Maeanna
Merrill
Medical Student
University at Buffalo
Maeanna Merrill (they/she) is a fourth year medical student at Jacobs School of Medicine at University at Buffalo. They plan to apply for residency in Pediatrics this fall where they will combine their passions for patient-centered medicine and public health. Maeanna has also previously worked as Research and Policy Analyst at the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, a Canadian national organization representing Indigenous people that live off-reserve.
Presenting at the Nexus Summit:
Indigenous people within the United States are drastically underrepresented in the field of medicine. Out of the 23,156 matriculants to U.S. MD-granting medical schools in the 2024-2025 cycle, only 35 identified as American Indian or Alaska Native alone, and only 166 identified in combination with another race or ethnicity. To address this disparity, students from the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and the Seneca Nation Education Department collaborated to form an annual event, known as 7th Generation Operation. This event seeks to introduce Indigenous students in grades 6-…