Often, an individual, an event, or the various life experiences we encounter influence the choices we make. In my case, the experience of working with members of underserved communities solidified my decision to pursue a career as a Physician’s Assistant (PA). Underserved population includes the homeless people, the elderly, vulnerable and uninsured women as well as children. These groups exhibit characteristics such as lack of social support, shelter, lack of medical insurance, lack of food, as well as poor coping skill such as drug and alcohol use. While working as a volunteer with physicians from a local clinic, I observed the drastic toll on health and serious medical conditions resulting from these factors. For instance, the cases of malnutrition and illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, are high within these groups.
Through working with this population, I had a firsthand account of the various objectives the physicians strive to accomplish on a day to day basis. As a result, my experience of working with physicians serving underserved communities my commitment and passion to be a PA intensified. I witnessed the need as well as the benefits of affordable primary care within this population. Moreover, I observed how lack of care access aggravated the already existing health disparities. From my experience, I learned that health care is not limited to the doctor’s office. I realized that a larger portion of the underserved communities shy from visiting physician’s office and as a result, I vowed that one of my objectives as a PA is to advocate for the on-field provision of care. Additionally, I also observed that I could do more if I encompass other factors such as economic, social, and environmental together with healthcare for the provision of the best care for the underserved communities because these factors are major determinants of health.
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Overall, working with underserved communities has been a life-changing experience. It has expanded my medical knowledge as well as made me understand that there is a whole world of underserved people who are in dire need of physician assistants. I have realized that factors such as location and income should not limit the availability of quality care. By providing care to this population, I have encountered new areas of need as well as ways of delivering care to patients in need. I have learned to empathize with persons in need such as diabetic, as well as those with chronic pulmonary conditions. Moreover, I have developed the ability to discover patterns as well as common complaints from these patients. Furthermore, I have discovered that I need to get more involved in caring as well as raising awareness regarding care for the underserved communities. Also, I intend to prioritize on the physical, emotional, as well as mental well being of this population so that they can lead a healthy life. As such, b ecoming a physician Assistant presents me with the opportunity to achieve these goals.
