My journey in the health field began at a fairly young age. When I was in middle school I was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis (JRA). After the diagnosis, my life consisted of doctor appointments and hospitals. I was amazed at how the doctors would know what to do and what to prescribe to make me feel better. Soon enough I developed an interest in medicine and had my mind set on going to college and becoming a doctor. I wanted to be a doctor to help people in the way these doctors had helped me. I wanted to make a difference in people lives.
Shifting away from medicine
My interest in medicine faded as I grew and experienced different aspects of it. For example, when I was in middle school, I missed a doctor appointment and at the next appointment my physician said that she wasn’t surprised that we didn’t show up to an appointment because I am Hispanic. She then proceeded to talk about how most Hispanics don’t call to cancel appointments and how they’re always late. To me, even at a young age, it was disturbing to hear a professional make an assumption about my family’s actions because of our ethnicity. What she didn’t take into account was that my parents only spoke Spanish and everyone in the doctor’s office spoke English. When it came time to cancel the …show more content…
Changing my major was a difficult task because I had always wanted to study medicine. I still had in interest in the health field, but becoming a doctor was no longer an aspiration. I wanted to be able to do something that would help people improve their lives in a different way. That was when I discovered public health education. In this field of study I would be able to push for health with education rather than diagnosis and treatment. I realized that, as a doctor, I could make an impact on my patients but, as a health educator, I would be able to make an impact on
Shifting away from medicine
My interest in medicine faded as I grew and experienced different aspects of it. For example, when I was in middle school, I missed a doctor appointment and at the next appointment my physician said that she wasn’t surprised that we didn’t show up to an appointment because I am Hispanic. She then proceeded to talk about how most Hispanics don’t call to cancel appointments and how they’re always late. To me, even at a young age, it was disturbing to hear a professional make an assumption about my family’s actions because of our ethnicity. What she didn’t take into account was that my parents only spoke Spanish and everyone in the doctor’s office spoke English. When it came time to cancel the …show more content…
Changing my major was a difficult task because I had always wanted to study medicine. I still had in interest in the health field, but becoming a doctor was no longer an aspiration. I wanted to be able to do something that would help people improve their lives in a different way. That was when I discovered public health education. In this field of study I would be able to push for health with education rather than diagnosis and treatment. I realized that, as a doctor, I could make an impact on my patients but, as a health educator, I would be able to make an impact on