Student organziers for the Legislative Training Series
I think the moments began to happen when I was a child. We grew up straddling the poverty line. My dad didn't graduate high school, worked in construction, and a work injury that nearly killed him put him out of work. This was the early mid-90s, when the opioid crisis hadn't started yet, but was emerging, and we started to feel the effects trickling in. My dad, like so many other people, got swept up in the opioid crisis. However, at the time he was able to return to work, and no one knew that it was a bigger issue. Starting from there, I always felt and noticed the health and financial impacts on my family, and that never really stopped. Then afterwards, learning more about global issues and other issues affecting our world, I realized that there's suffering all over and the most productive thing I could do in life was to work to reduce that suffering. I continued to feel the impact of health and financial issues on my family all the way up to 2017. My dad was diagnosed with stage four cancer, was without health insurance, and passed away within a month. So there are some healthcare experiences that really put me on this journey to medical school and really helped shape the kind of doctor I hope to be. That is both a physician providing care to my patients and being a patient advocate, but also realizing how important it is to be a political advocate if I really care about my patients and their health.
The Newly Established AMA Club Takes on Legislative Advocacy
Interview with Amelia Keane, COM '24