residency you are exposed to a lot of different fields,” he said, adding that he thinks that is helpful to realize that he doesn’t have to know exactly what kind of medicine he wants to practice at his age.

In addition to learning that his blood type is the rare O negative that day, he also made a new friend. That’s something that Lisa Richmond, executive director of the San Joaquin Medical Society, said has been a surprising bonus of the program that brings like-minded students together.

Gill met Ahmad Karabala, who is a student at Stockton Collegiate International School. As the two worked on their blood typing assignment, Karabala explained how meaningful the entire experience has been.

“Honestly, I think it reinforced what I was leaning towards. I now have a general vision of what I want to do now and look forward to accelerating my education in that direction.”

Of the applicants vying for a spot, 45 were interviewed. Dr. Khoury said he looks for students who have commitment to achieving goals in their junior high and high school years, the resourcefulness to get back on the path when plans are derailed, and true empathy for others.

Dr. Khoury echoed the need for more physicians to get involved with the program and provide that one-on-one interaction with the students that is a hallmark of the program.

Dr. Adubofour and Dr. Khoury both said they were excited to see the students be able to visit the participating hospitals since last year’s program was cancelled due to the pandemic.

“I’ve learned so much,” Victoria Luna, a Weston Ranch High School student, said. “It was really great to be able to ask the doctors questions.”

Thank You for Your Support!

Premier Financial Sponsors

Health Plan of San Joaquin Community Health Fund

Community Partners

Adventist Health Dameron Hospital Kaiser Permanente San Joaquin General Hospital St. Joseph’s Medical Center St. Mary’s Dining Hall UC Davis School of Medicine

Physician Volunteers

Alain Flores, MD Bennet Omalu, MD George Khoury, MD Hyma Jasti, MD Khaleedah Young, DO Kwabena Adubofour, MD Linda A Asante-Ackuayi, MD Marina Castillo, MD Nguyen Vo, MD Philip Cheng, MD Sachidanand Prabhu, MD Sanjay Marwaha, MD Shahin Foroutan, MD Sujeeth Punnan, MD