The mission of the Latinx Undergraduate Medical Association (LUMA) at the University of Michigan is to empower and support Latinx students on their journey toward medical school, as well as to promote health and wellness within the Latinx community.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), in 2020, 6.28% of applicants to U.S. medical schools were of Hispanic or Latino identity and 6.58% of matriculants were Hispanic or Latino. Furthermore, the AAMC reported that only 5.8% of active physicians identified as Hispanic. Given that over 18.5% of people in the U.S. are of Hispanic or Latino origin, there is a distinct disparity between the amount of Hispanic or Latino physicians in the U.S. compared to the general population, meaning that Latinos are severely underrepresented within medicine. LUMA is seeking to change this at the university level by providing Latinx students with the opportunity to explore careers in medicine and a community to support premed students throughout their undergraduate journeys towards medicine. As a new student organization, we are raising money to support these endeavors, especially as we establish ourselves as a staple organization within our community. Despite being online, we’ve been able to host many events, such as an OB-GYN Panel and a Virtual Summer Research and Internship Fair, as well as providing safe, hands-on experiences like our suturing event! We have been able to fund kits and expenditures for these events through member funding and small department grants. However, there is little university funding currently available to help cover the expenses necessary for consistent programming. We are thus requesting donations to provide truly impactful and high-quality events for these aspiring physicians. Once the university allows for in-person programming, we hope to provide even more opportunities for our members to gain exposure to the vast field of medicine, and your donation will help our efforts tremendously.
In April 2020, our organization was founded in response to a campuswide need for a community of Latinx premed students to advocate for the needs of our community and to motivate each other on our journey to medicine. Acknowledging the lack of Latinx physicians in health and medicine, we hope to encourage interest in medicine for those in our community by providing inclusive and informative opportunities, in order to do our part in leading medicine to a diverse and inclusive future. LUMA is also an undergraduate chapter of the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) and we collaborate with the University of Michigan LMSA medical chapter to provide mentorship opportunities for our members!
Your donation would go towards programming meant to inspire students to pursue a career in medicine through opportunities like our suture workshop and internship fair.
For more information about our GoFundMe campaign visit here.
To learn more about LUMA, please visit our Instagram page @luma_umich.