It's All In The Mind

Name: Edgar Ortega, MD

Resident Physician | PGY-1 Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience

University of California, Riverside School of Medicine

I was born and raised in Mexicali BC, Mexico in an underprivileged “colonia” (neighborhood). I was the middle child in a single parent household. Growing up as a first-generation college student, I was motivated to pursue a higher education and do “something meaningful with my career to advance and serve others.” I was originally pursuing a career in architecture and after a medical leave due to a traumatic brachial plexus injury, I returned to college but now in a different country (in the US) and with a new career perspective (medicine!). I started by attending community colleges in the Coachella and Imperial Valleys before transferring to UCSD, where I completed my B.S. degree in Human Biology with a minor in Anthropology-Archaeology.

During my undergraduate studies, I became involved with serving underprivileged populations at the UCSD Student Run Free Clinics. Following a similar venue, I decided to attend medical school at the UC Riverside (UCR) School of Medicine, “my home away from home.” I came to UCR due to its diversity and its particular mission serving underprivileged communities in the Inland Empire. I initially wanted to become a “super specialized surgeon” but quickly became interested in the human mind and behavior during my 3rd year of medical school. I finally found my passion and decided on psychiatry at the beginning of my last year of medical school, after completing a sub-internship in psychosomatic medicine, which is basically the intersection among psychiatry and general medicine.

Reflecting back, I would have never thought I would become a psychiatrist, but it is definitely the best decision I could have ever made. I am now an intern or 1st year resident at UCR Psychiatry. It was definitely my top choice program due to its dedicated faculty, variety of training settings and emphasis on physician well-being. Aside from learning the basics of psychiatry, I am interested in psychosomatic medicine, neuromodulation, and psychotherapy. I consider myself an advocate and I am also very interested in the corollaries of mental illness in Latino and other minority groups.

I have been asked multiple times about any particular advice for students, so here it is: medical school has probably been one of the most challenging aspects of my life, but I encourage anyone interested in the field to follow your dreams, surround yourself with good mentors, and learn to enjoy the journey. “If I was able to make it, you will be able to successfully make it too.”

#ucrsom #psychiatry #whotellsyourstory