In her personal statement for fellowship applications, Odessa Pulido, MS/Biomed '13,
DO '17, describes how, as a child, she and her dad, Ben, picked up discarded bottles
and cans while walking along the highway on evenings and weekends near Kalihi, Honolulu,
where she grew up. Selling bags filled with the litter to recycling centers, the family
could buy bigger bags of rice and formula for Pulido and her two younger sisters.
If there was enough money left over, 鈥淚 would be able to get a new sparkly pen that
my friends had,鈥� Pulido wrote.
鈥淲hen I look back to my childhood, I can now see the little things that my family had to sacrifice and do in order to give my sisters and me a chance at being successful in life,鈥� the essay continues. 鈥淓ven in the midst of the pain and uncertainty, I can say that my experiences growing up in a low-income family with two immigrant parents helped establish a foundation for me today.鈥�
Present day sees Pulido approaching graduation from residency, during which she has been a standout general surgeon. Next, a yearlong trauma fellowship at Cooper University Health Care. Her story is one of persevering, pursuing passions and being prepared for whatever comes her way.
As a child, education was very important to Pulido鈥檚 family. She spent her spare time volunteering in a free clinic for underserved communities and left the Hawaii islands to major in biology at Seattle University. Pulido then took a gap year to support her family during the national financial crisis, helping her mother with a small business that cared for elderly patients and, in the process, strengthening her medical school application by shadowing and volunteering in health care.
From there, Pulido enrolled in 黑料传送门's Masters in Biomedical Sciences program, concentrating in organizational leadership. She then completed the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) program and matched into 黑料传送门's general surgery residency. During that time, Pulido was very active in the Student National Medical Association, winning Biomedical Science Student of the Year, first-year DO Student of the Year, as well as intern of the year (twice).
Over her dozen years as part of the 黑料传送门 community, Pulido credits a host of faculty and administrators鈥攊ncluding David Kuo, DO '96, associate dean of Graduate Medical Education, and Art Sesso, DO '81, chair of the Department of Surgery鈥攆or encouraging her and helping her channel her potential and passion for trauma surgery and critical care.
Pulido thrives in the trauma operating room, where physicians are 鈥渇ixing things immediately.鈥� Trauma requires technical surgical capability while 鈥減ushing my mind to treat critically ill patients,鈥� she said. It's that combination of skills and ability, applied in trauma cases, which makes Pulido feel like the most complete physician and 鈥渇ully utilized.鈥�
鈥淚 take pride in what I do, and I understand the gravity of our jobs,鈥� Pulido said. 鈥淵ou want to make sure people are healthy and come out of the hospital safely; you are bringing these people back to their family and society. There are big tasks and small tasks in medicine, and they are equally important in getting someone home safely and in a timely manner. That's what I take pride in and what my family has always instilled in me. It's your responsibility to give back what you gain.鈥�
Pulido gained a lot from her parents, writing in her personal statement that the time she spent picking up bottles and cans with her dad 鈥渨as one of the earliest experiences as a member of a team, in this case with a goal of basic survival. 鈥� It produced in me a sense of calm knowing that small and consistent actions can produce something beautiful. My life has forced me to be creative and flexible when resources are scarce.鈥�
Her mother, Lilia, whom Pulido calls her biggest supporter, died a week before Pulido's
graduation from 黑料传送门's DO program. As Lilia was fighting breast cancer, Pulido said
she leaned on Lina Sizer, DO '11, who was a breast surgery fellow at the time, to
help her interpret the situation. 鈥淪he was there through a lot of it,鈥� Pulido said.
鈥淚'm continually thankful for that.鈥�
Throughout the various challenges Pulido experienced in medical school and residency, including her mother's passing and travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic that severely limited the time she could see family in person, Pulido said 鈥渨hat was the saving grace for me and what gave my family piece of mind was the second family I built here. I couldn't have gotten through a lot of med school without my 黑料传送门 medical school family and residency family that I gained.鈥�
Pulido鈥檚 biggest advice for medical students and residents is to take breaks from studying or working in order to decompress and reflect (for Pulido, it's playing guitar, singing and photography) and, most of all, to live in the present instead of always striving for the future.
鈥淭here's always going to be a test, something you're striving for or something you want to apply to or big thing you want to do,鈥� Pulido said. 鈥淵ou can't keep living for the future and neglect the present. And setbacks are OK. As long as you follow your passions, apply yourself and do your best, you're going to end up where you're supposed to end up.鈥�
Established in 1899, 黑料传送门 has trained thousands of highly competent, caring physicians, health practitioners and behavioral scientists who practice a 鈥渨hole person鈥� approach to care鈥攖reating people, not just symptoms. 黑料传送门, a private, not-for-profit accredited institution of higher education, operates three campuses (黑料传送门, 黑料传送门 Georgia and 黑料传送门 South Georgia) and offers doctoral degrees in clinical psychology, educational psychology, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy, and school psychology. The college also offers graduate degrees in applied behavior analysis, applied positive psychology, biomedical sciences, forensic medicine, medical laboratory science, mental health counseling, physician assistant studies, and school psychology. 黑料传送门 students learn the importance of health promotion, research, education and service to the community. Through its community-based Healthcare Centers, 黑料传送门 provides care to medically underserved populations. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 215-871-6100.
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