Reflective Essay For Kidney Transplant

Growing up in Los Angeles and attending a school that emphasizes diversity like UCLA allowed me to interact with dissimilar people and immerse myself in many cultures different from my own. However, most of my understanding has come from my service activities and in a research lab that aims to reduce racial disparities in transplant.

Throughout college, I worked with a variety of medically underserved, economically disadvantaged, and educationally disadvantaged populations. Originally volunteering (September 2014 – July 2015; 10 hours/week) and now working (August 2015 - present; 20-40 hours/week) at the UCLA Transplant Research and Education Center has exposed me to racial disparities in transplant. The studies aim to improve transplant knowledge amongst low-income end stage renal disease minorities in California and Missouri. My role primarily consists of interacting and educating patients over the phone and in person. The research has made me aware of the social and cultural factors that may impact one’s health decisions, how different cultures are educated about medicine, and also made me realize that many patients do not understand what a kidney transplant entails.

Asian Pacific Health Corps at UCLA (September 2011 – June 2015; 4 hours/week) gave me the opportunity to serve uninsured and low-income families in

at UCLA (October 2014 – June 2015; 2 hours/week) with my peers. Noticing a significant homeless population around Westwood during our daily walks to campus, we founded this student-run organization with hopes of improving the well-being of this underrepresented population and attending to their needs. Through numerous interactions, we discovered a need for basic health care items and fundraised for blankets to give out. Due to many of us graduating and a lack of funds, we were unable to continue. However, I have continued serving the homeless population by volunteering with The Midnight Mission on my days