EP148 Empowering Communities in Cameroon with Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare

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EP148 Empowering Communities in Cameroon with Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare

Aman Chopra: Folks, welcome back to another episode of the I AM GPH podcast. Have you ever wondered or been in a medical drive? What is a medical drive? What does it like to start a medical drive? I'm sure a lot of you have been a part of a medical drive. Think about a medical drive, or even wanna start a medical drive. Well, some of you might even be overwhelmed hearing about a medical drive, but today's guest is a young superstar that has not only done this, but has done so much more than just medical drives. Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare is an MPH candidate here at NYU, and she's specializing in social and behavioral sciences. She has led a drive recently as I'm recording this interview with all of you, and she's done many noteworthy things along this side. She not only has a bright past, but also a bright future and she's gonna be a superstar in the world of public health. We can't wait to learn all about her thinking, her mindset, and whatever she thinks of in the future. Zoe-Marie, welcome to the I AM GPH podcast.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.

Aman Chopra: We're so glad to have you here. And you know, I was looking you up, and before I get into the whole medical drive thing, I'm sure a lot of students at GPH have been a part of a medical drive or before coming to GPH have been in a medical drive. What I'm curious about for you is where did your journey start? So take me back to the 18-year-old an undergrad. Where does that journey begin for you in terms of public health?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: My public health journey actually didn't really take root until after I graduated from my undergrad. 18-year-old Zoe was very steadfast on medicine since I was, I would say eight years old I knew I wanted to be a doctor, especially a pediatrician. I love kids, they're just like everything to me. And my path was I was gonna get my bachelor's in biology, so I went to my alma mater, St. Mary's College of Maryland and I pursued a bachelor's in biology, and there I got tons of exposure just learning about organisms and people. But I didn't feel like I had enough exposure to be like the best doctor. My plan was after undergrad to go straight into medical school and pursue my dreams of being a pediatrician. But I felt like I didn't, I knew the science aspect quite well, but the people aspect, I felt like it was lacking. So I thought, I would say it was like January before graduation of 2023, I thought, "What do I wanna do now? Do I go straight and apply for medical school? Do I find work outside of my typical sciences or do I go and get my master's? And if I get my master's, what would it be in?" And I thought, "Oh, public health seems really interesting." I have a family member who's currently in medical school and she pursued her master's in public health and she kind of inspired me to kind of go down that path. And I just found that NYU had, like when I was reading through the GPH website about the concentration of social behavioral sciences, I felt like this is my calling. Like you're working with people, learning about people, living, seeing and breathing, like what type of environments they're in. And then I have an opportunity to find ways to help these communities. It felt like a calling, like that's something I really wanna do. So I read more about the program, I applied and with God's grace I got in and my public health journey began.

Aman Chopra: I'm curious to understand, and this is something a lot of master's students even or maybe not PhDs would wonder where I don't know what to do. You're so clear that I knew I wanna be a pediatrician. I love kids. How did that evolve for you or how were you so certain about that?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I've known since it's like a little childhood incident. My parents weren't home and my brother and I were playing outside, and I took my eyes off of him for a minute and he like ran and scraped up his knee real bad. So obviously like in sister defense mode, I took him in, I'm like, "Let's get inside, let's clean you up." And I remember at the time my parents had like this big bath in their bathroom, and I sat him down and I got the alcohol wipes and the bandaid and I'm like, "Oh, I feel like a surgeon." Like, "Ooh, I'm about to perform on you or something." And it was just as simple as just cleaning up his wounds and putting on a bandaid and just being there and comforting him. He was just a little kid, I would say maybe he was five or six years old at the time. And I just knew then and there like, this is something I wanna do. Like, even though I'm a little kid, I knew like I wanna do this. And then I remember I went on my iPad and I Googled doctors that take care of kids, and the word that came up was pediatrician. And I was like, "Yeah, that's what I want to do.

Aman Chopra: Wow. 

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I wanna be a pediatrician.

Aman Chopra: Wow.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah.

Aman Chopra: Oh man. Okay, I mean, it's pretty clear. So pediatrician, you did your undergrad and then after that you thought that public health was the calling. What made you choose NYU out of all of the options you had perhaps?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I was very lucky to have such a great system around me. I have family members who went to NYU. My uncle went to Stern and my sister is actually in her undergrad right now here at NYU as well.

Aman Chopra: Oh cool.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: So she's at CAS, she's getting her bachelor's in public policy, yeah.

Aman Chopra: Okay, CAS is College of Arts & Sciences.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yes, mm-hmm.

Aman Chopra: So then you had the people that had already kind of designed the path for you and you felt that this felt comfortable for you and you had the calling.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah.

Aman Chopra: So you chose to come.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: And quite honestly, when I was thinking of NYU, my education story hasn't been straightforward. It's quite honestly been like starting from the bottom, coming to the top. I had an individualized education plan, which is called an IEP. And it was because I had sometimes learning difficulties I guess. Like it would just take me while a little longer than my peers to understand certain concepts. So I had to work a little harder compared to my peers to make sure I was on top of my tasks and making sure my grades were good. Going through all that, like you deal with a lot of just criticism and a lot of eyes on you. Like, "Oh, is she gonna make it to college? Oh, is she capable? Is she smart?" Like these were questions that were seriously asked by my professors and by my teachers since I was in elementary school. Like, "Is she gonna make it? Is she gonna be okay being on her own?" And just having my family and having that system and having professors and teachers who believed in me and pushed me to achieve. Like my mom used to always say like, "Shoot for the moon and then if you miss you'll be amongst the stars." Like she used to say that a lot to me when I was younger and I never took that in until I got older. And just going through like, just trying to beat the odds, going against the naysayers put me in a position where I felt like I wanna achieve things that I'm scared of.

Aman Chopra: The learning disability that you speak of and the IEP program was something that made you question yourself, but at the same time you're saying that there's a lot to do with how your mother influenced you and took you in that direction and asked you to shoot for the moon and you'll be a star at the end of the day. So that's very powerful and it seems like you found that you're unconventional, if you will. Education system gave you motivation drive at a very early age, at a young age?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah, that's exactly it. My aunt, she always calls me her comeback kid because I came back from so much. And just even applying to NYU, I had major fears. I'm like, "Am I gonna get in?" I have never been... I've always felt like I was never the one that was chosen. I'm not the one that's typically picked, I'm typically the last picked just because growing up, like being the kid who had the learning disabilities, you're just constantly second guessing yourself, constantly thinking you're not as good as your peers around you. At least that's how my experience was. So when I got into NYU, I think that kind of just made a big shift in my life, honestly. It was like a wow, like me, someone like me can actually get into a school like this. And I know that it's not because of the fact that I have family that went to NYU or because I know people, it has nothing to do with that. It has everything to do with like my skills, my capabilities. They read my essay, they looked at my story that has to count for something. That has to mean that I must have something really great about me for such an amazing institution to even accept me to begin with. So I'm incredibly grateful for being here and it helps with like that imposter syndrome, like feeling like you're not the best. Feeling like the odds are against you. Like no, I overcame this. And I think getting into NYU made me feel like I can accomplish anything while I've been in here. So I've just been going for any leadership positions that I feel passionate about.

Aman Chopra: I mean you are a star now in whatever you're pursuing. I'm curious to tackle the IEP program for you, what is it like for you to learn? So what does it feel like maybe to explain to someone who might not be aware of it?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: The IEP program is essentially a program that helps students with any kind of learning disabilities. So for me, I was diagnosed as a child with ADHD, so it just took me a while to focus on tasks on hand. And even when I was doing tasks, it took me a while to understand concepts, but throughout that program I learned how to take a problem given to me and break that down into smaller chunks, and then try and conduct a checklist almost. Like, okay, I did part A, now I can do part B. And then in the end, once you get to like, let's say it's outta part C, like three parts, once you get to part C, you've already completed everything. And now it's not like, oh, I have this big problem in front of me and I have to try and figure everything out. Like you've broken it down into little steps and now you've now solved your own issue, if that makes sense, yeah.

Aman Chopra: And that feels like you're now been put on a level playing field as you've understood that process, but you have to go to a different system in order to understand the process that works for you.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Exactly.

Aman Chopra: So there's type of an equal way of working and everyone has their own system and understanding that everyone has a different system is what you got the gift to kind of discover and now you're applying it so masterfully in your own world.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Thank you. Yeah, that was exactly what I wanted to do. And I feel like me going through this process, I wanna be a voice for students who also have learning disabilities and feel like it's difficult for them to get into such high prestigious institutions. Like, trust me if I can do it, you can do it as well. Like it's really what you put out there, how you go about it. I think having confidence and doing things out of the box, like no one thinks to, I don't know, reach out and send an email to the dean of a university. Everyone's thinking, oh they're probably busy. They're not gonna read it. But it could be that email that makes them see like, oh this person is determined, confident and passionate and they really want this. You know what? Let me make it happen for them. I would say my advice to people is think outside of the box. Go for things that make you uncomfortable. Go for what's scary 'cause it just ends up being kind of beautiful in the end.

Aman Chopra: For those of you thinking of spamming the dean, don't do that. But at the same time, see the opportunity outside of the box that works for you is what I'm getting out of this as well. You know, I'm even more intrigued now because you're telling me that you had a hard time focusing, paying attention, getting a task done. And you are one of the first people that I'm speaking with that has created her own medical drive. I mean a medical drive that to in Cameroon. And I wanna hear the whole story. How did this medical drive come to life? What is a medical drive perhaps? What is this whole thing? What made it, what starts a medical drive? How do you go through that whole process? So tell me what is a medical drive and then what made you start a medical drive?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah, so essentially a medical drive is just an event hosted that allows medical resources to be given out to a specific community. It doesn't matter which community you serve, as long as you're providing those essential medical resources for them. And those resources could be anything from like eye medication, ibuprofen, even providing simple resources such as for women like pads and tampons, things of that nature. For me, my family is very, very, very big on education and very big on helping our community. My grandfather, may he rest in peace. was a hospital director back in Cameroon and he had a huge, huge impact on his community, especially in our village called Nyamunga. He was a man who you say his name and the community knows like he's coming to help and you say our family name Wanza, and people know the one Wanza family, they're good people, they're gonna come, they're gonna help, they're gonna support. So we wanted to do something in honor of him, something we felt showed and represented him as well as like our values as a family and as a collective. So we thought let us host a medical drive and give back to our community. So with the support of my co-founders, which are my siblings and my cousins, we were able to connect with our family members in Cameroon and kind of spread the word about like what we were trying to do. And they just came in an influx of wanting to help. I think it's important to note that when trying to host medical drives especially in your home countries or in a different country, there's gonna be skepticism coming in, providing free resources to a community or an area that doesn't typically see that, they're gonna have some questions. They're gonna wonder why are you doing this? Is it safe and do I need to pay? What information do I need to give to do these things? Most nine times outta 10 people don't have the resources to pay for medical services. So we wanted to create an event where they don't need to pay, we're gonna take care of it. All you need to do is bring yourself here. So we created a system where people would hear about the event on the local radio 'cause we connected with local radio stations to talk about the event. We put up banners around the area and the town and next to local cities. The thing with this event though, the thing in Africa, once word spreads it spreads everywhere and then you have everyone coming from all places because they hear free medical services. Our drive generated more than 400 people and we were very, very blessed and very lucky to have so many people come and contribute and provide sponsorship and funds to buy these resources for these people. They pitched in money and we just had little crates of just medication and then we had stations where they would visit eye doctors and they would have another station where we would do a physical exam to see like what's on your body, where are you having most pain? And we then collaborated with local doctors and medical students and had them be a part of our drive and see patients and it allowed them to one service people and get that experience but also it helped benefit those people as well. They had professional health care providers there to support them. So just being able to create something so beautiful and just so touching and important like me and my family and alleviating burdens and providing support for these communities. We always say like the people in Nyamunga, those are our brothers and sisters. They're not just our neighbors or our friends, they're our brother and sisters. We view them as our family and it was important for us to give back and take care and support them in any way we could.

Aman Chopra: You make it sound easier than it is.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: No, yeah and it's definitely was not easy.

Aman Chopra: I know that you got 400 people to show up over there. I mean this room has two people. Imagine if there were even 10 people in here. I can't imagine 400 or imagine if you're watching this video and there's 400 people around you. That's a lot of people. And you said that marketing is challenging, getting people to come to the drive is challenging. What were the methods you used to convince them that? 'Cause I imagine like if I'm getting something free, someone I feel like maybe someone's gonna scam me or...

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Right, yeah.

Aman Chopra: ...someone's gonna do something. What did you do to show that your intention was pure rather than malicious? How did you convince people to show up and serve the community?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Well, I think it also helped of just having that family name of people knowing like the Wanza families, they're good people and whatever they're offering, there's no doubt in their mind that it's coming from anything more than just positive support. But what we did to spread the word is we connected with local radio stations and we asked our families and friends for support in spreading the word. We tried to keep the information that was about the medical drive within the Nyamunga community 'cause we did have people who drove perhaps six hours or five hours, three hours in all neighboring villages and areas to come for our event. So they heard this on the radio, they saw the banners in the streets and they heard it from word of mouth as well. And like all diverse cultures, once word spreads it spreads everywhere honestly. So it was I think marketing within itself wasn't too, too difficult. But being able to convince perhaps other villages and areas that don't know us, don't know the Wanza name to come and have these resources, I think it just took more of convincing like, hey, you're gonna be okay. Hey, we have these services, it's nothing sketchy. And it did help that we go back enough, we go back home enough to where we see these people and they know us and they see our faces and they're like, especially my mom and her siblings, they go back to Cameroon a lot, and when they do, they're constantly with our brothers and sisters constantly speaking with them and asking them like what do you need? What support systems do you need in place? And what can we do to help? So just hearing like, oh I'm having back pain. Oh lots of children within my area are suffering from malaria. We need these kinds of medications, we need this, we need that. My entire family, we are here to support. We're here to make sure that these communities are receiving the resources that they need.

Aman Chopra: I have a question for someone that is super inspired right now and has also had a dream of starting a medical drive, what would you tell them? How do you get started on a medical drive? Was this your first medical drive ever?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah, so this was my first medical drive ever. I think I was just really lucky to have such a great support system with people who wanted to make this happen. If you are looking to host and create your own medical drive, the first thing I tell you is to find a team, create a team, do your research, look at what other people's medical drives have looked like and what steps they took. And you don't have to necessarily follow what they're doing, but you can just try and create something of your own, see what paperwork do you need to fill out, who do you need to be reaching out to. And I think just the main thing is research. Definitely sit and do your research about it and then find people who are also passionate about whatever drive you wanna create and then you go from there.

Aman Chopra: The team part seems very essential. And maybe if I bring it down to the simplicity of a group project, there always seems to be someone in a group project that might not be picking up the slack that we always hear of. What are the challenges or you might have a superstar in the group project as well or the team collaborates really well. It seems like managing a 400% medical drive requires a big team. I know you had family members, but what is it like managing something like that? Oh my God, even if it's four siblings that you might have and you all are connected together, that sounds like someone is gonna do something. That conflict might happen. How did you manage those things in your medical drive?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: We were able to connect with the local police. So we knew that there was gonna be a lot of people at this drive and we didn't want them to be feel like scared because police were there. The police were just there to make sure that in case anything were to occur people were safe and they could kind of handle any situation that may occur. Luckily none of that occurred and they were just there enjoying the time with the people. But when working with our team, it was effortless. It kind of just worked out. We all knew what we needed to do. Okay, people at the eye station stay here, people at the physical station stay here, people at the medication station, you're over here and people at the ticketing station. So when our events started at 6:00 AM in the morning on December 28th. And people, days prior would come and get a ticket and those tickets were just, what do you call them? Sticky notes. That's what they're called. 

Aman Chopra: That's okay.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Sticky notes with numbers on them. It'd be number one, two, three and so on.

Aman Chopra: What do you call them over there? What's the word for that?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Honestly, I just blanked on the word.

Aman Chopra: Okay.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: But you would just say a piece of paper to write on. But we were passing out tickets the night before and a couple days before the event to make sure that we could allocate enough for 400 people. Obviously we had more than that who showed up and we couldn't service everyone and that was like another, I guess takeaway from the medical drive that we wanna work on in the future. And we have ideas of potentially like doing this on multiple days so that people who weren't seen on day one can come on day two and those not seen on day two can be seen on day three and so on. But working in such a collaborative effort with everyone, everyone knew their roles as to what they were doing, and if you wanted to go to a different station you would just communicate that and you would switch. And those who were working specifically with taking blood sugar levels, I was at that station and I was able to get a little bit of training from some of those doctors. So I think when creating events like a medical drive, it's so important to collaborate with local people as well. They know their home more than anybody else. Even though Cameroon is my home, I don't live there, I'm not there 365 days of the year. I am here, I'm in the states, I'm studying, I'm working. But when I have an opportunity I go there and I listen to what's being told to me by the people and with local organizations as well.

Aman Chopra: Is that the same way you got the sponsors to support this drive?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Getting sponsorship for this drive was out of our own pockets, but it was also collaborating with family, friends and family like friends but also like people in the business realm like who are also passionate about this and who also have their own medical practices as well. So when we told them about what we were trying to do, they even offered free services. Like they were trying to find ways to service the people and also alleviate costs. So for them to come in and be like, "Oh you don't even need to pay us. We would just love to come and support you guys." It was just like such a blessing.

Aman Chopra: It seems like the core of all of this is people.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah.

Aman Chopra: Were there any things that, I mean for someone that has been in academia the whole time, what were some things you did in your earlier days that helps you get... So it seems like you're good with people in this.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Thank you.

Aman Chopra: Or perhaps you learn to get good with people. It could be either or. What were the ways that you knew how to tackle something like this where 400 people show up, there's police, there's family, there's other doctors, there's other sponsors, there's people that are coming in that's like managing an entire production, if you will.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah.

Aman Chopra: So what was that like? How do you get those skills for yourself? What did you do?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I honestly it was from my earlier jobs that I was doing when I was younger. I had worked in my mom's hair salon.

Aman Chopra: Oh wow.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: She has a shop in Baltimore called the Braiding House and she had put me as receptionist. So I'm 13-year-old girl learning how to sell hair and set up appointments with people and speak over the phone. I think those are just skills that from constantly doing it, I learned how to speak with people, and I was also on the women's basketball team in undergrad and that allowed me to learn how to communicate with others and how to do it effectively and correctly. There is a way of how you communicate with people. Communicating is not just talking, it's how you say it and the way you present information to people. And being a part of a team, I've learned a lot of how to properly communicate.

Aman Chopra: Yeah, do you have moments in that where you felt flat on your face in certain communication things and like, okay, that's how you do it?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah, definitely. Especially in undergrad I had a friend, I was always good at knowing how to word my words. So I would type something up and I would have her read it. And I'd be like, "Can you just make sure I'm like saying this correctly?" Or like I would practice with her about what I wanna say or share just 'cause sometimes when you communicate with others, even though your intention may be pure, what you're saying and how it's being presented is not reflecting that. So having an environment and having a space where friends and family are able to show me how to properly communicate helped me tremendously in just being able to work with others

Aman Chopra: Random roles of being on the basketball team and working at the reception at your mom's hair salon has now created the energy at a medical drive that has served hundreds of people in Cameroon. How fascinating. You know what? So that's what we are getting out of this, that if you wanna start a medical drive, it starts with people, ask around whether you definitely had a lot to do with your family name and things that supported you where there was a direction. At the same time anyone can do it in a foreign country, it starts with people, it starts with humans and everyone's core and public health is there to serve the community. So you're giving everyone a blueprint in a way on how to get started on something like this.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Yeah, of course.

Aman Chopra: I love that. You know, you have achieved such a incredible thing for someone that hasn't done anything at all in terms of medical drives and now you have achieved even so much thus far. What is something that keeps you motivated every day to keep going? You mentioned that imposter syndrome and what got you out of that. Do you still have that from time to time or is it something that you know that okay, what's your process when you tackle things that come your way?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I definitely still have imposter syndrome. Even to this day like I doubt myself. I'm like, oh, am I really here? Like I really question myself like am I really here at NYU? Did I really do this? And then I have to remember, yeah, Zoe, you did. You're here. I would say for me, my drive, what pushes me to work so hard and try and achieve the best is I love to say my success is my sweetest revenge. That's what I love to say. I have been doubted so much within my life and I think what drives me is I will be successful, I wanna be happy, I want to do things that make other people feel happy and feel good. And I never want people to feel like how I felt growing up. And so every time I get in a situation where I'm like, oh, I don't feel like doing this, or oh, like this is another obstacle I'm dealing with, I think to myself like what would you say to younger Zoe? Like, would you tell her, oh it's okay, you can leave it alone. You don't have to work that hard on it. You can just take a break if you need to. Those things are important, yes. But in order to get to where you wanna be, you have to have that drive, you have to push yourself. You have to make yourself uncomfortable. And I like making myself uncomfortable because then it puts me in a new space that I would've never discovered if I didn't just try and just do something different than what's expected of me. So I guess to answer your question, for me being able to beat the odds and do things that are just kind of like out of the box is what drives me to just wanna go and conquer more and bigger things.

Aman Chopra: What are some classes at NYU that have been that given you that discomfort or have made you feel uncomfortable but have also then given you the strength to conquer other things in your experience here so far?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: I would say there are two classes that kind of pushed me, especially in my GPH journey. First one is global issues in social and behavioral sciences with Dr. Abrams. I absolutely loved that course. I had always taken some kind of form of discussion courses in undergrad, but for some reason this course I had never felt just more connected with my class. I mean we talked about so many prevalent issues that are occurring and risk factors that are happening within New York City when it comes to health and morbidity and just especially African Americans, like within the city we talked so, and I didn't expect that, I really thought like this was gonna be another class where we talked about white health and white stigmas and white issues. Like I have typically the classes I have been, it's been very white centered focus when it comes to like health and issues. And this was the first class I had where it was just so diverse. We talked about African American needs, Hispanic needs, Asian needs. I mean it was just such a great course to learn from not just the professor but from your peers and their experiences because it wasn't just a class of just students, these are working people as well. So they have these experiences and learning and hearing from them. It was just such an inspiring course and it kind of just pushed me more into like I made the right decision of going in social and behavioral sciences. And a course that really pushed me, I would say is epidemiology. It did not come easy to me at all. I'm pretty sure it's one of the core classes everyone has to take when you join GPH. And it was a class that put me out of my comfort zone. I worked a lot with Dr. Goldman and she was a rock star. She was just so inspiring and pushing and trying to teach me new ways of to how to understand the information. Kind of like how I mentioned before, like information does not come to me just like that, but when I figure it out I know it's sound. It's a 100%. So when she was able to show me a different way of how to interpret and look at the information, epi just became like a second language at that point.

Aman Chopra: Beyond the classes, are there any noteworthy clubs or what do you do to get involved in the community, maybe even outside of NYU or at NYU or is there some things you do on the side?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Upon coming into NYU, I knew that I really wanted to strive for some leadership positions, but I didn't want just anything. I wanted something that I was really passionate about. So I was able to help co-found, and I am the vice president of Women in Medicine at NYU GPH. Women in Medicine is a platform that allows women to feel connected and provide opportunities to those interested in health sciences. Like recently we have an event coming up, it is a virtual pre-health symposium. We will have over a hundred schools, a hundred medical schools such as Stanford, Harvard, Columbia, Yale, and so on. I wish I could list them all for you, but it's an opportunity to speak with those representatives and learn more about the medical school process. I think a lot of people are, a lot, a lot of women are very passionate about the medical field, but they just don't really know where to start. Or maybe they just don't have the resources to find those opportunities. And me and my team and people a part of my club, we wanted to have a space where you can find those resources. Medicine is already difficult as it is. Let's ease up the burden and help and let's help us all get to where we wanna be.

Aman Chopra: Wow, maybe let's ask this final question to you then, is that what influences what you're doing next in your journey of becoming a pediatrician if we come back full circle?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Oh yeah.

Aman Chopra: What's next for you as you graduate in one more year, at least as we're recording this video in April, 2024?

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Well, the hope is after my master's, I will pursue my doctorate. I would love to become a pediatrician and go to med school, especially shout out to NYU Grossman. I would love to go there. But yeah, medical school is the plan for me for now. But at the same time, I have become so inspired by my public health journey that in the end, if I were not to go to medical school, I would be so happy finding a position within the public health field. Like I feel so happy and passionate about it. I love medicine. Medicine has always been my number one. But if I were not to go into specifically being a doctor, finding ways to just have hands on connections within communities. Like I would definitely go for a position like that. I love just connecting with people and like seeing the progression in people too. Like I love when we start a project and things aren't looking so great, but then at the end of the project, you see how an entire community has transformed. I mean like there's no greater joy for me than that.

Aman Chopra: Beautiful. I mean with that concise, crisp clarity that you hold, we're excited to see where your journey takes you. And I wonder when you watch this podcast episode three years from now where you are and maybe we can have you back and get that updated journey from you.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Absolutely.

Aman Chopra: Zoe-Marie, thanks for being on the podcast. Folks, thanks for tuning in. Let us know in the comments what you liked about this. If you have any questions for Zoe as well and like and subscribe. We'll see you in the next episode. Take care.

Zoe-Marie Mongbet-Lamare: Thanks for having me.