VCOM 2023 Annual Report

Samuel Kitchens Awarded Scholarship to Attend VCOM-Carolinas

V isits to the pediatrician can often be anxiety-producing and overwhelming for both parents and children, but not for Samuel Kitchens. He looked forward to his visits to Dr. Gunther because he knew the doctor was going to help him feel better.

Samuel is well on his way to becoming a physician. In July he began medical school at the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine – Carolinas in Spartanburg, South Carolina, where he received a $45,000

By the tender age of six, Samuel knew he wanted to be a doctor.

“The feeling associated with easing somebody’s trouble, no matter how big or small, made me feel as if I could truly make a difference in the world, and visits with my pediatrician made me

“At the end of one visit, Dr. Gunther asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, and with no hesitation I told him that I wanted to be a doctor just like him so I could help people. That visit with him was as paramount to my desire to pursue medicine as my venture to help those in need,” said Samuel. “The feeling associated with easing somebody’s trouble, no matter how big or small, made me feel as if I could truly make a difference in the world, and visits with my pediatrician made me realize that medicine was the way to do it.”

realize that medicine was the way to do it.”

scholarship for four years. In exchange for this scholarship, Samuel agrees to practice primary medicine in South Carolina for a minimum of four years. He is one of four VCOM-Carolinas students to receive a full scholarship. The intent of these scholarships is to further expand access to physicians and improve healthcare in South Carolina by supporting VCOM-Carolinas’ efforts to recruit, retain and graduate minority medical students who will remain in South Carolina to practice primary care. “This scholarship gives me the opportunity to follow my dreams of becoming a pediatrician, and it also gives me a chance to give back to people in South Carolina along their journey,” said Samuel. Samuel’s experience of shadowing Dr. Michael Farwell, a 2015 graduate of VCOM-Carolinas and an internal medicine physician with Tryon Medical Partners in Charlotte, North Carolina, played a tremendous role in his choice to study medicine on the Spartanburg campus.

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