Support our domestic medical missions journey!!!

My name is Jaz-munn Johnson, and I am a rising 4th-year medical student at Virginia Commonwealth University SOM. I will be graduating in May 2023.

 

I plan to specialize in General Pediatrics. As I have journeyed through medical school over the last 3 years, I have found working with at-risk youth to be an area of interest. This interest has continued to grow, and I now envision myself working with incarcerated youth in juvenile detention centers as their on-site Pediatrician.

 

This of course will be after I complete residency, as well as after I complete my service commitment to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). I was fortunate enough to receive a full-tuition scholarship from this agency to cover the final two years of my medical education.

 

Medical school has certainly been a grueling, arduous journey. The first two years at VCU are referred to as our pre-clinical years, in which we learn by way of the classroom and clinical simulations. 3rd year is when we finally transition to patient care and navigate various clerkships. During our 4th (and final) year, we complete acting internships, audition rotations, and apply for residency. 4th year is also the first time we get to choose our elective schedule based on what our interests, goals, and career aspirations are.

 

One of the electives that I will be participating in is the Summer Medical Institute (SMI) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (https://mcophilly.org/smi-philadelphia/). This is a Christian-based 3-week summer immersion program where I will have the opportunity to learn first-hand from trained professionals what it looks like to integrate our faith with our medical practice. By being placed directly in the community and having personal interactions with those within the neighborhoods, we as students will learn how social-cultural, economic, and spiritual factors can impact our health.

 

Additionally, SMI focuses its efforts on the economically depressed neighborhoods of North Philadelphia. The residents of these neighborhoods struggle with multiple barriers to care, including poverty and high rates of morbidity & mortality due to an increased incidence of diabetes and hypertension. These communities are also affected by a heavy burden of opioid use and other substance use disorders.

 

By partnering with local churches, physicians, and community organizations under the supervision of Esperanza Health Center (a federally qualified health center) and Medical Campus outreach (a Philadelphia-based Christian discipleship organization), SMI affords its students the opportunity to conduct health screenings and provide health education, along with assisting in pandemic support and medical outreach – all while sharing The Good News of Jesus Christ through prayer and evangelism. Furthermore, this is also an opportunity for us as students to grow in our own respective relationships with Christ, through mentorship & discipleship, bible study, and community fellowship.

 

In order to participate in this amazing program, I need to raise $1,450. You can donate directly through gofundme, or you can donate at this link https://www.cchf.org/donate/ which will qualify for a tax write-off if you follow the appropriate steps. Please message or email me for more information about the latter option. My email is [email redacted] . 

 

Though I do need to raise money to participate, this is not necessarily a fund-raising campaign. It’s more comparable to support-raising. I’m not just asking for financial assistance, but I am also asking for your prayers, words of encouragement, and for you to partner with me in faith to see the hand of God move as we prepare for the 3-week experience. Many students leave the program stating how much it impacted them and how life-changing it was, and I am hoping/expecting God to move this upcoming year as well.

 

Thank you, and I am looking forward to partnering with you in faith, as well as sharing with you all that we saw God do.

 

In Christ,

-Jaz