Working my way through college as a hearing screen technician in a medically underserved area, I visited the NICU often to screen babies in distress. However, on this early fall morning, my patient was a perfect baby girl with a healthy weight and satisfactory lab results. Naturally, I wondered why she was in the NICU. I learned the small, perfect baby had methamphetamines and alcohol in her system after being delivered by a woman under the influence. I identified with this case because of the substance abuse in my own rural community. Often times expectant mothers lack the resources and knowledge of prenatal care. Being part of a healthcare team within an underserved area afforded me the opportunity to serve disadvantaged populations and has inspired me to pursue a career in family medicine. While I cherished the opportunity to perform a hearing screen, I wanted to be more involved in this baby’s care and becoming a physician assistant (PA) would allow me to do so. To combat substance abuse in rural communities, more providers are needed to support and prevent patients from delaying care. Wanting to be part of this rural health initiative, I shadowed PAs to increase my depth of knowledge of the profession. Shadowing Mr. Blair, an orthopedic surgery PA, demonstrated how often rural patients’ chronic illnesses – such as obesity and smoking – precluded them from receiving surgery they needed. The prevalence of smoking has ties to certain demographic/psychosocial factors, such as experiencing higher levels of unemployment and lower income. Many patients in rural communities have multiple chronic diseases in addition to substance abuse, which is often compounded with a provider shortage. Realizing all these issues converge to form a “care desert” in my community cemented my decision to serve as a PA there. I plan to return to my community to serve as their first PA. The hospital where I work is in a medically underserved area, and the closest primary care clinic to my community only has three providers and no PAs. The versatility of PAs, in that they can serve in different specialties throughout their career, will allow me to support my community. Many individuals here, would rather cut out a malignant spot with their pocketknife than see a dermatologist. This delayed care contributes to high rates of chronic illness and cancer deaths in these areas. Many people do not see the benefit of a specialist, likely due to a lack of health literacy. As an “insider” in my community, I will explain that the main goal of visiting your provider is not extortion but rather adaptations (medicine, physical therapy, etc.), that can improve quality of life. I feel my responsibility to my community will be fulfilled if I can help my patients realize that visiting their provider will improve their daily life. To propel myself into this career, I began my PA degree at Augusta University in 2023. It is humbling to think that in a matter of months I can leverage my understanding to reduce delay of care in my rural community in Georgia. I plan to work in family medicine so I can address health illiteracy and substance abuse issues head on, while caring for younger patients in poverty. While I have enjoyed serving my community in several different capacities over the years at my local food bank, as a blood donor ambassador for the Red Cross, and as an advocate with She’s My Daughter for women and children, I realize that I desire to impact people’s lives more deeply.