The State Legislature, above, and Gov. Kathy Hochul must continue...

The State Legislature, above, and Gov. Kathy Hochul must continue to support diversity in medicine programs that annually help hundreds of medical students become physicians who will serve underserved communities, the author writes. Credit: AP/Hans Pennink

This guest essay reflects the views of Freeport resident Juan Diego Betancur, who is pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse.

I was 14 years old when I fled the violence in my small city in Colombia. I left everything behind to reunite with a sister in Freeport whom I had never met, seeking the safety and opportunity to thrive that I lacked in my country. I had to grapple with learning a new language, securing my immigration status, and assimilating to a new culture while working full-time to support myself.

Eleven years later, I am on my way to becoming a doctor. This spring, I will graduate from the Public Health Scholars program at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse with a master’s degree in public health. I will start medical school there in the fall.

The journey toward becoming a physician hasn’t been easy but I am filled with hope and optimism. I've earned what I have achieved, but I also recognize that some special programs paved the way for me and thousands of students like me, programs that will be at risk if the state does not continue funding them.

In high school, I decided to pursue a medical career partly because I noticed the disparities in health care in communities like mine. I had trouble communicating with my health care providers, and they had difficulty understanding me. Research shows patients treated by physicians with similar backgrounds have better health outcomes. I want to become a doctor who can provide care for people like me so they have better health outcomes.

But navigating school in Freeport with little support was challenging. I had to think about things few of my high school peers worried about — like securing shelter and learning a new language. This experience drove me to earn a medical certificate from BOCES while in high school which I used to secure a job in a medical clinic; that helped me pay my expenses and obtain the medical expertise needed to apply to medical school.

I attended Stony Brook University while supporting myself and financially assisting my parents back home. Despite these challenges, I graduated in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in biology and a concentration in neuroscience.

However, I had to put my medical school aspirations on hold when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Once I was ready for medical school, I faced barriers many young people face, especially those without relatives in the medical field — like the costs of applying to and attending medical school, being ready for the rigorous curriculum, and knowing how and where to apply. These are barriers that nonprofits like The Associated Medical Schools of New York (AMSNY) work to address.

Thanks to AMSNY — which offers student stipends, academic advising, tutoring, MCAT test prep and networking with other AMSNY students statewide — I was accepted into the Public Health Scholars Program, which ensured my medical school acceptance if I completed the program. It is one of 18 state-funded AMSNY Diversity in Medicine programs across New York State that annually support more than 950 students like me, helping us become physicians who will serve underserved communities. These vital programs need continued funding from the State Legislature and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

This year, the Public Health Scholars Program has nine students from all over New York. Some come from rural communities with few doctors, others from big cities or suburbs, like me. We all look forward to becoming the doctors our communities need.

This guest essay reflects the views of Freeport resident Juan Diego Betancur, who is pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse.

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