A Student With a Wish to Mirror Her Patients: Laura Allen

Laura Allen’s mother is one of 10 children from Kansas City. Her father is one of five children from Detroit. After seeing the effect of inadequate health care and resources on her parents’ siblings, due to location, being underinsured and lack of trust, Allen knew she wanted to pursue urban health.

Now, as a second-year student in the College of Medicine through the NEOMED-Cleveland State University Partnership for Urban Health, Allen has already put her skills to the test—and succeeded. She was thrilled when she convinced her father to visit his primary care physician after a 15-year hiatus, due to trust and comfort issues.

“I would love to continue to break down barriers and be the face of one of the more underrepresented individuals in medicine so people feel more comfortable saying something to me that they may not have said or come to the doctor for in the past. Maybe they will talk to me more easily because we can relate on that level,” says Allen.

Making NEOMED feel like home for others

Breaking barriers to create comfort is something Allen has taken on as her mission as the president of NEOMED’s Student National Medical Association this year.

She says, “As SNMA’s president, I wanted to make sure that students from different backgrounds, specifically underrepresented backgrounds, know they are supported.”

The student organization has been especially active the past two semesters, hosting events such as a Black History Month Jeopardy night and a city-wide mixer for underrepresented medical student organizations across Northeast Ohio.

“I think it’s important within medicine that we learn about the different walks of life and how to treat our patients who may be different racially, culturally or ethnically, from ourselves. We need to be culturally competent. We need to have open minds and be willing to help in any way that we can. That’s what practicing medicine should be all about,” says Allen.

Not a granny

The support Allen hopes to offer her peers and fellow SNMA members mirrors the support she describes receiving during her time on both the CSU and NEOMED campuses.

Allen describes Sonja Harris-Haywood, M.D., co- director of the NEOMED-CSU Partnership for Urban Health, as someone she can call at any time for help.

She also expressed that she was nervous when matriculating to NEOMED at the age of 26 — afraid her younger classmates would think she was a “granny.” To her delight, Allen found that coming to NEOMED got her out of her comfort zone, which allowed her to form a new, close-knit circle of friends.

In addition to the support from Dr. Harris-Haywood and her classmates, Allen speaks highly of the University’s faculty and staff.

“Of course, it’s been a difficult ride in terms of medical school,” says Allen. “It’s not easy, but knowing that I have so many resources and so much support around me has made the transition much smoother.”