"comunidad del valle." i'm damian trujillo. we're back and we're with you until the end of the year here on nbc bay area your "comunidad del valle." well, we have another exciting show. we're honoring native-american heritage month with some danza azteca at the end of the show, but we also--there is an urgent call for more latino doctors. that's today on your "comunidad del valle."

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ damian: and we begin with the monthly visit by the consulate of méxico in san francisco. with me is mireya magaña. she's the cónsul de asuntos comunitarios y de culturales. she's with us on the show. mireya, welcome to "comunidad del valle." mireya magaña: hi and good morning. well, and thank you. damian: thank you for being here. now, we do--you sent us some great artwork. and because you're the cónsul de asuntos comunitarios y de cultura, tell us about this exposición de en proceso. mireya: yes, we recently inaugurated this in process exhibit by mexican artist patricia torres. she's an artist for more--she has been a plastic artist for

more than 20 years, and she is showcasing a very unique exhibit about--you know, a reflection about femininity and about women's right and how the women's body has been portrayed for many, many centuries in a way that kind of dehumanizes the women's body. so she makes a statement using very well-known figures of mexico--of women, and then putting an extra touch for you to be enticed to reflect on, "is this really just a passage, for example, of a bible, or what else is it talking to me about? how am i seeing the women's body?" so it's a very unique, beautiful, very large paintings

that all of you are invited to visit. you know, just have to come to the consulate and ask to see the exhibit en proceso, and we will be very happy to take you to our gallery and show you the exhibit. hopefully, you will like it. and it will be--well, it's already open, and it will be showing until next february or march. so we still have time. damian: it's quite some time. the great thing about art is that you can interpret it any way you want, but it always makes you think, right? it just makes you think about the-- think in depth, if you will. mireya: exactly, damian. this exhibit is really fantastic. it makes a great exhibit for young women. so if you are a teacher and you have students, please let us know. we will gladly make a round of the exhibit and maybe ask the painter to come and explain it to you.

so it's a very, very good opportunity for young people to learn a little bit more of how art has developed and how the women's body has been portrayed along the centuries. damian: you know, i love the topic. well, thank you so much. again, this is happening at--right there in the offices of the consulate of méxico in san francisco. they are on folsom street. there is their website for more information. it's called en proceso. we'll be back with cónsul mireya to talk about a few other topics, consular topics here on "comunidad del valle." stay with us. ♪♪♪

damian: and we're back with cónsul mireya magaña here on "comunidad del valle." she is a cónsul de asuntos comunitarios y de cultura for the consulate of méxico in san francisco. all right, you have a workshop a taller de vestimenta. what is that? mireya: right. so we have partnered with the organization dress for success to provide mexican--well, womens, mexican women

particularly, that are starting a business to receive a workshop where they will learn how to dress for an interview. maybe you have an appointment with the bank to get a loan for your business. so how are you supposed to dress? how you have to greet the person that is, you know, interviewing you for a work. so this is a 45-minute personal image orientation that all the persons can log into our instagram or facebook or twitter. we have google forums where you have to write down your name and that you're interested to participate. this program is going to take place on november the 28th. and we have several time slots. as i told you, it's a personal orientation. so we are open to--you know, to give you.

it's basically a free workshop. and also, they are going to give you the outfit. so it's a fantastic opportunity for young entrepreneurs that would like to know how to dress properly for these business meetings. damian: would you be able to help a reporter or a tv host know how to dress better? mireya: well, this workshop is for womens, but -- damian: okay. mireya: looks like the interview is very women-oriented. damian: oh, okay. well, thank you. now, you also have a cónsulado móvil like that. again, they're all over the--your region, but it's going to redwood city next. mireya: exactly. it has been a long time we haven't been to redwood city. we're very, very happy. we're going to be there on november the 18th in casa círculo cultural. they are our hosts. that's in middlefield road. and as everybody knows, you have to make your appointment.

appointments for this consulado móvil are going to be open on tuesday, next tuesday. so this very tuesday. so write down the telephone. it's 424-309-0009. that's a general appointment telephone. but if you live in redwood city, i think it is a fantastic opportunity to--well, to renew or update or be the first time that you have a passport or a matrícula consular or a credencial de elector. so, you know, all the requirements are on our website. so please make sure that you have everything once you come to the consulate. damian: all right. well, we enjoyed having you cónsul mireya here on "comunidad del valle." we hope to have you back soon. mireya: thank you, damian. damian: thank you very much. that's cónsul mireya magaña. she's a cónsul de asuntos comunitarios y de cultura. again, there is the website for more information on the screen.

the consulate is at 532 folsom street. again, if you want to watch that great exhibition en proceso, just give them a call and tell them or that show up, tell them you want to see that great artwork. well, up here on "comunidad del valle," latina doctors and latino doctors are urgently needed. we'll get into that next.

we are grocery outlet and we are your bargain bliss market. what is bargain bliss? you know that feeling you get when you find the name brands you love, but for way, way less? that's bargain bliss. this thanksgiving, we're giving you even more reasons to celebrate. we are offering you $21 off a jennie-o frozen turkey with in-store discount. that's as low as $0.50 a pound. so why wait? hurry in to your neighborhood grocery outlet today. because this deal is only available while supplies last.

damian: in the entire country, only 6% of medical doctors are latina or latino. so needless to say there is an urgent need. with me on "comunidad del valle" today are dr. cesar padilla and dr. manny gonzales. gentlemen, welcome to the show. thank you for being here. manny gonzales: hi, damian. cesar padilla: thank you. damian: hi. thank you. and, dr. gonzales, we'll start with you. what is it that was your impulse or your impetus? what propelled you to become a medical doctor? manny: for me it was the need to have more doctors that look like me and, like, doctors that speak my language. i think it's important when physicians speak the language that patients have. they feel a little bit more willing to open up and tell us

things that have been going on. and oftentimes in my job, primary care, it's important to hear what's going on in the social aspects of their lives so that we can make sure we're getting them the services and the help that they need. damian: so you and i did, and also dr. padilla, we did an interview for telemundo on the same topic, and your english is just as good as your spanish. how important is that? manny: i think it's very important because if you--you know, we have interpreters that we can use who also speak spanish, but there's always something lost in translation, and so even with the best interpreter. and so i think if it's one-on-one conversations with the patient, then much more information could get shared between the two. damian: all right. how about you, dr. padilla, what was your impetus to become a medical doctor? cesar: well, it's such a great question. i could spend an hour talking about this. for me i think it was a combination of my upbringing. i would spend my summers in mexico, i was born here in california, my parents came from mexico, and experiencing the culture.

and, you know, in mexico i would just see mexican doctors around. and we knew mexican doctors. and i think i loved the field when i was a kid because i'd love to see them walking around and treating patients. and i came back here and i was like, and after my summer breaks, "that's what i want to do." but unfortunately there was such--there are so few latino physicians here that i didn't really have role models here. but everything that dr. gonzales is alluding to, the evidence backs it up. speaking spanish, you know, even a spanish-speaking doctor is superior, better than having an interpreter. there's studies and evidence showing that's better. but a lot of these things are sort of--what we're talking about are things that walk with me every day, things that are part of me every day in be--in practicing medicine. damian: when i did a news report on this topic, i spoke to a lady and i asked her how--what she thought about the lack of latina, latino doctors, and she said in spanish, 'cause she was monolingual, that she used to communicate using sign language with her doctors. that's scary.

talk about how scary that can be for both patient and doctor, dr. padilla. cesar: yeah, absolutely. i mean, that is something. i saw that growing up. i would go to the doctor's office here in california with my mother and my abuelita, my grandmother, and they would communicate like that. i used--i probably thought that was normal until i got a little bit older. that is terrible because things could be missed. and if things are missed, then that can lead to worse health care outcomes. and all the evidence shows that. that when you don't communicate with your patient and when you--even having a doctor that has the same cultural, ethnic, racial background as the doctor--patient, that makes a difference. but yeah, what you're mentioning is such a terrible example that unfortunately is true. damian: and, dr. gonzales, i mean, you're roaming the halls of your facility there. and do you bump into other doctors whose names are gonzales, trujillo, padilla, garcia?

manny: so in my primary care clinic, though six of the eight of us speak spanish, i'm the only latino doctor. and i think that makes a difference. like, my patient panel has filled up very quickly because i am latino and i speak spanish. so no. i'm the only latino doctor in this clinic. damian: how--i can imagine the challenges for students because it all starts in medical school. what are the challenges that people of brown color have and even deciding to choose the medical field? we'll start with you, dr. gonzales. manny: so i think there's a couple of issues, right, the lack of mentors, the lack of people that look like us. i didn't start medicine till i was 25 because it was just not even a thought in my head that i could be a doctor. and it wasn't till i went to nicaragua as an interpreter that i realized, "oh, yeah, latino doctors exist. obviously, we just need more in the us." so i think that's one of the issues that we have. the other is it is very expensive to become a doctor. you are essentially starting into a life of loans.

and i think we need more programs that help support students of--all students of color who come from lower socio economics status to help them go into these professions where they're very much needed. damian: and, dr. padilla, that's one of the biggest challenges, right, is the cost and the unwillingness from medical schools you're saying to change. cesar: absolutely. let's look at the numbers. so in the last 30 years, only 5%, only 5% of medical students have come from the bottom 20th percentile of socio economic class, the majority of medical students from the top 40 percentile. that means there is an over representation of wealthy students. that's not right because unfortunately most poor people in this country, you are more likely to be a minority, latino, african-american, native-american, if you're poor in this country. so you're automatically excluding people who cannot afford that.

that's one of the barriers. and i just want to highlight national latino physician day was celebrated this past october 1st. and these are a lot of the reasons and data that we're bringing up, is to highlight this critical need. you're right. the medical schools have to change in order to make this a more inclusive environment for people of all economic incomes and even people who for myself--for example, like myself and dr. gonzales who speak spanish. if you speak spanish, that should count as an extra boost to get you into medical school. damian: is anybody listening? i mean, you make a great plead. does anybody listen? will that will have anything change, first of all, beginning with the medical schools? cesar: yes, i think people are listening. this past--when we celebrated national latino physician at stanford where i work, we had an assembly member show up in person, dr. wirking garcia, who's latino, and he works out of fresno. and he said it himself. he said we need to be creative in our ways to diversify medicine, increase latino representation. and also this day went up to the senate.

senator alex padilla and republican senator john cornyn introduced this day for senate resolution. and if you look at the verbiage behind that what is said, it's to highlight the critical need of more latino physicians. so i think fortunately our representatives are listening. i think now it's really up to the medical schools to meet us at the table. damian: all right. well, you are a great example of what it is to become a latino success story. this is an ongoing issue. we do want to share a website for you of national latino physician day that we just had, but there's a lot of valuable information on that website. there it is. but there's a national rate right there on your screen. only 6% of doctors, medical doctors, in the entire nation are latino. that's 4% in santa clara county. so things need to change. we'll have more on this topic when we continue here on "comunidad del valle." so please stay with us. ♪♪♪

damian: we're talking about this urgent need for more latina and latino medical doctors across the country here on "comunidad del valle." dr. cesar padilla and dr. manny gonzales are gracious enough to take time out of their busy schedules to join us here. dr. padilla, you use--when you're not wearing your scrubs, you use something to help your patients relate to you, and that's your affiliation to las chivas rayadas de guadalajara. cesar: yes. so, by the way, this is a complete coincidence. i started to wear my soccer jacket 'cause it matches my scrub jacket. and it's the mexican team of guadalajara. so this is las chivas. las chivas is a team at guadalajara. for those that don't know, it's in the western state of jalisco. they're a huge teams. they're like the new york yankees of soccer. and what i found is that patients who are latino, 'cause we serve a large latino population here where i work, they're like, "oh my god, you're wearing that?" and then all of a sudden, the anxiety goes away from their

eyes, and they feel more comfortable. and i started to notice that a lot of these things that are my own lived experience, the authenticity of being latino is something that puts patients at ease. and as dr. gonzales was mentioning earlier, he's the only latino in his group, i'm the only latino who speaks spanish in my group, and that's unfortunate. it shouldn't be that way. but that's an example of sort of breaking down those barriers between the patient and the doctor to make patients feel more comfortable. damian: and the healing process starts right away. so you're onto something there, i think. dr. gonzales, do you have to enjoy and like biology in high school and chemistry and all of that or not necessarily to become--to get to your level? manny: i think you have to have a little bit of appreciation for biology in that, but it doesn't have to start in high school. like, i didn't start my road to medicine till i was 25. i mean, partly because i didn't think that i could. and so if your love of bio or your love of o chem, that comes later on, that's okay, but i think there has to be an

understanding that this is a long time to study. it's a long, you know, road in the profession, and minimum you're going to be spending 8 years in college. right. eight--4 years undergrad, 4 years medical school, and then residency is minimum 3 years. so we're talking 11 years that you're dedicating to starting this career. so i think it's--you have to like bio a tiny bit. damian: you better. but tell us though about the pride of putting on that white smock. and i would imagine that your siblings and your dad, if he's still with us, raises his collar a bit and says, "mi hijo es medico. my son is a doctor." manny: yeah, they're very proud, to say the least. grandma, mom, dad, sister, they--you know, they always are like, "oh, my son's a doctor," or, "my brother is a doctor." and i get family members who always message me and say, "hey, i have this issue." and i was like, "well, i'm a pediatrician, and you're over 18. so i can't help you." but no. and i see--you see it from the patients too. you know, like, they will say, "wow, a latino doctor.

good. you're doing great for our community." and, you know, it hits the heartstrings. it's awesome, and it keeps me going. damian: yeah. and the mentality might be--for me it was. i'm going to be honest with you, dr. padilla. my mentality was, "there's no way i can be a medical doctor. i don't have the brains. i don't have the patience. i don't have the time." but you two are living proof on, dr. padilla, that it is possible. sí se puede and you're doing it. cesar: yes. and as dr. gonzales pointed out, it could be a long field, but it's worth it. and i tell and i mean that from the bottom of my heart. it is completely worth it, the years of sacrifice. i did 15 years total, 5 years undergrad. and i didn't have the grades to go to a 4-year right away because my grades were not that good coming from a public high school in the east bay here in the bay area. so i went to community college. and it was a total 15 years between starting college and ending fellowships, but it is worth it. i work in obstetric anesthesia.

it's a subspecialty of anesthesia where we keep patients safe as they're delivering their babies. we give patients anesthesia, epidurals. and that to me is--i mean, i wake up every day and i feel so appreciative of the privilege that i have to work in this environment. damian: i would imagine. i can't imagine the feeling of being able to either help save somebody's life or help them feel better in whatever ailments they might have. dr. gonzales, any final thoughts from you before we let you go? manny: i would say, you know, back to the point about how we support latino and students from underrepresented groups to go to medical school, i think it's important to, one, get them into medical school, but to make sure that we're supporting them when they are in medical school. oftentimes our grades are not the best. or i had wonderful grades going into college, but in medical school you get all this information. and so we need people who are supporting those physicians or those medical students so that they can come out on top, so that they can do well, and hopefully go into the professions that we need like primary care doctors.

damian: retention is crucial here. dr. padilla, any final thoughts? cesar: i agree 100%. i was the only mexican-american of a medical school class of 104, and this is in new york state. i felt lonely, it felt hard, but thankfully i found other mentors who were able to help me. and mentors from all backgrounds, black mentors, jewish mentors, latino mentors, and they were able to help me through it. that's a great point that i want to highlight. dr. gonzales, what he said. we need to re--you know, retention in good efforts to mentor the students. thank you. damian: wow, you both fill us all with pride. it's an honor for me to have you on the show and to meet you virtually, but meet you nonetheless. thank you so much for the work that you're doing and adelante. cesar: adelante. thank you. manny: gracias. damian: all right, gracias. again, now there's great information on the website. it's nationallatinophysicianday.com. it just happened, but they have it every year. thank you to some great national legislators. there's a number there that bugs me. only 6% of medical doctors in the entire country are latino.

something needs to change. male: [speaking foreign language] female: [speaking foreign language] thanks to our mother earth, that mother who takes care of us, that one day we will return to, to return back to nature, to the earth. [speaking foreign language] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪

male: [speaking foreign language] [speaking foreign language] female: of the east, of the west, of the north and south before directions emerged, before elements, before creation, before humans to give thanks to the creation, all of those. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪

george oliphant (voiceover): life-changing surprises. you didn't tell us that. george oliphant (voiceover): transformations and reveals. oh, wow! george oliphant (voiceover): when families and communities come together, anything is possible. this is "george to the rescue." hi, i'm christine. and i'm leia. and welcome to our home.