2022 Peach State Scholars

Reginald D. Benson, Jr., of Douglasville, GA is interested in pursuing Emergency Medicine.  He graduated from Augusta University with a BS in Kinesiology with a concentration in Health Sciences.  Mr. Benson grew up the son of two nurses and always enjoyed the stories his parents told, particularly his father’s stories from the emergency room.  It was a mission trip to Haiti that opened his eyes to the issues of healthcare access in underserved populations, and upon his return home he became acutely aware that these issues were also being felt here in his home state.  Mr. Benson has a passion for helping underrepresented minorities, and when he was applying to medical schools he specifically looked for a program that would let him become a part of the solution of providing medical care to those who have the least.

Sarah K. Chappell, of Alpharetta, GA is interested in pursuing Pediatrics.  She graduated from Vanderbilt with a BA in Medicine, Health and Society.  She knew in high school that her calling was to care for children, and her dedication to children has been lived out in her years babysitting, volunteering with kids, and now serving in the children’s ministry at her church.  Service trips to Haiti and Honduras opened her eyes to the number of preventable diseases children suffer from when access to healthcare is limited.  When she later served Georgia communities during the pandemic she came to realize the children in her home state were suffering just as those she had seen abroad had been.  Ms. Chappell is committed to a career focused on fostering positive change in primary care pediatrics, particularly in underserved communities throughout Georgia.

Raine Foulkes, of Macon, GA is interested in pursuing OB/GYN. She graduated from Georgia College with a BS in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. Ms. Foulkes was inspired to work with rural populations in women’s health during college when she witnessed the challenges her college professor faced while trying to find local quality obstetric care middle Georgia.  In addition to her understanding of the needs of women in particular, Ms. Foulkes has also studied the relationship between life expectancy and the quality of family physicians in the state of Georgia. She is a creative and innovative woman who has provided medical assistance in austere settings in rural Georgia during camping trips using resources available when the first aid kit was not accessible.

Selvaganesh “Ganesh” Maduraiveeran, of Cumming, GA is interested in pursuing Internal Medicine. He graduated from Emory with a BS in Biology. Mr. Maduraiveeran spent time in Cumming, GA volunteering as a medical assistant in an understaffed primary care clinic, demonstrating early on his commitment to the service of those who need the most help. There he saw first-hand the health disparities that existed for those who have been marginalized, and as a result he understands the importance of recognizing the barriers and systemic constraints that many patients face when attempting to make healthy lifestyle choices and maintain consistent healthcare. He hopes to be a part of the solution to these issues and to help enable his patients to live a healthier life.

Adir Mohaban, of Hahira, GA is interested in pursuing Emergency Medicine.  He graduated from University of Georgia with a BS in Biology and Mercer University SOM with a MS in Biomedical Sciences. Mr. Mohaban volunteered as a medical assistant and scribe at the Macon Volunteer Clinic (MVC) where his eyes were opened to the multiple hurdles faced by uninsured patients, including financial constraints, unreliable transportation, excessive travel times, and physician shortages.  There he helped to address issues in health literacy by providing education to patients so they could better understand how to use their glucometers, blood pressure monitors, and home hemoccult kits. He has come to see that the same hurdles these patients faced often result in inconsistent healthcare that often takes placed solely in the emergency room setting in rural communities. He hopes to practice Emergency Medicine in a rural area, bringing potentially the only source of emergency care to his community.

Edil Nour, of Lawrenceville, GA is interested in pursuing Psychiatry. She graduate from Georgia Gwinnett College with a BS in Biochemistry and a minor in Chemistry. Ms. Nour is passionate about helping people recognize the importance of mental health and how it is as important as their physical health, as the mind body connection is essential for overall health. As a child of Somali immigrants she has seen firsthand how mental health is stigmatized in many cultures, and she hopes to serve as a liaison to mental health care in these populations. She has also always wanted to positively impact her home state of Georgia and to practice here. When she learned that 80 counties in Georgia do not have a practicing psychiatrist a fire was ignited in her to help Georgia families with their mental health without stigmatizing them.

Bailey Rodgers, of Marietta, GA is interested in pursuing OB/GYN.  She graduated from Emory University with a double major in Chemistry and Sociology and a minor in Italian studies. Ms. Rodgers was raised in a small, rural, evangelistic Christian town that was full of attitudes and stigmas surrounding sexuality and sexual health which were rooted in fear and shame, and which led to female health issues being undervalued,  under-taught, and stigmatized.  Her parents taught her to think about female sexual health differently and in a destigmatizing and nonjudgmental way, and she understands the importance of opening the conversation around women’s sexuality and sexual heath in a way that empowers women to take charge of and value their health. Ms. Rodgers hopes to care for patients in cultures and environments like that of her childhood and actively fight against the stigmas and double standards that she encountered, and she is humbled by the opportunity to bring that type of care to those who are most underserved.