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Current Rural-PRIME students

Student bios (not all current students are listed):

	Liz Banowetz - Hometown: Redding, CA "Rural-PRIME will provide me with a medical education and the practical knowledge needed to provide health care in an isolated rural community. By experiencing rural health care while still in training, I will better understand how to apply my medical knowledge to a rural setting, how to practice 'practical medicine'. The resources available to a rural physician can be very limited, and by observing how practicing doctors make do within those limits, I will have a good working knowledge of how to be a successful rural physician myself."
	James Becker - Hometown: Manteca, CA "My main goal for medical school is to learn how to bring health care to to underserved communities, especially those in rural areas close to my hometown of Manteca. As part of this endeavor, Rural-PRIME offers a close-knit group of students with similar interests that I feel will really provide a support network and be conducive to information networking. Particularly in a program like this, where the emphasis on telemedicine is so prominent, the ability to connect with physicians who specialize in other areas of medicine seems like an essential part of providing comprehensive health care."
	Blair Campbell - Hometown: Fullerton, CA "During Rural-PRIME I would like to develop a support network for myself in personal and professional preparation for working in rural underserved communities. I believe a group of like-minded individuals and mentors will be invaluable in maintaining motivation in the academic and clinical environment. Those of us who wish to work in underserved rural communities are in a minority and creating connections and support amongst ourselves is crucial. Obviously, I would also like to gain a professional skills set that allows me to be an effective clinician in a rural environment, particularly in a Spanish-speaking population."
	Sally Graglia - Hometown: Arcadia, CA "Rural-PRIME was a fit for me. Why? Rotations in rural communities will train me to be self-reliant when necessary. An M.D./M.P.H. will better equip me to treat communities as a whole, not just one patient at a time. Our group of twelve will serve as a source of inspiration, reminding me of my desire with which I entered medical school, to dedicate my life to serving the underserved."
	Paul Johnson - Hometown: Rancho Tehama, CA "Through PRIME I will aim to become an extremely well-rounded physician. It is exciting to think of the increased quality of care I will be able to provide patients with the integrated master's curriculum involving medical informatics and public health. More specifically, the PRIME education will focus on health care in rural communities. Many of the obstacles in rural health became reasons for me to pursue a career in medicine. PRIME will undoubtedly give me the best opportunity to address and hopefully overcome some of these obstacles."
	Kathleen Rooney - Hometown: Sacramento, CA "Rural-PRIME will prepare me for a career as a physician working in underserved communities. The unique opportunity to live in a rural community, complete a master's program, and be trained in the latest information and telecommunication technologies will be extremely advantageous for my career. I want to practice medicine holistically, incorporating social and cultural issues into my personal model of practice. Rural-PRIME will allow me to explore these issues as a medical student and will introduce me to practicing physicians and other students who view medicine similarly."
	Aurelia Smith - Hometown: San Luis Obispo, CA "I intend to practice medicine in a smaller community and believe Rural-PRIME will prepare me for my future practice in many unique ways. For instance, learning how to bring the resources of a big city to a rural setting through telemedicine and technology training could enable me to expand the quality of medical services available to my future patients. I chose PRIME so I could learn medicine while still serving those communities I hope to practice in one day."
	Daniel Stein - Hometown: New York, NY "The UC Davis School of Medicine and UC Davis Medical Center are national leaders in rural health care and telemedicine. I am thrilled about the opportunity to use telemedicine during medical school and to gain exposure to the challenges that rural health-care providers encounter. I am also interested in conducting research in rural health; in particular, I would be interested in investigating the impact of telemedicine on community health. As I progress beyond medical school and enter a career in medicine, I hope to be an active member in a small community and to use my background in education to offer health education initiatives to schools, clinics, and community members."
	Manuel Tapia - Hometown: San Jose, CA "During my training in Rural-PRIME program I wish to experience clinical training in an underserved area. I believe this will better prepare me for becoming a primary care physician in disadvantaged communities. I anticipate obtaining a master's degree in Public Health and using it to advocate for change in areas that suffer from poverty, lower educational levels, and social inequities. Through Rural-PRIME, I will interact with established leaders who are passionate about delivering resources and care to the disadvantaged. Furthermore, I will work as part of a team of future leaders in the health-care community which I feel will train me to be a physician leader in my own home community."