Letters to the Editor: The demoralizing focus on UCLA medical students’ race

To the editor: In his column, “Is UCLA a ‘failed medical school’? Debunking a dumb right-wing meme,” Michael Hiltzik writes:

“It’s true that the UCLA entering medical school class has become more diverse over time. Figures issued by UCLA ... show that from 2019 through 2022, the number of whites in the 173-member class declined to 46 from 49, the number of Black students rose to 25 from 22, Hispanic students rose from 25 to 37, a catchall ‘other’ category grew to 20 from eight, and American Indians, Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders went from zero to three. The number of Asian students declined to 55 from 84.”

The number of Asian American students declined by 35%. This decline is not comparable to those in other groups.

No explanation is given. Does increasing diversity imply dropping a minority race by more than one-third? Note that my assertion has nothing to do with quality. It has to do with racial composition.

What does “Asian” even mean? India, China, Thailand, Kyrgyzstan? The focus on race is all so corrosive, disheartening and, most of all, demoralizing.

Avanidhar Subrahmanyam, Los Angeles

The writer is a professor of finance at UCLA.

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To the editor: What is a good doctor?

I graduated from UCLA medical school in 1981 far from the top of my class. However, my patient satisfaction scores over close to four decades of practice put me in the highest ranks.

It isn’t MCAT, shelf or medical board scores that make a good doctor. It is the interpersonal relationships between the physician and patient that matter.

Paula Pearlman, M.D., Los Angeles