9 minute read
WE ARE FAMILY
We are Family BRIDGE TO MEDICINE MENTOR PROGRAM IS LIKE HAVING A DOCTOR ON CALL
BY JO ANN KIRBY
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The San Joaquin Valley has the lowest supply of doctors in the state, at a ratio of about 39 physicians per 100,000 residents, 22% lower than the state average, according to the California Health Care Foundation. It’s a grim challenge felt by the medical community countywide but one that the San Joaquin
Medical Society is committed to helping solve through Decision Medicine and Bridge to Medicine, two successful and selective programs for students that aim to help our area grow its own doctors.
While Decision Medicine provides high school students with a behind-the-scenes look at the medical field, the Bridge to Medicine program pairs physicians with local academically talented high school or college students who want to study medicine and return home to practice in their underserved communities. Bridge to Medicine provides invaluable one on one mentoring as well as guidance into applying to medical school and finding research and volunteer opportunities.
For Natalie Pearlman, being part of the program has already had a life-changing impact. The Tracy native is an ideal candidate for the program. “I think especially being from the Central Valley, I saw so many people important to me like, family members, friends or neighbors, who struggled to find medical care, especially to find a specialist because we have such a high turnover of specialists in our area,” she said. “I did the health pathways at John C. Kimball High School, which is how I got connected to Decision Medicine in 2012. I went to the University of Washington and graduated in 2018.”
Armed with an undergraduate degree in molecular biology and experience working with nonprofits in Seattle, she took the next step. “I struggled with applying to medical school,” she said. “I applied and wasn’t accepted. It was a really big blow. There’s not a lot of people talking about that. What does this
mean in terms of reapplying? I had to think about whether this was something I still wanted to pursue.”
Thanks to Bridge to Medicine, she was paired with a mentor, Dr. Grant Mellor, a Kaiser Permanente pediatrician. “We want it to be like having a doctor in the family,” Dr. Mellor said. “Through this program, everyone can have a doctor in the family with the advice we give.”
Dr. Mellor’s own daughter is in medical school at Case Western Reserve University and the advice he’s been sharing with Pearlman is the same advice he gives her.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr. Mellor and Pearlman only met in person recently. They would interact by phone, checking in with each other by calling or texting. “Having the phone number of a physician was a huge thing. We would talk about experiences I was having and how that would translate. If I had a barrier, he would say, let me check into that for you. When I practiced for my interviews, he would read my personal statement,” she said. “He wrote one of my letters of recommendation.”
Together, the duo created a strategy for Pearlman to become an ideal medical school candidate. “She is very dedicated in a gutsy way,” Dr. Mellor said of his advice that she become an EMT. “I think she got some real hands-on medical experience.”
Working as an EMT during the high risk Covid-19 pandemic showed bravery, Dr. Mellor said, and it demonstrated that she likes helping people. The passionate and innately curious young woman also looked for opportunities to get involved with teaching, another helping profession. With an open mind, a caring heart and a willingness to do the hard work, Pearlman followed Dr. Mellor’s advice and was rewarded with acceptance to the UC Davis Medical School.
She’s thankful to the San Joaquin Medical Society’s for both their Decision Medicine and Bridge to Medicine programs. “I think Decision Medicine was really paramount to me realizing that being a doctor was a possibility,” she said. “When I came back to the Valley, Bridge to Medicine was a network for me that was already there as an alumnus of Decision Medicine.”
Dr. Mellor said the need for Bridge to Medicine evolved as another way to continue to support aspiring doctors who could come back and serve locally. “We realized we couldn’t expand Decision Medicine because logistics just prevent that,” he said. “So, we conceived of a mentoring program that became Bridge to Medicine.”
Mentors include physicians, alliance members, nurse practitioners and even a professor at San Joaquin Delta College who has authored a book on how to get into medical school. The mentoring effort is a low-capital endeavor that can be expanded with the addition of more mentors or existing mentors who are willing to take on extra students. Dr. Mellor said he would encourage his peers to become involved, adding that he’s thoroughly enjoyed his own experience as a mentor and knows that ultimately it’s going to pay off richly by helping bring more doctors to the area.
Forging a relationship with aspiring doctors gives them much-needed support and hopefully makes it even more likely that they will return to their roots to serve. “Like a lot of doctors in our area, especially those who’ve had leadership positions where they’ve had to hire, know that recruiting for our local area is a challenge,” Dr. Mellor said. “The Central Valley is a great place to practice medicine. The sort of people we take care of in the Central Valley are good common-sense folks and it’s a good place to live in so many ways.”
As Pearlman starts medical school, she thinks about the future. “I can’t wait to go home and help my community, which my parents thought was ironic, because I couldn’t wait to leave when I graduated from high school,” she said.
And she won’t be alone at UC Davis where she’s found five other medical students in her cohort who are Decision Medicine alumni.
“I can’t say enough about the work the society is doing,” she said. “To be the first one in my family to go into medicine and to know I have the support from Bridge to Medicine is a unique experience for anyone who has the opportunity to be involved.”
HOW TO GET INVOLVED?
SJMS is currently recruiting volunteer mentors to join our Bridge to Medicine (BTM) committee. The committee meets every other month (virtually via Zoom) and consists of physicians (working & retired), alliance members, nurse practitioner and even a local college professor. Most importantly, you don’t need to be an expert! We have committee members with a wide array of skill sets and resources, so you are never alone. For more information, please contact Lisa Richmond at 9525299 or Lisa@sjcms.org.
Bridge to Medicine accepts new applicants as mentor availability allows, please find more information at www.sjcms.org>programs>bridgetomedicine.
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Medical School Admissions
AARON SACKSCHEWSKY
Stritch School of Medicine, Loyola University Chicago Bridge to Medicine • Mentor: Hyma Jasti, MD
ABIRATH NAKKA
Debusk College of Osteopathic Medicine, Lincoln Memorial University Decision Medicine 2016
ANGELA COLBACK
CATHERINE ZHANG
Cooper Medical School, Rowan University Decision Medicine 2015
JESSICA TANG
University of California, Davis School of Medicine Decision Medicine 2014 • Bridge to Medicine Mentor: Pinki Goswami, MSN, CPNP
JORDAN LARSSON
University of California, Davis School of Medicine Bridge to Medicine Mentor: John Zeiter, MD
KARTIK GOSWAMI
MONIFA SAWYERR
Medical School Admissions
NATALIE PEARLMAN
University of California, Davis School of Medicine Decision Medicine 2012 • Scholarship Loan Fund • Bridge to Medicine • Mentor: R. Grant Mellor, MD
TEJWINDER SANDHU
UYEN TU HOANG NGUYEN
Residency Match Noteworthy
SHIVANI NAIDU, MD
Internal Medicine Program, San Joaquin General Hospital Decision Medicine 2010
PARAMPREET SINGH, MD
Internal Medicine, St. Joseph’s Medical Center (PGY-2) • Middle College High School • University of the Pacific • St. George’s Medical School
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