Doc-4-A-Day Event Inspired Medical Student to Pursue Medicine

Julian Cizmic attended the event nearly a decade ago now he’s helping to lead it

Medical Students and  Black Premedical Society volunteers inspired possibilities at the bi-annual Doc-4-A-Day event, which encourages high school students to explore health care careers. 

The power of sharing stories and mentorship is immeasurable. Twice a year University of California San Diego School of Medicine hosts high school students at the Doc-4-A-Day event. While the hands-on activities are memorable and interesting, it’s the one-on-one interactions among the high school students and medical students that are forging unforgettable moments and sparking interest in medical careers.

Second-year medical student Julian Cizmic, one of the students who led the planning efforts this year, grew up in San Diego and attended Doc-4-A-Day as a high school student back in 2015.

“I was already interested in biology, but it was only after attending Doc-4-A-Day that I began considering a career in medicine,” said Cizmic. “I thought the hands-on activities were fun, but the most impactful part of the day for me was speaking with the current medical students. I don’t have any physicians in my family, and I didn’t know much about the training process, so it was very encouraging to hear that students could take a variety of paths to get to medical school.”

A reunion to remember

At the most recent event, Cizmic was reunited with his AP Biology teacher who first brought him to Doc-4-A-Day as a high school freshman. Joanne Johnson, a teacher at Kearny School of Biomedical Science and Technology, located at the Kearny High Educational Complex, was overjoyed to see her former student now helping to lead the event that he attended so many years ago.

“We have been coming to Doc-4-A-Day for 13 years,” said Johnson. “It's an amazing program. And this year for the first time, a UC San Diego first-year medical student was a former student of mine. That was such a joy to see him. It was a lovely moment.”

In addition to Kearny, students from San Diego High School, Escondido High School and Alta Vista High School attended the most recent event. The students participated in interactive experiences including workshops on first aid, ultrasound technology and a gastrointestinal simulation workshop which always elicits giggles and groans as the students use bananas and chocolate sandwich cookies to stimulate the digestion process. Additionally, students from the Black Pre-Medical Society at UC San Diego collaborated with the medical students by sharing an informative presentation on applying to college.

Planning for the future

For the last 30 years, Doc-4-A-Day has been led by medical students who are thrilled to provide this memorable and impactful event for high school students.

“We all recognize the need to improve the diversity of students entering medical training,” said Cizmic. “This will be particularly important for improving outcomes and addressing shortages in underserved communities. Additionally, many of us benefited from similar outreach and mentorship programs, so organizing Doc-4-A-Day is a great way for us to reflect on our journeys and pay it forward to the next generations.”

Hearing the medical students’ personal journeys is one of the most important takeaways that the high school students receive at Doc-4-A-Day. Johnson noted that many of her students come from at-risk backgrounds, so showing them that the path to medical school is not always a straight direct path is really important.

“When the high school students hear the UC San Diego students talk about how they got into medical school, it’s a real surprise to find out that a lot of the path was zigzag,” said Johnson. “It wasn't like they all knew in high school that this was what they wanted. If (the high school students) think they're supposed to know what they want to do, it’s intimidating when they don’t. Connecting with medical and premedical students and hearing their stories is so uplifting to the high school students.”

A lasting legacy

Since its inception, the goals of Doc-4-A-Day have not wavered. Maria Rosario (Happy) Araneta, Ph.D., M.P.H., associate dean of diversity and community partnerships at School of Medicine recently connected with Frances Chavez, M.D., a 1998 School of Medicine graduate who was one of four medical students in the Latino Medical Student Association that created Doc-4-A-Day 30 years ago.

“Dr. Chavez is thrilled the event is thriving,” said Araneta. “The goals of the program then are consistent with our goals now – to provide exposure to health professions, to stimulate their curiosity for science and to inspire the students’ imagination to see their future selves in the medical students and undergraduates they engage with.”

For Cizmic, staying true to the original goals for the program really has made an impact on his life.

“If not for (the conversational) part of Doc-4-A-Day, I’m not sure if I would have considered medical school as a possibility for my career,” said Cizmic. “That’s why I wanted to get involved with leading this event all these years later as a medical student at UC San Diego. It was a great full-circle moment of sorts. We were all impressed by the high school students’ knowledge, ambition and curiosity — that really makes us optimistic about the future cohorts of medical students.”