Michael Tassavor

UConn School of Medicine, Class of 2018

I was born in New Britain and moved a lot as a kid, eventually settling in Rocky Hill. I received a B.S. in Molecular & Cell Biology from UConn followed by an M.S. in Biomedical Sciences from Tufts School of Medicine.

At Tufts I volunteered as a Case Manager with the Sharewood Project, a free clinic outside Boston. There I provided basic screening and care and located social services such as WIC or subsidized insurance for patients. Sharewood opened my eyes to the sad realities of healthcare access.

One of my most meaningful experiences was a summer spent as a secretary at a cancer clinic. One of my duties was to collect on the balances of sick and often distraught patients – a task that often inevitably pitted me against the underserved and uninsured. My exposure to this dark side of the healthcare system is a major reason why I have sought to work with vulnerable patient populations.

My interest in working with the underserved and vulnerable increased during two summers in my mother’s native Iran, where I worked with an ophthalmologist who became a mentor and exemplar to me through his advocating and caring for the neglected rural and urban poor of his province.

Involvement with the Urban Service Track is a natural progression of my experiences and will help me with my goals, as both a physician and as an advocate, to bring healthcare to the underserved and make it a right for all people.