More Doctors for California, Led by the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California, Announces the Launch of “I Can Be a Doctor,” a New Narrative Change Campaign

SACRAMENTO, CA - Today, as we celebrate our Latino physicians and raise awareness about the physician shortage, we also recognize a need for continued narrative change. That’s why today, we're launching I Can Be a Doctor, a new year-round narrative change campaign from More Doctors for California (MD4CA), led by the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California (LCHC), focused on transforming hearts and minds and changing the story about who can become a doctor.

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For Latino and Indigenous students, families, educators, counselors, and communities, the path to becoming a physician should feel possible and within reach. We want more students to be able to say, “I can be a doctor” and believe it. This campaign’s goal is to help more students see themselves in medicine and feel confident in what’s possible, while inspiring their mentors and communities to continue to fiercely support them along the way.

Why It Matters

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Our students are here, ready to pursue careers in medicine and serve their communities. However, the path to becoming a physician can be hard to understand and navigate. From knowing how to prepare and apply to figuring out how to pay for medical school, students and families face questions and barriers at every step.

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Supporting the next generation of physicians takes all of us. Families, educators, counselors, mentors, communities, and our systems all have a role to play in helping students move forward.

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I Can Be a Doctor is about changing what feels possible. The campaign will challenge misconceptions about who can become a physician, inspire students to see themselves in medicine, and encourage all of us to better support them along the way. By demystifying the path to medicine and making it feel more within reach, more students can move one step closer to their white coat.

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How to get involved

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There are a couple of ways you can help amplify and support this campaign:

• Share the news: Forward this announcement and reshare our posts on social media using #ICanBeADoctor and #PuedoSerDoctor / #PuedoSerDoctora.
• Join the conversation: Where are you in your medical journey? When did you first realize, “I can be a doctor”? Share your story, or tell us about a physician whose story should be heard, on our channels or through our story submission form here.
• Support MD4CA: Follow us on all of our channels to get updates on the I Can Be a Doctor campaign throughout the year here.
• Support NLPD: Tune in to the 2026 festivities for Oct 1st, National Latino Physicians Day, here!

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What’s Next

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This launch is just the beginning. Coming soon, we'll be sharing new ways to learn, connect, and get involved:

• Stories from across the state: Hear directly from students, physicians, educators, and community members about their experiences and what they’ve learned along the way.
• New social media assets: Practical social media assets you all can help us share via your platforms! 
• Community Experiences: Building virtual and in-person spaces to come together, ask questions that matter, and hear more about what it takes to pursue a path in medicine.

Together, we're showing more students that becoming a doctor is possible, while building the support around them to help make that possibility a reality. This will ensure every community in California has the care it deserves. 

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Thank you for being part of this. Here's to the next generation of doctors!

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¡Sí Se Puede!

Seciah Aquino, DrPH, MS
Executive Director
Latino Coalition for a Healthy California