About Me

Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences, Double Minor in Psychology and Chemistry

For as long as I can remember, my family’s annual trip back to Cuba was not a joyful event, but one overcast with concern. As we’d walk through the front door of our house every year, my uncle and grandmother’s faces would always appear happy but progressively more tired.  Alternating as my great-grandmother’s sole caregivers had been taking a physical toll on them. My great-grandmother, “Tita Vieja”, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and eventually, dementia. Moving, feeding, and bathing an elderly person is inherently difficult. When that person raised, fed, and comforted you, their resistance to being cared for by you, a “stranger”, makes it even harder. As a 5-year-old, I was only told that she was sick, but as the years progressed, that answer became less and less satisfactory. By the time Tita Vieja passed away in 2016, I was well versed in her diagnosis but less acquainted with how our family could recover from her loss. When her doctor came by to comfort my uncle and grandmother, I was touched by his act of tenderness. I understood then that medicine was not just about using science to figure out what was wrong with people’s bodies. It was about using that knowledge, in tandem with compassion, to guide people through their most frightening and vulnerable moments.

As a first-generation immigrant, my unique perspective would tremendously aid me in not only educating my community on its wellbeing, but also representing it in places where it is lacking. All doctors are advocates but many don’t know how to translate that into real change. Therefore, as a medical school student, I plan on sharing my knowledge on lobbying with my peers. Ultimately, I wish to be the kind of physician that practices well rounded medicine, through advocacy, research, and most of all, empathy.

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