"Growing up, every time my family would drive past the Kapiʻolani Medical Center, I would say, 'I'm going to work there.'"
Anna-Kaelle Ramos and 76 other fourth-year medical students at the University of Hawaiʻi John A. Burns School of Medicine matched into a residency program today. For Ramos, the dream she manifested years ago turned into a reality. The Kaiser High School graduate will be a University of Hawaiʻi Pediatrics Department resident.
"Even though I didn't know at that time that I was necessarily going to go into pediatrics or OBGYN or anything like that, being born and raised here, I knew I wanted to serve the exact communities I grew up in," Ramos said.
For a second consecutive year, 100 percent of JABSOM students matched into a residency program. As Hawaiʻi continues to grapple with a physician shortage, more than half of JABSOM students are entering much-needed primary care specialties of Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, and Pediatrics.
Growing up on the Leeward side, Austin Corpuz was cared for by his community, and the Kapolei High School graduate is excited to be in a position to give back as he matched with the University of Hawaiʻi Internal Medicine program.
"Having this privilege of getting into medicine and then serving others is basically my dream," Corpuz said. "I like to think about how I'll impact this community in the future. That purpose is what really drives me forward."
Staying in Hawaiʻi to learn and now serve is a priority of many JABSOM students. The unfortunate reality is that some are forced to complete residency on the continent as Hawaiʻi doesn't have residency programs in all medical specialties. Thirty-one percent of the JABSOM's Class of 2024 will continue training in Hawaiʻi. Yi Yu, who grew up in Liliha, is one of them.
"It's really important for me to be able to practice here in Hawaiʻi," Yu said. "I really wanted to train here and learn how to work with the community here. Hawaiʻi has the only children's center within the Pacific, so I think it's a great place to train that allows me to be with my family and the community I grew up in."
Yu is one of the 16 JABSOM students who matched to a Pediatrics program. This is the highest number of pediatric residents coming from JABSOM in the last fifteen years, which will increase the care for keiki in Hawaiʻi.
"Being a primary care physician, a pediatrician, and helping the future of Hawaiʻi is just so important to me in terms of giving back to Hawaiʻi," Yu said.
As the 77 JABSOM students graduate in May, they'll soon venture off into their residencies, and many are eager to practice the skills they've learned at the Kakaʻako campus.
"Being able to finally learn how to take care of patients by making my own decisions, gaining more independence, and just learning more from the patients, the community, and the physicians here is what I'm looking forward to most," Yu said.
"The faculty at JABSOM were amazing throughout the entire four years," Ramos said. "We built this community at JABSOM and celebrated Match Day together. It was just a great feeling. I definitely look forward to not having to move, taking a break before residency, and then just getting at it, working at the hospital."
