Name: Vicki Chan

Title: MD

Ig: Vickichanmd  

Favorite hobby: Shopping!

School/Program: University of Southern California (undergrad), Johns Hopkins University (medical school), UCLA (residency/fellowship)

Why did you choose your profession?: My father is a doctor, so I've always known and wanted to be a doctor. I chose ophthalmology because I enjoy the combination of clinical work and surgery. I think the eye is so fascinating and helping people with their vision is so satisfying.

 Current Passion Project: Educating and fighting misinformation about COVID-19 and the vaccines with various organizations like #ThisIsOurShot, #teamhalo (United Nations), and the WHO.

 Who was/is your inspiration? My father! 

 How do you get over the troubled times: Whenever things get tough, I try to focus on the next step - how to make it better, what can be learned, etc.

 Fun Fact: I can move my ears.

Do you have any advice for others interested in entering your field? Focus on the goal. There will be a late nights and rough days, but as long as you focus on your goal and never give up, you'll get there!

Any other message/ motivational quotes you'd like to share: Do what you love; Love what you do!

Name: Howard “Howie” Pyo

Medical Title/Credentials: 3rd Year Medical Student

IG: @howieepowiee 

School/Program: 

Medical School: David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

Undergraduate: University of California, Berkeley

Favorite Hobby: I love gardening, fishing, bushcraft, golf, and trying new food.

Why did you choose this profession? It was a gradual process. Starting in high school, I was volunteering in hospitals and homeless clinics and I was drawn towards talking to them and the interactions I had with them. That's when I realized I wanted to work with people. I was also always interested in biology and science so when I started college, I started shadowing doctors and observing what they did/what impact they made. That's when I really learned what medicine entails and began to fall in love with the field.

Name: Benjamin Ordaz

Title: BSN RN

favorite hobby: Running

School/Program: California State University, East Bay

Why did you choose your profession?: I initially wanted to be a firefighter and in my pursuit to become a firefighter, I decided I wanted to get my bachelor's degree. I was taking an Emergency Medical Technician course and during this training I realized how intrigued and passionate I was about medicine. I decided to study nursing because I would have been able to obtain my bachelor's degree, expand my scope of practice in medicine, and be able to continue to care for people who are ill and injured.