Claudia Chavez: Pushing for Culturally Competent Healthcare for All

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If you need someone with a variety of experience in health fields, Claudia Chavez has it.

Neuroscience? Check.

Healthcare administration? Check.

Delivering a baby (as part of EMT training)?! Check.

Today, Chavez is growing her already strong health-promotion skills as a second-year student in the master’s program in healthcare administration at UT Southwestern in Dallas, where she also works as a research assistant.

Chavez, a Dallas native, wants to make culturally competent healthcare a right—not a privilege—for all people.

To further her training and education, Chavez applied for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program. The program, led by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez at UT Health San Antonio with support from the National Cancer Institute, recruits 25 master’s-level students and professionals each year for a five-day summer institute to promote doctoral degrees and careers in Latino cancer.

Chavez said the Éxito! program “definitely helped” her consider pursuing a doctorate.

“I went in unsure of what the process was actually like of applying, being in, and after graduation, but Éxito! answered a lot of the questions I had,” she said. “I am in a better standing now of making an informed decision.”

Editor’s Note: This is the story of a graduate of the 2017 Èxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program. Apply now for 2018.