The Medical Scholar’s Pathway (MSP) began in 2015 as a comprehensive partnership between Napa Valley Community College and Kaiser Permanente Northern California aimed at improving the pool of underrepresented students interested in pursuing a healthcare career. Studies have shown that most underrepresented students first attend community colleges over 4-year universities.
Our 3-year Longitudinal program aims to support these students transfer to 4-year universities while concurrently providing mentoring, research and clinical opportunities to help prepare them for their eventual application to careers as Health Care or Public Health Professionals.
The Four Pillars of MSP
- Supporting Learning Environment
- Academic Preparedness
- Leadership and Professional Development
- Community Health Research
Medical Scholars Pathway Roadmap
| Summer | Year One Fall/Spring |
Summer | Year Two Fall/Spring |
Summer | Year Three Fall/Spring |
Summer | Year One–Two at 4-year University |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apply to Kaiser Permanente Medical Scholars Pathway program | Pre-Med Peer Advising Workshops | Community Health Education and Engagement in Research (CHEER) | Leadership and Community Health Forum: Inspiring Students to be Change Agents |
Pre-medical Research Clinical Internship (i.e. Prep Medico) |
Health Ambassadors Internship
Peer Advising Workshops and transfer preparation |
Transfer support to partnering UC/CSU/Private 4-year | Pre-Med advising workshops |
Curriculum
- Peer advising workshops
The CHEER curriculum is a 3-week program focused on introducing health disparities and the ways community-based research can address health disparities and data collection and analyzes basics.
Objectives for Community Health Education and Engagement in Research
- Describe what health disparities are and how communities are affected
- Learn how community needs may be assessed through community-based participatory research
- Understand the basics of the research process including but not limited to the extraction, collection, interpretation, and dissemination of data
- Learn how to interpret and work with data typically gathered in the evaluation of a community-based intervention.
Apply to CHEER and Leadership / Community Health Forum here.
Leadership and Community Health Forum
The Leadership and Community Health Forum is a year-long, multi-session program led by Kaiser Permanente Community Medicine Fellows, Public Health Students, Medical Students and Kaiser Permanente Physicians. The purpose of the forum is to provide opportunities for the pre-health students to develop their professionalism, leadership skills and the soft skills needed for these students to take part in community health interventions and community-based research.
Public Health and Community Health Curriculum
Fall
- Learn about the field of Community Health and Public Health
- Learn and Conduct your very own qualitative Needs Assessment: Photovoice
- Review the process of designing, evaluating, and sustaining a community-based health promotion intervention for you to implement your own community service project.
Spring
- Describe the Tenets of Community Health
- Describe what a Vulnerable population is and how we can better support them
- Describe how community organization can improve the health of our communities
Leadership Curriculum
Fall
- Develop personal awareness about your interactions within members of your team
- Learn how to apply your understanding of your social styles and communication styles to work more effectively with others
- Learn how to how emotional intelligence can help in better managing relationships Spring
- Describe the 6 traits of being an inclusive Leader
- Learn how to mitigate imposter syndrome through developing Executive Presence Learn how to apply the 6 traits of inclusive leadership to transition from Advocate to Change Agent.
Spring
- Describe the 6 traits of being an inclusive leader
- Learn how to mitigate imposter syndrome through developing Executive Presence
- Learn how to apply the 6 traits of inclusive leadership to transition from Advocate to Change Agent.
Apply to CHEER and Leadership / Community Health Forum here.
- Pre-medical research or clinical internships
- Apply to Health Ambassador Internship
- Health Ambassadors Internship
- Peer advising workshops & transfer preparation
- Transfer support to partnering UC/CSU/Private 4-year
A Student Perspective
Program Highlights
Covid 19: Impact on K-12 education
Vallejo Windshield Survey
