{"id":6368,"date":"2026-04-14T11:00:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T15:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/md\/?p=6368"},"modified":"2026-04-14T14:16:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T18:16:52","slug":"shaping-a-future-physician-where-love-loss-and-medicine-intersect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/md\/news\/2026\/04\/shaping-a-future-physician-where-love-loss-and-medicine-intersect\/","title":{"rendered":"Shaping a future physician: Where love, loss and medicine intersect"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Carolina
Carolina Trang Vo celebrates her match into anesthesiology at UVA Medical Center alongside her family on Match Day.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The relationship between a father and a daughter is\u00a0often\u00a0special. For Carolina Trang Vo,\u00a0that bond shaped not only her life, but her calling.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2015,\u00a0Vo\u2019s father suffered a stroke that left\u00a0him in a coma for a month.\u00a0When he\u00a0awoke, he had\u00a0no sensation\u00a0on\u00a0the left side of his body\u00a0and was\u00a0unable to talk, walk or eat.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the next six years,\u00a0his health was marked by\u00a0numerous\u00a0complications, but Vo was by his side every step of the way.\u00a0The week before he passed,\u00a0he summoned\u00a0all his strength to\u00a0motion to her,\u00a0\u201cI love you.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time, Vo was just beginning medical school at the UNC School of Medicine, after spending several years working as a medical assistant at UNC Health. That final interaction with her father solidified her path forward.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter how long my days were, from going to school in the morning\u00a0to\u00a0spending\u00a0the night in the hospital with my dad, I never felt tired,\u201d Vo said. \u201cWhen\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0passionate about\u00a0something\u00a0and have\u00a0meaning, you\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0feel tired;\u00a0you feel energized. He gave me a purpose in life.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Seeing health care through a family lens<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Vo\u2019s\u00a0parents\u00a0faced\u00a0significant challenges long before her father\u2019s stroke. Both immigrated from Vietnam during the Vietnam War before\u00a0eventually\u00a0settling in the United States.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Carolina
Carolina Trang Vo and her father.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Vo was 10\u00a0years old, her father retired due to disability and her mother had serious\u00a0health problems of her own.\u00a0Vo\u00a0served as their\u00a0interpreter\u00a0and healthcare advocate\u00a0from\u00a0a\u00a0young\u00a0age\u00a0and\u00a0drove\u00a0them\u00a0to countless appointments\u00a0once\u00a0she\u00a0had her license.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After her father\u2019s stroke, he was\u00a0transported\u00a0to UNC Hospitals.\u00a0At the time, Vo was enrolled in medical assistant school, having stepped away from her goal of attending medical school.\u00a0She\u00a0was\u00a0in awe of\u00a0the care her father\u00a0received.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI spent every night at his bedside, getting to know the incredible nurses, residents and attendings,\u201d Vo said. \u201cI fell in love with medicine because of how consistently they communicated with me and involved me in every decision.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Following his discharge, her father did not receive the same quality of care at nearby nursing facilities.\u00a0As costs mounted, Vo and her mother made the decision to bring him home to Fayetteville, North Carolina. From 2016 until his death in 2021, they served as his full-time caregivers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Vo was working as a medical assistant during the day and\u00a0her father\u2019s\u00a0caregiver\u00a0at\u00a0night, changing diapers, cleaning\u00a0G-tube\u00a0sites, crushing medications,\u00a0caring for\u00a0PICC lines\u00a0and doing\u00a0whatever\u00a0else was needed.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCarolina drew on her own experiences advocating for her family members’ healthcare journey and tailored her role to capture the patient-physician encounter by being a compassionate and collaborative partner,\u201d\u00a0said Dr.\u00a0Rumey\u00a0Ishizawar, one of Vo\u2019s mentors. Vo worked with her as a rheumatology medical\u00a0scribe.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

During this time, Vo earned a\u00a0master\u2019s\u00a0degree in physiology\u00a0and secured a second job in pharmaceuticals\u00a0before\u00a0ultimately being\u00a0accepted to the UNC School of Medicine.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI learned a lot\u00a0about the challenges of navigating the healthcare system while\u00a0being my dad\u2019s caregiver, and I wanted to use that knowledge to advocate for\u00a0others,\u201d Vo said. \u201cThere was no\u00a0better\u00a0way to do that than becoming a doctor.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Persevering through loss<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Vo\u00a0began\u00a0medical school in August 2021.\u00a0Within her first few months as an MS1, she lost her cousin, future father-in-law, pet rabbit and father.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like everything was unraveling,\u201d Vo said. \u201cGrieving\u00a0both\u00a0the dad I grew up with and the dad I\u00a0came\u00a0to know after\u00a0his\u00a0stroke, trying to support my mom,\u00a0planning a\u00a0wedding with my husband knowing that both of our dads were gone\u00a0\u2014 it\u00a0felt impossible.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Life\u00a0quickly\u00a0became\u00a0overwhelming. Vo was\u00a0barely sleeping,\u00a0navigating profound loss\u00a0while\u00a0still\u00a0trying to be a medical student. She\u00a0later\u00a0failed Step 1.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u00a0knew my dad would not want me to give up on myself,\u201d\u00a0Vo said.\u00a0\u201cI fought\u00a0so hard\u00a0to\u00a0get into medical\u00a0school as an older medical student without\u00a0perfect grades. I\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0giving up\u00a0now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Carolina
Carolina Trang Vo on Match Day alongside Dr. Shirley (middle) and Dr. Gupta (far right).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Determined to move forward, Vo credits Ben Shirley, EdD, and Amit Gupta, MD, for providing the support she needed.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shirley helped Vo reframe her approach to studying, encouraging her to take time for self-care and find ways to make\u00a0studying\u00a0more fun. Most importantly, he helped her learn to give herself grace while continuing to grow through adversity.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCarolina is a truly remarkable person, and I have no doubt she will become an excellent physician,\u201d Shirley said.\u00a0\u201cOne of the qualities that I admire most about Carolina is her ability to support others. She has become a source of encouragement for fellow medical students facing academic challenges by offering her perspective and reassurance.\u00a0I am\u00a0inspired\u00a0by\u00a0her openness and generosity in uplifting others.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On her next attempt, Vo passed Step 1 and transitioned to clinical rotations where she began to flourish.\u00a0Feedback from\u00a0residents and\u00a0attendings\u00a0consistently highlighted her commitment to patients \u2014 learning their stories, keeping families informed\u00a0and\u00a0securing gas cards for those traveling\u00a0long\u00a0hours.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI took what I knew\u00a0from\u00a0my own\u00a0life,\u201d Vo said.\u00a0\u201cI knew\u00a0what\u00a0my\u00a0dad would have wanted as a patient, and I gave that to my patients.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

During\u00a0this time, Vo was\u00a0inducted into\u00a0the\u00a0Gold Humanism Honor Society and UNC\u2019s Alpha Omega Alpha\u00a0Chapter.\u00a0She also passed Step 2 with a competitive score.\u00a0Even so, she was unsure of which specialty to\u00a0pursue.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finding her match with anesthesiology<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Vo always loved working with\u00a0children\u00a0and\u00a0initially\u00a0thought pediatrics would be the\u00a0right fit.\u00a0However, during her ObGyn rotation, she noticed that in the delivery room, her instinct was to comfort the\u00a0mother\u00a0rather than\u00a0focus on\u00a0the baby.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Carolina
Carolina Trang Vo and her mother on Match Day.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a moment of uncertainty in the break room, an anesthesiologist talked through her experience and suggested anesthesiology.\u00a0Vo was skeptical at first, but the more she reflected on it, the more it resonated. Now, she knows it\u2019s the right path.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEvery chapter of my life has brought me here,\u201d Vo said. \u201cMy years as a medical assistant taught me the skills. Through working with military children in Project YES, I learned how to ease fear and foster trust with my patients. Caring for my dad taught me the importance of showing up, even when no one is watching. That\u2019s what anesthesiology felt like to me \u2014 a space that demanded focus, skill and heart.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Vo\u00a0applied to anesthesiology residency programs and interviewed\u00a0in the\u00a0fall,\u00a0searching for the right fit. When Match Day arrived\u00a0on March 20,\u00a0she\u00a0opened her envelope\u00a0to\u00a0learn she matched\u00a0at the\u00a0University of Virginia\u00a0Medical Center, her\u00a0top\u00a0choice.<\/span><\/p>\n

In that moment, Vo\u00a0collapsed to the floor\u00a0in tears. She thought of the\u00a0unwavering\u00a0support\u00a0she received\u00a0from her mother, her husband\u00a0and other family members.\u00a0Above\u00a0all, she thought\u00a0of her father and how proud he would be.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Through\u00a0every setback and triumph, Vo discovered her purpose. Now, she\u00a0sees\u00a0it taking\u00a0shape.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy path wasn\u2019t linear, but it was meaningful,\u201d Vo said.\u00a0\u201cIt was never\u00a0just about becoming\u00a0a doctor, but\u00a0becoming the kind of doctor\u00a0my dad needed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Media contact: Cory Van Dyke<\/a><\/em>, Assistant Director of Marketing and Communication, Offices of Medical Student Education<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Carolina Trang Vo’s path to medicine wasn’t always linear, but it was meaningful. After navigating the loss of her father, academic challenges and uncertainty surrounding her specialty, Vo (Class of 2026) matched into anesthesiology at UVA Medical Center.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":117964,"featured_media":6370,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"layout":"","cellInformation":"","apiCallInformation":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6368","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","odd"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nShaping a future physician: Where love, loss and medicine intersect | Medical Doctorate Program<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Carolina Trang Vo's path to medicine wasn't linear, but it was meaningful. 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