在COVID-19大流行的早期，柯震东，M.D., was a newly minted medical student who wasn’t about to sit around and wait for the world to hopefully heal.

Instead, Ko, along with several other medical students, 太k action by developing an 教育活动 以COVID-19疫苗为中心.

The campaign included informational flyers that were handed out by the group at local churches, 诊所, 无论他们在哪里都能找到愿意倾听的人.

And it’s just one reason why Ko recently was named recipient of the 2024 卓越公共卫生奖 from the U.S. Public Health Service Physician Professional Advisory Committee. Ko was recognized for the award at the 2024 OUWB Honors Convocation.

“I was very surprised, happy, and grateful to have received this award,他说.

“There were plenty of other classmates of mine who did great work and I felt that many of them were very deserving.”

柯震东说，他感到一种强烈的感激之情, 太, for those who worked with him on projects like the 教育活动.

“I received the award but right behind me were all of the people who helped others in the community,他说.

早期动机和OUWB

柯震东拥有双重国籍, 我出生在温哥华, 英属哥伦比亚, 主要在旧金山地区长大.

作为一个年轻人, two key events would dictate the course of his life: when Ko was 12, his grandfather died abruptly of leukemia; and his mom was diagnosed with cancer the following year (she was able to recover and remains cancer-free).

“当这一切发生的时候, I decided I wanted to go and make my career about cancer research,他说. “Contributing in some way to move the whole field forward was that early motivation to go into cancer oncology.”

Ko would go on to earn an undergraduate degree in molecular biochemistry from the University of California-Davis.

毕业于加州大学戴维斯分校, he worked for more than two years at Stanford University’s Radiation Oncology Department. His role was to work with clinical staff and enroll patients in clinical trials.

在斯坦福的时候, Ko was encouraged by one of the leading physician-scientists to pursue medicine — radiation oncology, 具体地说.  

与此同时，Ko与托马斯·格雷罗，M.D, a radiation oncologist at Corewell健康, former assistant dean, 多样性 & 包容，前棱镜计划导师.

While still on the west coast, Ko helped Guerrero with a clinical trial. Beyond the practical experience, it also introduced Ko to OUWB. 他申请并被接受了.

“在我面试那天, I felt like I was welcomed by so many students…everyone seemed to have such a collaborative and collegial mindset,他说. “我觉得OUWB非常独特.”

“我们怎么帮你??’

Ko在COVID-19高峰期开始在OUWB工作. The OUWB Class of 2024’s orientation, for example, primarily was virtual.

But Ko was on a mission to not only become a doctor but to make a difference.

“当我上医学院的时候, the same kind of theme (from when I was younger) continued to ring in my head — how do we help underserved people?他说.

He jumped at the chance to get involved in opportunities consistent with that mindset.

Ko worked on the grassroots COVID-19 vaccine 教育活动 with Mallory Evans, M.D.布兰登·普伦蒂斯，m.s.D.24岁. (Ko said the effort also couldn’t have been done without Tiffany Loh, M.D.Rose Wedemeyer，博士.D.，教育培训总监，Nelia Afonso, m.s.D.基础医学研究系教授.)

The students 太k the campaign to places like Baldwin Center, 以及加里·伯恩斯坦社区诊所.

One of the most enlightening experiences Ko said he had was at Welcome Missionary Baptist Church in Pontiac. The students often 太k their campaign to the church and would talk to people about the vaccines.

 Ko said he was able to better understand how some have different views of medicine, like vaccines.

“I never experienced the kind of questions like I did in that setting,他说. “我获得了一个完全不同的视角.”

“That was really great practice because I know I’ll face that later on in my career,” he added. “Navigating those kind of situations is what makes someone a better doctor.”

高还参加了其他课外活动. He served on the AAMC Organization of Student Representatives and as a national delegate within the AAMC Executive Leadership Team.

他还参与了OUWB的Robert J. Lucas Surgical Society and volunteered frequently at the Student Run Free Clinic at the Gary Burnstein 社区 Clinic and at the Baldwin Center in Pontiac.

他也被认为是有帮助的人 拯救一个人的生命 在当地的健身房.     

Looking back, Ko said he feels “really lucky” to have had the experiences he did at OUWB.

“I had a lot of opportunities to stand out…I found my niche while navigating different challenges,他说.

在圣. Joseph’s 医疗 Center, Ko will head to University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Ko said that he’s “over the moon” about the next phase of his career in medicine.

“Here is this kid who wanted to do cancer research early on and pivoted to a clinical setting later on, 我在密歇根上学, 现在在一个非常棒的培训中心,他说. “Things couldn’t have gone any better…I can’t wait to move to Houston and get some of the best training in the country.”

For more information, contact Andrew Dietderich, senior marketing specialist, OUWB, at (电子邮件保护).

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