TRUST Student Yi Chan Builds Toward a Future in Rural Alaska Through RUOP

Meet Yi Chan, Second-year Alaska WWAMI TRUST scholar!

Yi grew up in Utqiagvik, Alaska, where working at the local hospital taught her a hard truth about rural medicine: you never know what will come through the door, or what you’ll have on hand to treat it. That’s part of why she chose WWAMI’s TRUST program for the rural training she’ll need to one day return home and practice.

This summer, Yi completed her RUOP placement in Soldotna, where she reconnected with the community she met during her First Summer Experience and built on the rapport she started there.

Before med school, Yi worked as a scribe, PCT, and medical assistant. She says her grandparents have been her biggest inspiration, driving her to give every future patient her very best.

She’s found her calling in family medicine especially in following patients through pregnancy and is now aiming for an OB fellowship so she can deliver babies and train in C-sections.

Off duty, Yi’s a lifelong volleyball player (she just competed in the Seward Volleyball Tournament!) and leads our Music in Medicine group, performing for patients and staff at Providence Hospital.

Her goal: practice in Alaska’s cities first, then return home to Utqiagvik to give back to the community that raised her.