Healthcare: A Human Right for All

“When I think about health disparities I think about things that aren’t present for some communities that are present for others,” explained Malim, OMS II, a member of TouroCOM’s class of 2019. “My role as a physician is to reinforce that health care is a human right for all.”

Malim graduated from the University of California Irvine with a degree in African American studies. Afterwards, he pursued a Masters in Public Health from the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in South Los Angeles where he saw more of the consequences of income disparity on health care.

“From the medical side of things, we don’t necessarily think of the social conditions that would cause disease like socioeconomic status, education and racial discrimination,” Malim stated. “But ultimately it might come down to that.”

While searching for a medical program, Malim discovered TouroCOM and the school’s mission of service appealed to him along with his beliefs in the holistic treatment of illnesses.  

“TouroCOM’s osteopathic medicine program allows us to think about the individual as more than just their symptoms,” he said. “We think about our patients as a whole and, by extension, the society that they were brought up in and the society that they’re living in now and how that impacts their health.”

“TouroCOM’s mission is oriented towards uplifting the community through health,” continued Malim. “Not only acknowledging that there are social conditions that impact people’s health but acknowledging that the role of physicians is to go out and have a direct role in improving people’s health. This is why I wanted to be a physician.”