Though Pratik Thakur’s interest in the medical field began in high school, once he arrived at the University of Southern California, medicine became his passion.

“After growing up in suburban Kansas, studying in Los Angeles was a drastic change,” says Thakur, a 2019 Most Valuable Student scholar sponsored by Overland Park, Kan., Lodge No. 2395. “I witnessed severe disparities across the city. Complementing this experience with the knowledge from my college courses, I sought out different ways to address the inequalities harming underserved neighborhoods around my university.”

Thakur began addressing these disparities by handing out meals to unhoused individuals in Los Angeles. On a windy Friday night, he handed a meal to someone who was dealing with an intense fever.

“Without a mobile device and limited English proficiency, she didn’t know which hospital to go to and how she would afford her care,” says Thakur. “Swiftly, I looked for all this information on my phone but couldn’t give her a definite answer. I was left deliberating for days on how I could have better helped her.”

Inspired to help other people like this woman, Thakur developed a resource sheet in English and Spanish with the names of local hospitals and shelters. His desire to help everyone have equitable access to care informed his career path.

“This ambition to treat marginalized communities supported my aim to be a primary care doctor,” says Thakur. “At the same time, it emphasized how macro-level policies are also needed to improve the public’s health and ability to obtain medical services.”

Thakur hopes to combine medicine with community outreach to serve the area he knows best, long after medical school.

“I aspire to serve under-resourced communities where I grew up and across the Midwest,” says Thakur. “In my dynamic role as a medical practitioner, I will treat chronic illnesses while coordinating multiple initiatives to promote health equity in urban and rural areas.”

As a Weigel Medical School scholarship recipient, Thakur will continue to make the Elks proud.

“Due to my unwavering commitment to addressing social determinants of health and health inequities, I am proud to receive the Weigel scholarship,” says Thakur. “I am excited to continue representing the Elks scholar community and its ideals during my journey to be a future physician.”

Thakur will attend the Ohio State University College of Medicine to study internal and preventative medicine.