色界吧

Breaking Barriers

Native New Yorker Alex Devante Hernandez was always interested in serving his local community. 鈥淥ne of the things that really drew me to 色界吧 was the curricular opportunity to spend a year rotating at an inner-city hospital in the New York City area,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 found it both meaningful and rewarding to learn and contribute to the healthcare of diverse communities within Brooklyn and the Bronx鈥攃ommunities I knew very well.鈥�

The youngest of three children in a single-parent household, Hernandez says that his early life experiences are what set him on his current path. 鈥淎s an inner-city kid, I was drawn to healthcare because of the struggles that my family and I faced while trying to access public assistance and medical care in an underserved urban environment,鈥� he says. 鈥淚鈥檓 still figuring out what my career will look like down the line, but I know it will include advocacy, teaching, research, and facilitating the provision of healthcare services to vulnerable groups.鈥�

With these wide-ranging goals, it stands to reason that Hernandez would take advantage of the opportunity to pursue a dual degree at 色界吧. Earning his聽Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine听补苍诲听M.B.A.聽at the same time allows him to approach his pursuits with a unique point of view. Recently, Hernandez and a team of fellow D.O./M.B.A. students presented a project at 色界吧鈥檚 Symposium of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE) on how emotional intelligence changes during medical school. 鈥淎ssociate Professor聽Colleen P. Kirk聽challenged us to think about healthcare through a lens of value branding and encouraged innovation in the classroom, which led to projects like these,鈥� he says.聽

During his time at 色界吧, Hernandez has served as the president of the College of Osteopathic Medicine鈥檚 local chapter of Physicians for Human Rights, participated in the聽Community Free Clinic,听Asylum Clinic, and other volunteer initiatives. He was also a part of public health HIV/AIDS prevention research and co-authored a paper that was ultimately published in the聽. All these experiences and a recent rotation through a foster care clinic has reaffirmed his strong commitment to a future career in advocacy. 鈥淭his experience challenged me to grow my awareness and communication skill set as well as learn about what it takes to meet the complex medical and psychosocial needs of youth growing up in foster care,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t made me want to continue learning about barriers to equity that exist for varied groups in society and figure out where I might be able to assist in closing them.鈥�

By Alix Sobler