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National Latinx Physician Day focuses health care on empathy, community

Physician panelists speak on topics related to healthcare discrepancies and self-advocacy. Dr. Cesar Barba, holding the microphone, talks about his career. (Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon/Daily Bruin senior staff)

By Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon

Oct. 9, 2024 12:55 a.m.

Two UCLA diversity initiatives hosted a National Latinx Physician Day celebration Oct. 1 in the Neuroscience Research Building.

This year marks the first time National LatinX Physician Day will be celebrated in California. The UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine community honored the day with speeches, a panel and networking opportunities as attendees ate and listened to live music. The event was organized by a group of DGSOM physicians: Drs. Erica Lubliner, Alejandra Casillas, Veronica Ramirez and Juan José Andino.

Lubliner’s keynote speech centered around the identities represented by the community of physicians in the room.

“Almost every day I ask myself – my staff can tell you – how it is possible we don’t have any more Latinos in leadership, in the health sciences and at UCLA Health, especially when UCLA Health runs on Latino (and) Latinx fuel,” she said.

Now recognized as an official holiday, Andino said in an interview that National LatinX Physician Day began as a grassroots movement in California. He added that about 6% of active physicians in the United States identify as Latino, and the percentage decreases by more than half when looking at women specifically.

The panelists discussed the importance of self-advocacy, discrepancies in healthcare during COVID-19 surges, community building and how everyday interactions can foster change. The panel was moderated by Andino and composed of Latinx physicians including Drs. Cesar Barba, Rose Diaz, Diana Lopez, Monica Sifuentes and Ramirez.

When speaking on the intersection between advocacy and Latino identity during the panel, Diaz said Latino physicians improve the medical space because they are familiar with exploring ideas of injustice and disparity.

“Any specialty that you choose, you will be making a huge difference in medicine,” Diaz said. “If you hear, ‘You shouldn’t belong in this specialty if you want to do advocacy for Latino patients,’ don’t limit yourself.”

As a bilingual urologist, Andino said in the interview that patients have expressed comfort in being able to discuss concerns about sexual dysfunction and male fertility with their medical provider directly, without the need for interpretation assistance from a family member or third party.

One of the main goals of the event was to advocate for culturally and linguistically concordant care, which for Latino communities explores the ways that community-based value systems factor into health care experiences, Andino said. For example, he said patients may be labeled as noncompliant or misunderstood for choosing to sacrifice their own treatment to provide and care for their families.

“When I walk into a room and I see my patients, we’re looking at each other,” Sifuentes said in an interview. “Whether it’s the mom, the adolescent, the child – they see me and know that I will understand, and I see them. And I want to understand not only their medical problems but everything else that comes with their family, their culture, their socioeconomic status – everything about them.”

Among the resources discussed was the Bruin Scholars Program, which recognized Andino in its inaugural class. When talking about the importance of the program, Andino said in his interview that there is a need for financial support for recruitment and retention within UCLA Health.

“The leaders in our institution – our JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) offices – are not just saying, ‘Hey, good job. Thank you for being a Latino doctor and taking care of Latino patients,’” Andino said. “(They’re) saying, ‘We understand why this is important, we understand why this matters in the short and long term, and here’s some funds, support (and) resources, so we can make something like an event today happen.’”

[Related: UCLA’s Bruin Scholars work to provide health care to underserved communities]

Fourth-year medical student Matthew Rios said it is crucial for the UCLA community to support events such as National Latinx Physician Day because they increase awareness about discrepancies at all levels of the healthcare industry. Rios, one of Lubliner and Sifuentes’ mentees, said addressing issues pertaining to diversity are not just about recruitment, but also retention.

One of the attendees, second-year psychobiology student Kayla Lopez, said she heard about the event from Lubliner, who leads the Spanish Speaking Psychosocial Clinic where she volunteers.

[Related: UCLA Health’s psychosocial clinic tailors care to Spanish-speaking patients]

Reflecting on the inaugural panel, Lopez said that the idea of making history by simply being present at the celebration resonated with her, emphasizing the importance of honoring the preexisting legacy of Latinos in the medical industry. When it comes to her own experiences as a Latina pre-med student, Lopez said she responds to her fear of feeling out of place with perseverance and hope.

“One of the most important things is for every UCLA student to know that they belong here,” Lopez said. “Life is hard, but just (know) to keep going and achieve what you want, because you’re the one creating your story.”

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Leydi Cris Cobo Cordon
Cobo Cordon was the 2023-2024 music | fine arts editor. She was previously an Arts reporter. She is also a third-year student from northern Virginia.
Cobo Cordon was the 2023-2024 music | fine arts editor. She was previously an Arts reporter. She is also a third-year student from northern Virginia.
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