My name is Lucia Dammert Duenas and I am interested in exploring the medical field to have experience with what I want to study in college. After my recent diagnosis of epilepsy, I became very interested in learning more about the medical field, especially the brain. As a junior at LREI, I was given multiple opportunities to explore my interests in an academic setting. I took Daniel Li’s Introduction to Neuroscience Class, where I learned about how diseases and drugs interact and affect neurological functions. Although this class already fulfilled my biology requirement, I was still fascinated to learn more about biology. I took Kara Luce’s Microbiology Class where I learned about different diseases and how they multiply and attack the body. Through these classes and my personal experience with epilepsy, my interest in studying medicine expanded and led me to possibly want to be on the pre-med track in college. For my senior project, I knew I wanted to be in a hands-on space and learn more about my interest in the medical field. 

For my senior project, I will intern with a Dermatologist at his private practice in Miami. Before being in a hands-on environment, I plan to take a two-week course from April 3rd to April 14th to learn the basics of dermatology to gather information I can apply to my internship experience. To capture this information, I will write a reflection by the end of each week, summarizing the most significant takeaways from that week’s classes. This course will fulfill one of my buckets needed for my senior project: Academic. Then, from April 17th to May 10th, I will intern at the Coral Gables Dermatology, shadowing Dr. Javier Alonso while he meets with patients and performs procedures. I will be in his office space Monday thru Friday from 9 am to 5 pm. My experience there will allow me to witness dermatological medicine firsthand, in a professional, hands-on setting. As with my course, I will write summaries containing information about what I learned and my daily experience. My internship will fulfill my other bucket: experiential. To complete my service requirement, I will volunteer with my mom at God’s Love We Deliver once a week for the first two weeks. Then, when I am in Miami, I will volunteer at the local community church once a week to help care for kids while parents are at work. Since my internship ends the week before Senior Project ends, I will spend time volunteering with God’s Love We Deliver at the end of project