{"id":143721,"date":"2021-06-15T10:25:32","date_gmt":"2021-06-15T20:25:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=143721"},"modified":"2021-06-15T10:25:32","modified_gmt":"2021-06-15T20:25:32","slug":"kamuela-andrade-imi-hoola-grad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2021\/06\/15\/kamuela-andrade-imi-hoola-grad\/","title":{"rendered":"Son\u2019s rare disorder sparks pursuit of med degree"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Kamuela Andrade with his family. (Photo courtesy: Vina Cristobal)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a young father who simply wanted to provide the best care for his child, Kamuela Andrade<\/strong> began to crave the medical knowledge behind the rare bleeding disorder that his infant son was diagnosed with. He was inspired by his son\u2019s pediatrician, James Raelson, who went above and beyond to care for his son, making home visits and teaching Andrade and his wife how to provide lifetime treatment in the form of daily infusions. As a lifeguard turned firefighter, Andrade naturally had a passion for helping people in dire situations.<\/p>\n

“I\u2019ve done a lot of rescues in my life but what he (Raelson) did for us and my son for those first few months of his life—he rescued me, he rescued my family, he rescued my son,” Andrade said. “I wanted to experience that, I wanted to do that kind of rescuing.”<\/p>\n

ʻImi<\/span> Hoʻōla<\/span> offers foundational start<\/h2>\n

Andrade made the ambitious decision to pursue his third career as a doctor, but it was not without hesitation due to the financial impact it would make on him and his family. The thought of the burden almost stopped him from applying to medical school, but with the full support of his wife, he moved forward. Although he wasn\u2019t accepted into the University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> at M\u0101noa John A. Burns School of Medicine<\/a> (JABSOM<\/abbr>) on his first try, he was accepted into the ʻImi<\/span> Hoʻōla<\/span> Post-Baccalaureate Program, which Andrade considers a blessing.<\/p>\n

“I\u2019m so grateful that I got into ʻImi<\/span> instead of getting into medical school first, because they provided me with that foundation that I needed, they taught me how to study, they taught me how to manage my time,” Andrade said.<\/p>\n

Part of the JABSOM<\/abbr> Department of Native Hawaiian Health, ʻImi<\/span> Hoʻōla<\/span> is a year-long preparatory program that recruits students from historically underprivileged or disadvantaged backgrounds. For years, The Queen\u2019s Health Systems (QHS<\/abbr>) has provided the students with monthly stipends, allowing students to commit their full attention to the rigorous premedical program. Upon successful completion, these students matriculate into JABSOM<\/abbr>\u2019s newest MD<\/abbr> class.<\/p>\n

Full-ride scholarship<\/h2>\n

In 2019, QHS<\/abbr> provided four-year, full-tuition scholarships to three graduates of ʻImi<\/span> Hoʻōla<\/span>, including Andrade. Andrade said that receiving a full-tuition scholarship was “affirmation for everything that I\u2019ve been through so far—what we were trying to accomplish together as a family, what my son went through and how his pediatrician inspired me to go on this path.”<\/p>\n

Currently a second-year medical student, Andrade hopes to pursue family medicine and would like to return to Kauaʻi<\/span>, where he worked as firefighter, to provide rural community health care.
\n“To this Queen\u2019s scholarship and to all the donors out there: Mahalo, mahalo nui to what you guys provide for us. You give us the opportunity and the freedom to focus on what we need to focus on and become the physicians that we aspire to be. Thank you,” Andrade said.<\/p>\n

Read more about Kamuela Andrade\u2019s story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—By Deborah Manog Dimaya<\/em><\/p>\n

This is an example of 糖心视频<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s goal of Enhancing Student Success<\/a> (PDF<\/abbr><\/span>), one of four goals identified in the 2015\u201325 Strategic Plan<\/a> (PDF<\/abbr><\/span>), updated in December 2020. <\/p>\n