When I met Dr. Ariel, a pediatrician with a heart the size of Reno, Nevada, I knew immediately his story deserved a spotlight. Not only has he run a successful practice that opened its arms to all children, but he's taken it a step further, lighting the path to higher education for those who thought it beyond reach. Join us as Dr. Ariel narrates his inspiring journey from clinician to champion of youth, and the creation of the LB Ariel Foundation which is transforming lives beyond the clinic walls.
You'll hear firsthand about the numerous accolades his practice has gained, like the CDC's recognition for exceptional HPV vaccination rates. But the heart of our conversation beats strongest when discussing the Foundation's impact on underprivileged students. Dr. Ariel doesn't just talk about change; he's on the frontlines, assisting with everything from laptops to college tuition. His dedication to nurturing not only the health but also the academic aspirations of his patients, particularly black and Latino students, is a true testament to the power of genuine care and commitment. Prepare to be moved by a story of unwavering dedication and the tangible difference one individual can make in the lives of many.
Thank you for Listening to Beyond Clinical Walls Podcast.
To find more from Dr. BCW
When I met Dr. Ariel, a pediatrician with a heart the size of Reno, Nevada, I knew immediately his story deserved a spotlight. Not only has he run a successful practice that opened its arms to all children, but he's taken it a step further, lighting the path to higher education for those who thought it beyond reach. Join us as Dr. Ariel narrates his inspiring journey from clinician to champion of youth, and the creation of the LB Ariel Foundation which is transforming lives beyond the clinic walls.
You'll hear firsthand about the numerous accolades his practice has gained, like the CDC's recognition for exceptional HPV vaccination rates. But the heart of our conversation beats strongest when discussing the Foundation's impact on underprivileged students. Dr. Ariel doesn't just talk about change; he's on the frontlines, assisting with everything from laptops to college tuition. His dedication to nurturing not only the health but also the academic aspirations of his patients, particularly black and Latino students, is a true testament to the power of genuine care and commitment. Prepare to be moved by a story of unwavering dedication and the tangible difference one individual can make in the lives of many.
Thank you for Listening to Beyond Clinical Walls Podcast.
To find more from Dr. BCW
Hello everyone. This is Dr BCW. Thank you for joining Beyond Clinical Walls. I am excited to share my guest for today. His name is Dr Ariel and he's a pediatrician. He lives in Reno, nevada, and his experience skillset is just fantastic.
Speaker 1:I'm excited to share information about him as well as the wonderful foundation that he is spearheading. He has ran a practice for 11 years and he saw all patients. He saw all insurances, even if you didn't have insurance. His office was really a space for anyone, any kiddo in our community in Nevada to receive care. That practice won multiple awards for excellence in medical care, community service vaccinations, including an award from the CDC in 2019 for achieving the second highest HPV vaccination rate in the United States, a Distinguished Alumnus Award from Drexel University College of Medicine in 2018, and a tribute read into the Congressional Record by US Senator Dean Heller in April 2016. He was also honored by the City of Reno in 2021 with a proclamation, and he is a lifetime member of the Pi Kappa Phi Honor Society. It is such an honor to have Dr Ariel join me today and really talk about his foundation, his work and why he does what he does, and so welcome, dr Ariel, to Beyond Clinical Walls.
Speaker 2:First of all, thank you for the wonderful invitation, dr Curry Winschel. It's an honor to be on a show with you. The reason that I run the LB Ariel Foundation is very simple. We had a need. The need was right in front of me. My patients, many of them, had high academic potential. They had no money, they had no support at home. They were turning in their homework, their school homework, on cell phones. So we started by buying laptops from them. I'd go, or I'd send my assistant down to Best Buy to buy laptops for them so that they would actually have something to turn in their homework and be able to use standard office software. And along with that I started tracking the more academically promising of them and I realized they're not going to go to college unless I do something, because their parents are not prepared. They have no money. Parents often didn't even know how to fill out a FAFSA and had no training and no ability, no education, to teach their kids how to access higher education. So I realized that I had to do it. So, through the practice, I started putting these students as they finished high school. I started putting them in front of my computer in the back office and I had them sign in to TMCC accounts and University of Nevada accounts and I started paying their tuition in their books and I started figuring out what else they needed tutoring if necessary. And so I was doing that through the practice and then in 2021, my lawyer said well, why don't you set up a nonprofit? And so that's what I did. So then now I have a nonprofit.
Speaker 2:Dr Salido Sanchez, Jeff S Salido Sanchez, who's the director of UNR's Latino Research Center, has found that 22% of college freshmen don't go back to their sophomore year, and black students and Latino students are overrepresented in that group. Sometimes as many as 40% of them don't come back for their for their sophomore year. They drop out because there's no support for them. People around they don't see anybody around them. It looks like them. Everybody else around them seems to speak this gobbledygook that they don't understand. They have different cultural experiences, they don't feel comfortable on a campus and so they need a lot more support than simply hand somebody, handing them a scholarship and saying, okay, your books, your books and tuition are paid for.
Speaker 2:That's important, but it's not sufficient for them to succeed in college. You know, you and I had parents who understood college and understood the value of education A lot of these kids don't, because when you have a parent who works a menial job, she doesn't have the ability to, she doesn't have the exposure, the understanding of what it is to go to use higher education. So most of my students are actually Latino women right now, because they're the ones who suffered the most from this kind of deprivation. So the need was there and I just naturally you know fell into doing it. It's a, you know, charity is not always going to a gala and giving money. It's sometimes it's there's a situation right in front of you and you either hand a litter, you don't- that is so powerful.
Speaker 1:What you mentioned, dr Ariel, when it comes to giving back, when it comes to charity, as you mentioned, it's not just about going to a gala, it's really helping.
Speaker 1:What's in front of you right there, what can you do? And so I want let's delve more into what you do through this foundation so you support these students through all areas, and this is something that I really want to highlight. You know, often you get a scholarship, like you mentioned, and so it may pay for your tuition, it may pay for your books, but a lot of these students, they're having challenges with housing, food, transportation, health insurance, all of the things that are vital to being able to get through not only just your everyday life, but as a student. You need to have those things supported so you can focus on your studies and really be able to achieve that, and that's what I want the listeners to hear.
Speaker 1:Dr Ariel supports these fellows through all of those areas through housing, food and health insurance, and so I'm going to have him highlight, you know, the reason why he makes sure that they have health insurance, and there's a word that he uses he doesn't want them to be distracted by all of the extra things that are a part of life. So can you share why you decided to make sure that each fellow has health insurance and what type of insurance they have?
Speaker 2:Well, as you know, a lot of doctors here don't accept Medicaid, and my fellows are poor, otherwise I wouldn't need to help them, right? So Medicaid is not accepted by a lot of practices. Hospitals don't even take Medicaid at all of their facilities. Some urgent cares don't take Medicaid, although yours at St Mary's do, and so when somebody on Medicaid calls for a doctor, they get we don't take Medicaid, come back later or you know, our quota is full, come back next year.
Speaker 2:Patients in my practice, the parents sometimes would call me and they would say I called 30 other doctors and I couldn't get anybody to see my kid. So you're the last one I called and you know you welcomed me into the office. So I realized this is a distraction. My fellows need to study, they need to pass their classes, they need to pass their examinations, they need to graduate. What they don't need is for is to encounter nonsense like that when they go to the doctor. The only thing I want the doctor to say when they walk into the office whether it's a specialist or primary care or urgent care or ER or whatever is welcome to the practice. How can we help you? That's the only thing I want them to hear. So I got them hometown. I offer hometown health goal plus plan, the same plan that I personally have myself, and we cover some of the copays. Also, if it's too expensive or if the medicine's expensive even with the insurance, fine, I'll you know I'll help them out by paying the pharmacy to get them their medicine. We do it. If that's the case, we will, we will do that. And that's specifically so that they stay focused on what they need to do and they know the responsibility and they know that they have to get. I want them to get those days, I want them to finish school and I want them to go on to a profession.
Speaker 2:So we're taking, we're removing all those distractions. You don't have food in your refrigerator? Fine, I'll get. We send you to the supermarket on my nickel and we will buy you food. Your car needs gas money. We give you gas money. Your car needs a. You know it needs some maintenance of the shop. Given, given our within our budget will try to take care of that too. And then we do the crisis counseling. If you're having a problem, you can call me 24 seven for anything you want to say or talk about. We will handle that. There's a problem with a family member. Sometimes we even intervene there, you know, if the fellow wants us to. So that's that's what. That's what we do. I know distractions. You go to school, you get it done. My parents, my parents, took care of all the distractions so that all my only job was to go to school and finish. Of course I had a part time job also, but my primary job is to finish school. My parents took care of all those other stuff that allowed other stuff. These kids don't have that.
Speaker 1:So that's what we do it's amazing that you put forward all of those areas, that those needs that need to be met in order to really successfully complete. You know their goals and their degrees and you don't see that and it's important to mention. Yes, they're the intent out there, for scholarships and other things are are well, well, well, mean. There would be the word of, or the desire and the choice is there, but why not think about how we can unpack that or uncouple our current outlook on how we provide these scholarships and take a step back and think about providing a level of help and support from a deeper, with more depth, to really help that student through all areas of their life? And that's why I'm so excited for you to share it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we do. We do backstop tuition. Now, I mean I just one of our students transferred Made a decision withdraw from another university and reenroll at you and our, and so there was no, there was no financial aid because of her change of campus. So fine, so we put it the entire tuition bill for the whole year Are you and our next year she'll, she'll, you'll get a millennium or something like that, and so we'll continue to backstop it. But that we, you know you have to do what you have to do, that's it, I know, and that's just amazing.
Speaker 1:Well, you know, dr ariel, thank you so much for your time, your, your love, your support and really giving back To the students. It's absolutely phenomenal. How can people reach out to you as far as to donate, or if there's somebody out there who would like to become a fellow or just learn more what? How can the listeners and connect with you?
Speaker 2:Well, we're fundraising right now so that we can accept the new fellow. The website is arialfoundationorg. That's A-R-Y-E-L foundationorg. Donations are critically important. If you want to volunteer and help, if a case of student needs tutoring and some subject, that's fine. And we need board members.
Speaker 2:I want to involve, you know, include some other board members. We welcome a woman of color, a man of color or other. You know diverse board members, whoever wants to step in. But I do have one requirement, though. There are nonprofits in the city where board members are basically resume builders. They join the board because it's prestigious. They join the board because it's good for them to move on to another job in their career, get a promotion or become visible and so be able to establish themselves with people they want to meet on a business basis.
Speaker 2:I'm looking for board members who will actively fundraise. I'm looking for board members who will actually pay close attention that, when I'm doing, get in my face and tell me Ron, you're doing this wrong. I want you to do it differently, and here's why being a board member is real work. It's in, and I'm looking for people who will, yes, who will evangelize the mission, but who also called me accountable for my work and will help me fundraise so that we do have the money to expand the fellowship. Right now I'm handling, usually at any one time, four to five active fellows. I want to get it to the point I want next year or a year after, I want to get it to where I'm supporting 10 fellows, or 15 fellows, you know, and the public's help is critical in my being able to do that.
Speaker 1:I am again grateful to have you on Beyond Clinical Wells. Thank you for joining me. Thank you for sharing the work that you are doing as well as why you're doing it. It's been a pleasure. So, as always, I like to thank everybody for taking the time to listen to Beyond Clinical Wells. This is Dr BC W. Thank you. Don't forget to subscribe and turn on notifications so you don't miss my next upload, and if you found this information helpful, please hit the thumbs up. It really helps the channel, as always. Thanks for watching and thank you for your support.