The Southern Medical Program is excited to welcome our new and current students back to class for the fall term. Meet some of our students and hear about what they are most looking forward to for the new school year.
Name: Lisa Renaud
Hometown: Born in Maple Ridge, spent some time in Lillooet and then Kelowna
Year in Program: 3
What inspired you to pursue medicine?
In short, it provides an opportunity to help people. Additionally, I enjoyed science growing up and medicine certainly meets my interests.
Why did you choose UBC?
By studying at UBC I was able to stay close to my family. Plus, the skiing is fantastic in Kelowna.
What are you most looking forward to for the coming school year?
We started clerkship this past June and it has been fantastic so far. I am looking forward to rotating through many more specialties that I have not been exposed to before.
What’s top on your bucket list?
Multi-day kayak trip through Gwaii Haanas.
Name: Raja Choudhary
Hometown: Grand Forks
Year in Program: 1
What inspired you to pursue medicine?
Growing up in a rural town, I saw the health care disparities that our communities faced. My friends and family had a hard time traveling long distances to see doctors. I want to take my love for science and health and apply that to my future career as a doctor while helping rural communities gain the proper health care facilities they deserve.
Why did you choose UBC?
UBC’s distributed sites help students stay close with their friends and family while they make their way through the challenging experience that is medical school. This opportunity gives me the chance to become a doctor while staying true to my roots. Having the support of my loved ones while serving in and close to where I grew up made UBC’s medical program the best choice for me.
What are you most looking forward to for the coming school year?
I’m looking forward to meeting everyone in the program and getting started with my journey through medical school! Along with school, I’m hoping to get involved with the community and join some of the different clubs that UBC Medicine has to offer. I’m excited to be moving back to the interior after spending the last few years in Vancouver pursing my undergraduate degree.
What’s top on your bucket list?
Trying out the best restaurants in the Kelowna area!
Name: Stephanie McCann
Hometown: Kelowna
Year in Program: 2
What inspired you to pursue medicine?
As I went through life and discovered what I was interested in, I came to realize fairly early on that medicine was a combination of all the things I wanted most in a career. I enjoy continuously learning, having the ability to educate and support people, and challenging myself, so I feel like medicine is the perfect blend of all of the above. On top of this, my father is a physician and being able to hear about all his interesting stories and the satisfaction he gets from helping people always made being a physician stay at the top of my list. I’m happy I decided to stick with my gut as my first year of medicine was absolutely incredible and I truly feel like I’m in the right place.
Why did you choose UBC?
I’ve lived in Kelowna my entire life and have never found a good enough reason to want to go anywhere else. The Okanagan is beautiful, and I love the hot summers by the lake just as much as I love skiing in the winter. Being around my family and friends is a huge bonus, and I knew I would enjoy pursuing medicine here as much as I enjoyed my undergrad at UBCO. I also really liked the idea of attending a smaller distributed site where you really get to know everyone, and the friends I’ve made over the past year have definitely made me feel like I made the right choice.
What are you most looking forward to for the coming school year?
I was thankful that we were able to experience a lot of hands-on learning last year, so I think spending more time getting clinical experience will be great. There is so much variety available in terms of physician careers, so I’m looking forward to hopefully getting more exposure to all medicine has to offer (and, of course, getting to see all my classmates again)!
What’s top on your bucket list?
For this year, I definitely want to hit more ski resorts when I have the time. I have a water bottle that I’ve decided to cover in stickers from different mountains (and I currently only have two), so I’m getting out on the slopes whenever I can! I’d also eventually like to become fluent in another language, so keeping up on my Duolingo streak will be very important to me.
Name: Brandon Hayashi
Hometown: Kamloops
Year in Program: 2
What inspired you to pursue medicine?
I’ve always been interested in science and medicine, and growing up, I always wanted a career where I could help others. My most formative and inspirational experience that swayed me towards medicine was my time in social work! Throughout my science degree, I was a social worker. I did a variety of jobs: I found housing for street-entrenched individuals, provided harm reduction supplies, conducted street outreach, reversed overdoses, and when possible, provided counselling services. As a member of an interdisciplinary healthcare team working with nurses, doctors, and other social workers, I witnessed the importance of collaboration and the impact this has on a single patient. Having seen several sides to this dynamic, I want to be the type of physician that can champion teamwork and provide an adaptive and holistic approach to healthcare.
Why did you choose UBC?
I chose UBC as much as they chose me! I was planning on picking UBC no matter what! I grew up in the Okanagan so having the privilege of pursuing my dream in Kelowna close to my friends, family, and mentors really means a lot. I also have the opportunity to return to my hometown for my clinical rotations, which is incredible!
What are you most looking forward to for the coming school year?
I am incredibly excited about everything! New friends, going into school with a better handle on the curriculum, the opportunity to do more hands-on skills, all of it! I am especially interested in learning how to make healthcare more accessible to marginalized populations through advocacy and incorporating that into my own approach.
What’s top on your bucket list?
I’m a pretty simple guy! I don’t have a lot of activity-centric things on my bucket list. Ideally, I want to give everything back to my community. I want to be a community psychiatrist that, through his practice, prevented a lot of adverse health outcomes. I want to liaise between various social nonprofits to provide care to those who need it most. I want to have a scholarship in my name so I can perpetuate youth potential. At the end of the day, I don’t want to just kick the bucket; I want to do a kickflip over it.
Name: Brett Rouault
Hometown: St. Albert and Vernon
Year in Program: 4
What inspired you to pursue medicine?
Growing up I loved all my science classes, especially the courses about the human body. Going through university this strange affliction continued, and I also began to learn the many benefits that you get from a career in which you serve others. Medicine was therefore a natural choice.
Why did you choose UBC?
UBC was kind enough to accept my application after my 5th attempt at applying! Despite the initial challenges I was very honored to accept a position at the University of British Columbia in my new adopted province. Being accepted to the Southern Medical Program in Kelowna has allowed be to still be around for my family, which I something I value greatly.
What are you most looking forward to for the coming school year?
During our 4th year of study, we do a variety of electives throughout the province, compared to our 3rd year where our learning is localized at one site (mine was in Kamloops). I am looking forward to learning with the large variety of people and preceptors that the many different locales in British Columbia have to offer. Each location I visit and each patient I see is another learning opportunity to help me become a better physician in the future.
What’s top on your bucket list?
I hope to build a remote cabin near a lake somewhere in BC at some point in my life.