Graduate Spotlight: Father’s health battle fuels Guzman’s dream of becoming a doctor
Kim Chaudoin |
From the time she was young, Megan Guzman has felt called to serve others.
When she was 15, how Guzman would serve others became clear when her father was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular autoimmune disease. A native of El Salvador, Guzman’s father speaks Spanish and often encountered difficulties when receiving care because of the language barrier.
“It may sound cliché, but I have always felt that being a doctor was my calling,” explains Guzman, of LaVergne, Tennessee. “God gave me my first patient — my father — when I was a teenager and was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease. Living through his diagnosis and treatment, I decided that I want to serve those underrepresented in medicine as she often witnessed the language and socioeconomic barriers her father faced in seeking medical care. She wants to provide accessible healthcare to others even if it is just understanding patients in their native language in order to provide a better diagnosis and treatment experience.”
She is well on her way to achieving her dream. A first-generation college student, Guzman will receive her Bachelor of Science degree in neurobiology on Saturday. This fall she will begin work on her Master of Science in biomolecular science at Lipscomb and then will apply to medical school.
I think I will carry a small piece of every professor I have ever had at Lipscomb in my heart. — Megan Guzman
Guzman says she believes attending Lipscomb was part of God’s plan for her. She first learned about Lipscomb when she joined a friend to tour Lipscomb “as moral support.” Because the May 1 national decision day was approaching, she says she applied to Lipscomb because at that point she did not know where she wanted to attend college.
“The last day came where I had to put a deposit and I had to choose where I wanted to go,” she explains. “So I took a leap of faith and chose Lipscomb. I think it was in God’s will for Lipscomb to be where I pursued my degree.”
Knowing that her dream is to go to med school, Guzman decided to major in neurobiology, housed in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, because she has “always been interested in anything that had to do with the brain.” “Understanding the molecular mechanisms of the brain and applying them to different psychological disorders leads to a well-rounded analysis of different diseases,” she says.
At Lipscomb, Guzman was part of the MED club which she says exposed me to many different careers and opportunities. While in developmental genetics, she conducted research on the neurotoxicity of tea tree oil on zebrafish which was presented at the 2021 Student Scholars Symposium. In April, she was named a LaVelle Scholar. The purpose of the LaVelle Scholars program is to assist qualified pre-health professions students who demonstrate financial need to pay application and testing expenses associated with gaining admission to health professions schools. Student awards are funded by the Herman G. LaVelle Jr. MD Health Professions Student Assistance Funds. Selections are made by Lipscomb’s Health Professions Advisory Committee. Each LaVelle Scholar receives a free Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) prep-course.
“I have had such a wonderful experience at Lipscomb. As the years have gone by, Lipscomb has become more inclusive and diverse. It is always interesting to connect with others on campus as everyone is very nice,” reflects Guzman. “Being able to incorporate my studies in science with my faith has benefitted me tremendously by allowing me to accept what I do not know and making sense of what I do know and how that relates to God’s plan for humanity.”
Guzman credits her professors with having a profound impact on her life. “I think I will carry a small piece of every professor I have ever had at Lipscomb in my heart,” she admits. “However, there are a few that have been very good to me. I would have to give a special shoutout to Dr. John Lewis, Dr. Bonny Millimaki, Dr. Jill Kirby, Dr. Lee Mayo, Dr. Katie Osborn Spirko and Professor Katie Link.” But the one who has most motivated her in her studies, she says, is her two-year-old daughter, Cassandra, whom she “loves and adores.”