Diversity in medicine can save lives. Here's why there aren't more doctors of color
By Maria Godoy
Sabina Spigner says she's always known she wanted to be a doctor. But, as a premed student at the University of Pennsylvania, she found herself struggling to balance a heavy class load while also working as many as 20 hours a week.
"I was always working, because I didn't have money and I was a work-study student," says Spigner.
Her grades suffered as a result. In her junior year, she turned to her pre-med adviser for help. "She was like, well, you know, you're just not going to get into med school with that GPA, so I think you should consider something else. And she didn't really present me with many resources or options other than just giving up," Spigner says.
That conversation happened nearly eight years ago. Spigner — who is Black and Southeast Asian American — says when she recalled the experience on Twitter last month, "unfortunately, a lot of people shared similar stories."
"You know, this is something that's happening across the country and it's very, very common, especially for students of color, to experience discouragement," she says.
