Please introduce yourself and your organization.
Hi, my name is Sanya Majmudar and I'm a current high school senior in New Jersey. I started an organization in March 2020 once the Covid pandemic hit because all of my hospital volunteering and shadowing was canceled. So, I definitely wanted something that I could do on more of an online setting. I started a non-profit organization called Medical Wonders. I was previously a part of another nonprofit but had to quit because I realized it wasn’t really for me. So, I started my own. Medical Wonders is a non-profit organization that has about 300 members involved in different areas. It focuses on advising the youth on different medical procedures and professions, as well as bringing awareness to different medical fields.
When and how did your passion for medicine evolve into the creation of Medical Wonders?
I always knew that I wanted to become a doctor. I will go into this later, but my parents also wanted me to become one as well. As an Asian-Indian it is really common for parents to assume that their kids will want to become a doctor or lawyer. At first, I didn’t want to, I only did hospital volunteering because my friends were doing it too. I first started volunteering at the hospital. I was interacting a lot with the patients. Whether it was small tasks, such as bringing them water or a blanket, I found it to be really heartwarming and began to think of how cool it would be to be a doctor rather than just interacting with the patients. I then started shadowing at my pediatrician’s office. Towards the end of my junior year, I got the realization that being a doctor was going to be really worth it for me. I definitely wanted to do more because just as I was getting into it, the COVID pandemic happened and all of my volunteer opportunities were canceled. So then, I started the nonprofit.
It is no doubt that ideas always evolve, was your original plan for Medical Wonders the same as what it is today?
No, actually I started drafting Medical Wonders in the notes section. I was trying to think of different nonprofit ideas where I could help not only my community but the rest of the world. I had different community service projects and as a kid, I was always involved in community service. Whether it’s volunteering at a food bank or helping organize events. At first, I didn’t think of exactly Medical Wonders, I thought of different ones such as book drives in my community. But then, I realized that I want to focus on medicine and also make sure that I am completely immersed in it. Like I said before, when I just started getting into it, the whole pandemic happened. I spent a lot of time talking to other nonprofits and how they ran a lot of their mission statements. Overall, I wanted to make my organization different and unique from everyone. So, I definitely did not start off with this idea, but rather have a click in my mind that I want to do something medicine-related.
It says on the Medical Wonders website that the organization works to provide volunteer opportunities for its members. It is obvious that with current circumstances involving COVID-19, many of these resources have been limited. How has the pandemic affected doing such things, and how have you gone about adjusting to do so?
A lot of the volunteer opportunities are very online based and international. When I first started, I opened with a research group that would post weekly articles depending on which topic we wanted to cover. For example, our first topic was orthopedics and all of our researchers went and covered that. I had a lot of students apply from international places and this helped me to realize that it wasn’t just people in New Jersey, like my friends, it was actually reaching so many other people. I found it to be, again, heartwarming and took it to market more through shouting out with other nonprofits and doing a lot of collaborations. I realized that with all the volunteering opportunities, whether it is tutoring, writing articles, or taking care of the social media aspect, Medical Wonders was evolving and reaching other parts of the world. Because of this, all of our volunteer opportunities are all international and online. Depending on our different projects, we usually offer a wide range of opportunities as well.
Given the fact that Medical Wonder is a big organization, it is no secret that it would also have a big team. On your website, the team is described as a community of both high school and college students. How would you describe the effectiveness of joining this organization with a “set career path”, such as the ones that college students have, as opposed to joining with uncertainty, which is most high schoolers?
I saw a lot of medical nonprofits that are more focused toward a doctor, Ph.D., STEM, PA, pharmacist, or even RN path. But, when I started this organization, I wanted to encompass all aspects, which I have made clear with all of my members and the people that are volunteering. This is why we have Medical Monthly topics that allow us to emerge ourselves fully in a profession or topic that medical students usually face. I have also allowed college students to be a part of our Pre-Med or Pre-Health panel. I believe that Medical Wonders is truly encompassing. We do not try to force a specific health profession on anyone, and I think we do a really good job of covering each professional as well, whether it be interviewing them, writing articles about them, or even talking about experiences. I try to make it clear that Medical Wonders isn’t about being a doctor, we always support any type of medical profession that someone may want to pursue.
The organization you have built has grown quite a lot since its creation. Do you have any ideas of what the next step for Medical Wonders will be?
We obviously have a really good base of followers, who are very active. They love interacting and are willing to give us feedback. However, I definitely want our organization to grow more. With the growing of our organization, we have been presented with a lot of leadership opportunities. At the moment, we have a lot of opportunities such as the STEM tutors, panelists, or even general managers that help to keep our social media updated. But, in the future, we are looking for more traction as we want more people, whether they be an actual part of our organization or simply following it, to be involved. As I see followers increasing, I begin to open more applications as a way for them to get involved in our organizations. So, depending on tractions and our new projects coming out soon, I think we definitely have a lot of opportunities lined up.
Aside from the ability to create such an amazing organization, what other opportunities has Medical Wonders brought you?
Besides Medical Wonders, I believe that the involvement, in general, has been a great experience for me. Personally, I learned how to manage an organization by myself as well as with the help of other nonprofit organizations. Other organizations have been very giving in terms of creating a pleasing social media space or even creating a link tree that works. In addition, I was able to gain a lot of experience from the opportunities I was given such as summer programs that I intended, as well [as] my general interactions with medical professionals. I also feel that everyone that comes onto my team brings a new perspective with different experiences, and with that comes expansion and improvement to the organization. I think that the opportunities coming from my side as well as the people from Medical Wonders is truly substantial.
Today, a common stereotype that has arisen is among the Asian community in the medical field. Has this put any impact on you and what are your feelings toward such a statement?
Going back to middle school, I was always a good student who got good grades and excelled in STEM topics. I definitely think that the stereotype involving lawyers and doctors for not only myself but other Asian students as well is quite scary. I definitely had that preconception going into high school, where I believed that my parents were going to be mad at me if I did not pursue a doctor or lawyer path. However, after my sophomore or junior year, I had a breakthrough and began to get heavily involved in different things, such as Model UN, Debate, and Human Rights. Because of this, my parents eased the tension, but I still believe that it is a huge misconception that Asians must be doctors or lawyers. Because of the stereotype and strict beliefs imposed by my parents, I had a lot of struggle accepting that I actually wanted to be a doctor, as I began to think that I wasn’t really doing it for me, but for my parents. After a lot of reflection, time, research, and consultation with other medical professions, I realized that I love medicine.
Being a student, it is likely that you have many responsibilities. How do you go about managing social life, school, and your organization?
Managing everything requires a really big support system, especially since 2020 has taken such a huge toll on everything and everyone. Fortunately, I have a great friend and family support system who are very supportive, understanding, and encouraging of my work. As for my schedule, I use Google Calendar, Notion, or a planner to keep track of my events and due dates. I also use GroupMe, WhatsApp, iMessage, or even Instagram DMs to communicate with my Medical Wonders. It’s all really a collaborative effort. In addition, work ethic, passion, and motivation make a huge difference in doing everything.
How can people get more involved with your organization?
Medical Wonders holds a lot of applications open, about 2 a month. At the moment (December 2020), we are holding applications for STEM tutors. We also have monthly talks with medical professionals on our Instagram Lives that allow us to educate more. Oftentimes, they even present real-life case studies that allow viewers to get an insight into what their specific profession is really like. You can get the latest scoop on what we are curating by following @medical.wonderss on Instagram.