Lauren Grimes

Quinnipiac University Physician Assistant Program

I was born and raised in Bakersfield, California. I have a Bachelor’s of Science degree in kinesiology, with an emphasis in pre-physical therapy, from San Diego State University

Throughout all four of my years at SDSU, I was a member of the SDSU Flying Samaritans, a student organization that held free monthly clinics in Tijuana, Mexico. I also participated in medical volunteer work in Antigua, Guatemala. For the past two years, I have worked as an emergency department technician in the southernmost US hospital in San Diego, California.

The Urban Service Track/AHEC Scholars Program’s mission inspires me to look at the bigger picture of healthcare, and at the power of communities to drive education, prevention and wellness. I want to be a voice and an advocate for patients who would otherwise lack one. I am confident the UST/AS Program will help me take care of as many patients as I can by giving them the knowledge and care necessary to unite body, mind, and spirit in their daily lives.  As humans, we are all interdependent: no man is an island unto himself, as the saying goes. We are also vulnerable, always open to afflictions or injuries that bring that interdependence to the fore. It is an honor to take part in this human commonality as a caregiver, to embrace interdependence through the improvement of another’s life.