Healthcare company awards scholarships to medical students in Southern California

Healthcare company awards scholarships to medical students in Southern California

In an effort to encourage budding medical professionals to gain the skills they will need to work with a diverse group of patients, Kaiser Permanente has awarded scholarships to students who show promise in the healthcare field.

The Oliver Goldsmith, MD Scholarships for the Promotion and Advancement of Culturally Responsive Care have been awarded to a total of 12 medical students in the Pasadena area. The program's namesake, the former director of the Southern California Permanente Medical Group, made several attempts to promote diversity and culturally sensitive care during his time with the company.

In addition to the $5,000 financial aid packages, the winners will have the opportunity to participate in a mentoring program with a clinician from the company and complete a four- to six-week clinical rotation at a Kaiser Permanente facility.

This year's winners were selected based on their commitment to diversity, community service activities, clinical volunteering initiatives and research experience. Many of the awardees are bilingual and speak languages such as Spanish, Armenian, Korean, Tagalog and Mandarin.

Since the scholarship program's inception six years ago, a total of $325,000 has been awarded to 65 medical students.

By Stefanie Hughes