Star of the Month
Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association
School of Medicine
Congratulations to our Stars of the Month for January 2025, the Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association (APAMSA) from the School of Medicine!
APAMSA has been actively serving our Baltimore community this year by working with New Song Community Church to provide services such as screenings for blood pressure, STDs, and lipid panels for community members. Read our interview with Amy Parampil, APAMSA Co-Chair for Outreach, below to learn more about their work!
Tell us a little bit about your group. When was the group formed and what are its mission, goals, and values?
The Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA), founded in 1995, is a national organization that aims to address health issues important to Asians and Asian Pacific Americans. The Johns Hopkins chapter serves primarily medical students of the JHUSOM although involvement from nursing, public health, and other students is welcome. The mission of APAMSA is to unite students who are interested in health issues that affect Asian Americans in order to create a strong, collective, public voice.
Can you share a little information about the work your group is doing and why you decided to become involved in APAMSA?
APAMSA hosts a variety of events aimed at community building through service, mentorship, or cultural celebration. Our members join for a multitude of reasons, but we all share a common goal of celebrating and sharing Asian and Pacific Islander culture and heritage through service and mutual exchange.
Whether we are signing up bone marrow donors for underrepresented minorities or sharing delicious home-cooked dishes at our potlucks, APAMSA serves as a forum for Asian students and their allies at JHUSOM.
What other service activities does the group have planned in the future to get involved in the community? Are there any activities where others can get involved?
APAMSA hosts an annual health fair with New Song Community Church, typically in the fall, and a bone marrow donation registration drive in the spring. We also host donation drives and care package making events. We encourage community members to help us volunteer or donate!
"Service encourages the development of compassionate and socially aware physicians who prioritize their community. It enhances medical education by allowing students to apply classroom knowledge to real-world settings, which deepens our understanding of health disparities and the social determinants of health."
Could you share more details about the recent health fair APAMSA organized in collaboration with the New Song Community Church? What were some key takeaways or impactful moments from that event?
APAMSA hosted a health fair at New Song Community Church to provide services such as screenings for blood pressure, STDs, and lipid panels for community members. We also offered a vaccination clinic, care packages, and referrals to other healthcare services in Baltimore, such as B'more for Healthy Babies and the Johns Hopkins Breast Health Center. The success of our event highlighted the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration; we are more powerful when doctors, nurses, health educators, social workers, and patient navigators (and more!) can all gather under one roof. We express our gratitude for the Student National Medical Association and the Primary Care Leadership Track at JHUSOM, the Health Betterment Initiative of DC, and of course our friends at New Song Community Church and the Sandtown-Winchester Community Collective, whose involvement proved essential for the success of our event.
How do you feel that engaging in service and community partnership initiatives enhances or complements what you are learning in medical school?
Service encourages the development of compassionate and socially aware physicians who prioritize their community. It enhances medical education by allowing students to apply classroom knowledge to real-world settings, which deepens our understanding of health disparities and the social determinants of health. These experiences foster cultural competence, empathy, and collaboration, nurturing a lifelong commitment to service and advocacy - a core tenet of the medical profession.