Diversity: 14 Med Students Honored

Oliver Goldsmith, MD, Scholarships Recognize Work in Diverse Communities

Fourteen medical students were honored recently with the 2014 Oliver Goldsmith, MD, Scholarships for their outstanding work in serving diverse communities.

Honorees were recognized at a special reception in Pasadena, Calif. for their academics, delivering culturally competent clinical care, providing leadership for health delivery systems, and conducting research on health disparities — all while attending school full time.

The annual Goldsmith awards help build healthy communities by granting third- or fourth-year medical students a $5,000 scholarship to help complete their studies. The diverse group will also participate in a mentoring program with a Kaiser Permanente clinician as well as complete a 4–6 week clinical rotation at a Kaiser Permanente facility. The scholarships are named for Oliver Goldsmith, MD, retired medical director, Southern California Permanente Medical Group, and champion of culturally responsive care. Established in 2004, the program has awarded 122 scholarships for a total of $610,000 in community benefit funds to assist medical students.

Edward Ellison, MD, executive medical director, Southern California Permanente Medical Group, and Maria Carrasco, MD, region lead for Kaiser Permanente’s Culturally Responsive Care and co-chair, Kaiser Permanente Southern California Diversity Advisory Council, attended the reception and presented the scholarships on May 15.

“Kaiser Permanente is proud to sponsor these promising future physicians,” Dr. Carrasco said. “Their contributions to improving culturally responsive care are truly shaping the face of health care. Cultural responsiveness provides the best care possible to all, and these medical students demonstrate physicians’ commitment and leadership to providing high quality equitable care to all patients.”

Among this year’s recipients is Reinier Narvaez, who is entering his fourth year of medical school at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine. He immigrated to the United States at 19 years old with dreams of becoming a physician and is intensively involved in Filipino immigrant health, and volunteers at the Mabuhay Health Center in San Francisco to provide follow-up care to patients with chronic illnesses.

Narvaez also conducts research in various fields such as gastroenterology, orthopedic, general surgery, and internal medicine. One of his research projects involved the use of a mobile device application and pedometers to encourage Asian patients to exercise.

2014 scholarship recipients:

• Miguel Alvarez-Estrada, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine
• Victor Cisneros, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine
• Nicole Coppage, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
• Cary Crall, Harvard Medical School
• Jeremy Egnatios, University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine
• Max Goldstein, University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine
• Karina Salazar-Gookin, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine
• Mariya Kalashnikova, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
• Cynthia Mendez-Kohlieber, University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine, Charles R. Drew School of Medicine
• Reinier Narvaez, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
• Ijeoma Okwandu, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine
• Maria Tobar, University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine
• Lisa Werth, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
• Caleb Wilson, University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine

Learn more about the Oliver Goldsmith Scholarships.

Pictured, back row from left: Jeremy Egnatios; Victor Cisneros; Caleb Wilson; Ed Ellison, MD, executive medical director, SCPMG; Cary Crall; and Max Goldstein. Front row from left: Reinier Navraez; Cynthia Mendez-Kohliber; Karina Salazar-Gookin; Maria Carrasco, MD, region physician lead for Culturally Responsive Care; Ijeoma Okwanda; Miguel Alvarez-Estrada; and Nicole Coppage