ʻImi Hoʻōla Post-Baccalaureate Program

http://jabsom.hawaii.edu/ed-programs/imi/

Winona K. Lee, MD

Director imihoola@hawaii.edu (808) 692-1030

The mission of the ʻImi Hoʻōla Post-Baccalaureate Program is to improve health care in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Basin by increasing the number of physicians through a 12-month educational program in the Department of Native Hawaiian Health that addresses disadvantaged students’ academic needs.

ʻImi Hoʻōla provides educational opportunities to students from disadvantaged backgrounds who are deemed capable of succeeding in medical school. Although ʻImi Hoʻōla is not limited to persons of Hawaiian, Filipino, Samoan, Chamorro or Micronesian descent, a large number of these students have demonstrated that they are from a disadvantaged background.

The curriculum emphasizes the integration of concepts and principles in the sciences and humanities and further develops students’ communication and critical-thinking skills. Eligible individuals are from disadvantaged socio-economic and/or educational backgrounds and have demonstrated a commitment to serve in areas of need in Hawaiʻi and the U.S. Affiliated Pacific Islands.

ʻImi Hoʻōla has expanded its outreach efforts and developed partnerships with local high schools, colleges, and community-based health organizations. These partnerships help to create an educational pathway for disadvantaged students to enter and graduate from college and pursue health and allied health careers.

‘Imi Hoʻōla contributes to diversity of the healthcare workforce and provides solutions to the physician shortage by increasing the representation of healthcare leaders from less privileged and/or rural communities who are committed to serving the people of Hawaiʻi.