Latinx Professionals in Medicine

Increasing the number of Latinx physicians is crucial for addressing healthcare disparities in the United States when only 6% of physicians identify as Latino or Latina. On October 1, the Alliance joined the School of Medicine and the Federally Qualified
Health Center to bring visibility to the campus. UC Irvine is committed to addressing the disparity and increasing the number of Latinx physician graduates.

To help bridge this gap, UC Irvine's Program in Medical Education for the Latino Community (PRIME-LC) is making significant strides. This five-year, dual-degree program is designed to create leaders and physician-activists dedicated to serving underserved Latinx communities. It is the pinnacle example of UCI Irvine’s unwavering commitment and just celebrated its 20th anniversary on October 18.

To date, Prime-LC has graduated 172 physicians, 95% of which are practicing in low- income underserved Latino communities and two thirds of them are involved in leadership and activism roles outside their practices. Many dignitaries gave remarks at PRIME-LC’s 20th Anniversary celebration, including U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra; Alliance Member and California Surgeon General Dr. Diana E. Ramos '20; and Dr. Sarah López '09, the first PRIME-LC class graduate and current Medical Consultant for the California Department of Health Care Services. Each speaker emphasized the timely need for Spanish-speaking, culturally sensitive, and empathetic Latinx practicing physicians to keep up with California's growing Latinx population.The UCI-OC Alliance looks forward to supporting efforts that help close the health gap for Latinx communities by continuing to support these initiatives.