A young African-American girl named Ifeyinwa Ojukwu has beaten competitors worldwide to win the United Kingdom Marshall Scholarship to study for a master’s degree at the University College of London.
Ifeyinwa obtained her bachelor’s degree in Biology and Psychology with a minor in public health at Syracuse University, New York in the United Kingdom and was awarded the 2022 prestigious Marshall Scholarship.Â
The Marshall Scholarship finances young Americans of high ability to study for a graduate degree at an institution in the United Kingdom in any field of study. Ifeyinwa was one of the 41 students selected from around the country.
She mentioned that with the scholarship, she will be studying for a master’s degree in Precision medicine because her goal is to disrupt race-related health disparities as both a physician and health policy advisor.
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Race-related health disparities in patient care and outcomes are unfortunately abundant in the U.S, and I’ve come to realize that our approach to solving these issues will have to be multi-faceted and comprehensive to be effective,” Ifeyinwa said.
”I believe one such facet lies in precision medicine, a medical model that more actively takes into account patients’ individual genetic and environmental characteristics,” she added.
Ifeyinwa said as a future doctor and health policy advisor, she wants to contribute to the advancement and broader use of precision medicine in medical practice and treatment adding that being a Marshall scholar will help her achieve the goal.
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Ifeyinwa said she is excited to learn more about the field and conduct research in precision medicine stating that these insights will greatly benefit her future training as a Medical Doctor and in public policy, as well as her career.
While at Syracuse, she did research at SUNY Upstate Medical University on a rare neurodegenerative disorder. Ifeyinwa said for the research, she studied a rare genetic disorder called PKAN, which is more common Dominican Republic and it supports the patients in this underresourced town.
”I traveled to Cabral in January 2020 with other researchers and physicians on the research team. On this trip, I met a number of our patients and their families and came to learn more about the history of the disproportionate burden this disease has placed on their community,” Ifeyinwa said.
“My research makes clear to me what it is to recognize a community’s needs and attend to them earnestly, as I feel a career in medicine calls for. The research work can be challenging, but it is worth it to have a positive impact on this underserved community,” she added.
Ifeyinwa said she hopes to work at a medical center that serves underserved populations, which will allow her to directly help patients facing health disparities. She added that she also wants to contribute to health policy by using research to inform lawmakers and decision-makers.
At the University, Ifeyinwa was a member of the biology department’s Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility committee where she developed a proposal for and saw through to curricular approval of a new course entitled “Race, Health, and Healthcare.
She led the Rebecca Lee Pre-Health Society (RLPHS), focusing on centering the voices of people of color in healthcare and promoting cultural competence, coordinated student participation in SU’s Race Equity Academic Symposium and developed a new course on “Race, Health, and Healthcare”.
Ifeyinwa is also a Coronat Scholar, a 2021-22 Remembrance Scholar, and a member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program. Upon completion of her Marshall scholarship, she plans to pursue an M.D./master of public policy program in the United States.
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