Mega Doctor News
By Jennifer L. Berghom
Dallas, Texas – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine has won the Texas Medical Association-Medical Student Section (TMA-MSS) 2018-2019 Chapter of the Year Award for its efforts in community service and recruitment of TMA members. Medical students received the award at the TMA’s annual conference, TexMed 2019, earlier this month in Dallas.
In addition, medical students Amanda Arreola (MS4) and Sarah Miller (MS3) were elected to chair and vice chair, respectively, of the Medical Student Section Executive Council. Patrick Ojeaga (MS3), UTRGV TMA chapter president, and Jared Sperling (MS2) were chosen to be members of the TMA-MSS Board Council and serve on board committees.
Arreola, a member of the medical school’s inaugural class, said she is proud that subsequent classes have continued and expanded the chapter’s involvement. “We
The TMA noted that UTRGV’s participation in TMA-sponsored events provided bicycle helmets to children and offered vaccinations to more than 60 residents. Other
Of all the community service activities the chapter engaged in, students agree that the immunization event was among the most meaningful. It
“It was really great to see how students from all classes came together to administer vaccinations to our community members,” Sperling said. “To be able to partner with the Student
The students said they were honored to receive this award, considering the UTRGV School of Medicine is a young school. They are grateful for support from the
“They make sure we’ve had places to stay, that we’re taken care of at conferences,” Miller said. “They always engage with us and they are a big part of why we are so successful as a chapter.”
Dr. John H. Krouse, executive vice president for Health Affairs and dean of the UTRGV School of Medicine, praised the medical students for their commitment to community service and offered congratulations on the recognition by TMA-MSS.
“These students have embraced the School of Medicine’s mission to serve the Rio Grande Valley community and advance health care in this region,” he said. “By engaging with Valley residents through showing them how to stop bleeding, offering vaccinations,
The Texas Medical Association (TMA) created its Medical Student Section in the 1970s to gain the student perspective among its members and receive input from medical students on TMA and American Medical Association’s (AMA) policy-making processes. The TMA-MSS now has more than 6,500 members.
The TMA began offering the Chapter of the Year Award in 1998 to recognize TMA-MSS chapters for their leadership, dedication,