Describe an increased awareness of the health issues facing under served children in the Los Angeles region.

I had the unique opportunity to participate in a preceptorship program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles during spring break this past year. I shadowed five physicians across numerous medical specialties including pulmonology, general pediatrics, plastic surgery, cardiology and the cardiothoracic ICU. I learned about the current research of each physician, and was inspired by a myriad of patient-physician communication styles. I gained the invaluable mentorship of world-renowned pediatricians and an increased awareness of the health issues facing underserved children in the Los Angeles region.

For the thesis component of my Psychology Honors degree, I conducted a research study with Dr. Thomas Lyon from the USC Gould School of Law as my mentor. I investigated children’s understanding of the importance of telling the truth to physicians. Under the Federal Rules of Evidence, statements made outside of the courtroom, called hearsay statements, cannot be used as evidence during a trial. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule, including a medical diagnosis exception. My research thesis is particularly relevant to this exception, which allows the admission of hearsay statements in the case of accounts made to medical professionals.

As an intern in UCLA’s Care Extenders program at Santa Monica and Ronald Reagan Hospitals, I gained invaluable patient interactions and connected closely to different types of patients by volunteering in a variety of departments such as the Medical Surgery, Pediatrics, and Labor and Delivery. I conducted rounds in each department to help patients with life activities that have become difficult after admission to the hospital. In addition, I assisted nurses with responding to patients’ needs and transporting patients in and out of the hospital.

As coordinator of department preferences, I am a member of the leadership team and staff of the Care Extenders medical internship program. There are over 900 interns in each rotation, and it is my responsibility to assign each member to an appropriate department that will best fit their personality and future career goals. A new rotation begins every three months and cannot start before my duties are completed. In addition, I am one of three staff members with access to the Volgistics account, which is UCLA Health’s comprehensive volunteer system with confidential information for thousands of UCLA volunteers. For these reasons, the position emphasizes responsibility, trust, and maturity.

As a data analyst with the Signal Analysis and Interpretation Lab, I am involved with a team of researchers who are committed to advancing health care through engineering and computer science. My transcriptions of the emotions and social difficulties subtypes of the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) will be used to create an objective tool to diagnose autism through atypical prosody in speech, and to better understand the quality of interactions between a psychologist and child with autism. I joined this team after becoming aware of the complexity of autism diagnostic assessments while shadowing pediatricians at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

Out of the many global health organizations on campus, I chose to travel with Medlife to Lima, Peru during my first year at USC for its emphasis on the need for medicine to come hand in hand with education and development. We set up mobile clinics, where people from surrounding villages were able to see a doctor, sometimes for the first time in their lives. I spent four days shadowing physicians within the clinics, and one day helping to build a staircase within the mountains to relieve the physical stress and ailments associated with hiking the rigorous and slippery trails. I plan to continue to be involved with running free clinics in underserved areas throughout my medical career.

I joined Gap Medics to experience health care in Czech Republic during spring break of my sophomore year at USC. I predominantly shadowed the head of the Urology department, but was also exposed to surgeries in the ER. By comparing the health care systems of a variety of countries both rich and poor, I gained a foundation to think critically about the health systems in the countries I have lived in. I pointed out key differences in the Czech and US systems, such as the Czech obligatory vaccination policy. The experience confirmed my decision to pursue a Masters of Science in Global Medicine, as a way to combine an understanding of policy and medicine to help find solutions to the health and human needs of society.

I had the opportunity to shadow OB-GYN Dr. Naim Kassar during his clinical appointments at the Woodglen Medical Group, and surgeries at the Glendora Surgery Center and Foothill Presbyterian Hospital. I am grateful for the exposure to both the private practice setting and public hospital environment of medicine. The pertinent similarities I realized between the two addressed key elements in medicine. Specifically, the collaboration between physicians and the responsibility physicians are entrusted with. In addition, I became more familiar with medical terminology and with reading and analyzing scientific literature recommended by the surgeons of the Medical Group.

Attending USC, located on the outskirts of South Central Los Angeles, I prospered in a region I was able to make a powerful impact in. With a similar mission to my own, the USC Helenes provided me with the perfect avenue to help those who needed it most. As the hostesses of USC and the official service organization of the university, the Helenes have two main goals: to strengthen the Trojan family through spirit, and support the surrounding area through service. I was most involved with the organization’s community outreach projects, specifically by tutoring third-graders from a nearby elementary school and allowing me to act as a role model to encourage children to pursue their dreams.

My lab responsibilities included transcribing and analyzing criminal trial testimonies to determine the trajectory of children’s language development; specifically, I studied children’s understanding of prepositions and it’s implications on their ability to describe the location of clothing during a sexual abuse trial; since this can significantly affect their credibility in court. With a goal to ensure children’s health and integrity, my lab work guided my current view of medicine as an interdisciplinary network closely connected to multiple disciplines. In the same way the lab’s primary concern is to the child’s health and safety, a physician’s primary responsibility is to the patient.

Dr. Daryl Davies research laboratory, connected to the USC Keck School of Medicine and School of Pharmacy, investigates specific receptors in the brain (specifically P2X4 receptor) that affect ethanol intake, and how the ethanol-receptor interaction differs in males and females. I was strongly drawn to the broader context of the research, an aim to create a drug that could potentially help treat alcohol addiction, especially considering the growing static of people, specifically women, affected by alcoholism disorder. In addition, I gained a hands-on introduction to the lab techniques that allowed me to thrive in my upper division science classes.
With the recommendation of Dr. Lyon, I applied and was accepted for numerous research grants throughout my undergraduate career. I was awarded the Provost Undergraduate Research Fellowship two consecutive semesters in the fall and summer of 2014 for the amount of $1,000 and $3,000, respectively. In addition, I received the Student Opportunities for Academic Research grant for the amount of $800 in the spring of 2014.

The practice of applying for grants introduced me to the administrative work behind research, and gave me a strong foundation that allowed me to read and assist much larger grant applications to the National Institute of Health for the USC Child Development Lab.

Judges at the USC Undergraduate Research Symposium, which included department chairs from multiple fields, awarded my poster presentation of my research the Interdisciplinary Award for Excellence in Research with a prize of $1,000. My research project also allowed me to become a Discovery Scholar with the distinction and medal at graduation.

I was awarded the Renaissance Scholar distinction for my breadth of studies as a pre-medical student, with a major in Psychology and minor in the Natural Sciences. Lastly, I have earned a place on the Dean’s List every semester throughout my undergraduate career.

The Kappa Alpha Theta women’s fraternity is founded on the pillars of scholarship, leadership, and service. Leadership is particularly important within an organization made up of over 200 women. As such, I was appointed an Officer of Member Development. Our committee held weekly open-forum meetings for members to freely voice their concerns or seek advice. As an officer on the committee, I dealt not only with the disciplinary action of members, but also with the counseling of those who needed help. The position trained me to balance a stern yet approachable demeanor, with responsibilities where I exercised the important values of confidentiality and leadership.

Phi Beta Kappa is a nationally recognized honor society implemented in the top universities in the United States. As a member of Phi Beta Kappa, I am recognized for my academic excellence, by remaining in the top 5% of my graduating class throughout my undergraduate career. The society has allowed me to connect with other scholars who are also committed to a career in the arts and sciences.