Justin Clark was far from home when he finally knew that he wanted to become a doctor. While an undergraduate at Florida State University, Justin’s general interest in medicine led him to become active in the Multicultural Association of Pre-Health Students. The group was active in the community, and Justin says getting involved with the group of medical, dental and pharmacy students motivated his interest in the medical field. But, it was his experience during a trip led by one of his professors that finalized his decision.
“I went to Guyana my sophomore year, during the first week of December in 2005. We had to apply and be selected and then do fundraising to help offset the cost of the trip. Working with the doctors and nurse practitioners during that week, I really saw the need for health care in underserved populations and how the people were so appreciative of what we provided for them. And, that’s when I just knew that I wanted to go into medicine,” says Justin. “It was an awesome trip.”
After receiving his bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in chemistry, Justin attended Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, where he obtained his Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree in May 2012.
“I chose to attend Meharry because their mission is serving the underserved,” says Justin. “About 80 percent of the population served at Meharry is underserved, and if it wasn’t for Nashville General Hospital at Meharry, which serves those patients, there wouldn’t be that care. It will be an easy transition for me to work with the underserved when I finish my residency because I did that for two years in my clinical rotations in medical school.”
While in his fourth year at Meharry, Justin attended a presentation about the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Students to Service (S2S) Loan Repayment Program. S2S is a pilot program which offers loan repayment to students in their last year of medical school in return for a commitment to serve in an underserved area upon completion of a residency program
“I knew I wanted to do family medicine and work with the underserved, so it wasn’t a hard choice to decide to apply,” says Justin. “There was a lot to the application process, and though it took a lot of time, I’m so thankful and grateful to receive an award.”
Justin returned home to Florida for his residency at the University of Florida in Gainesville.. “Family Medicine here has a brand-new, multi-million dollar clinic that just opened, and we do everything from pediatrics to geriatrics. A large part of the population served is similar to what I was used to seeing at Meharry, so it is a very easy transition for me. And, it’s very close to home—a little more than an hour—and has that big university feeling that I was used to at Florida State and wanted again.”
“I love family medicine because it encompasses everything,” says Justin. “I like being challenged and don’t feel I’d be as challenged if I did just one thing, which is why I didn’t want to become a specialist.”
Newly married, Justin hopes to stay in Florida when he completes his residency in June 2015 and work as a family medicine physician in or near Jacksonville to fill the need for providing primary care to the underserved. His long-term career dream in 20 to 25 years is to be a director for a major hospital, especially for a hospital serving the underserved; or perhaps to open his own practice with his sisters—one is a nurse and another is training to be a medical assistant. But, for now, he is happy to be close to home and doing what he loves.
