Suhanee Mitragotri is a first-year medical student at UC San Diego and developed a passion for value-based medicine through her interests in health policy and public health. She is particularly interested in how data-driven policy and community-based interventions can improve quality of care and strengthen patient outcomes.

Kylie Joe is a STARS representative from the UCSD School of Medicine Class of 2029 whose passion began through her undergraduate work in medical sustainability, where witnessing the volume of unused medical supplies highlighted the unnecessary costs embedded within our healthcare system. She is driven to pursue a career as a physician that prioritizes cost-effectiveness, resource stewardship, and patient outcome–centered decision-making.

Melissa Martinez is passionate about advancing women’s health, promoting health equity, and strengthening preventive care, especially during pregnancy and the postpartum period. She believes meaningful change happens at the systems level, and Value-Based Medicine offers a powerful framework to improve outcomes while centering patient needs. Through this SIG, she hopes to help reimagine care delivery in ways that are equitable, sustainable, and deeply compassionate.

I’m interested in value-based medicine because it aligns clinical care with what actually matters—better outcomes, access, and equity—rather than volume alone. Through my training in PRIME-Health Equity, managerial work at the Student-Run Free Clinic, and involvement with STARS, I’ve seen the importance of treating healthcare cost and patient outcomes as linked. As a physician, I want to practice in a way that upholds VBM, translating good clinical practice into sustainable, measurable impact.

I am interested in improving quality of care and patient health outcomes, which led me to value-based medicine. Currently, I am researching the effects of financial toxicity to develop interventions that can alleviate financial, social, and emotional burdens that lower-income communities experience. 

I am interested in value-based medicine as an approach to providing quality care to patients. I believe that offering patients care that meets their individual needs and goals can be a part of a system that manages resources responsibly. I am particularly interested in improving medical education curriculum to incorporate more value-based medicine approaches from early on in students’ medical education.

I am one of the 2024 STARS representatives. With a background in cancer care, data analytics, and clinical informatics, I’m drawn to value-based care as it aligns with my goal of leveraging data-driven insights to improve patient outcomes and address health disparities.

I am one of the 2024 UCSD SOM STARS! My background in public health and interests in sustainability and equity led me to value-based medicine. I love having dedicated time to brainstorm about and enact cost-effectiveness and resource stewardship in healthcare.

I am one of the 2024 STARS representatives! My interest in value-based medicine is informed by my experience completing a Master’s in medical anthropology, which opened my eyes to the human cost of our current model of healthcare delivery and the need to adopt solutions that lead towards an alternative approach to medicine. I am specifically interested in studying cancer care inequities, financial toxicity, and the relationship between insurance companies and healthcare policymaking.

I am a first year medical student and a 2023 UCSD Choosing Wisely STARS representative. Prior to medical school I completed my MPH in health policy where I became interested in high value care delivery. I am specifically interested in healthcare financing and cost-effectiveness especially as it relates to achieving safer, equitable health outcomes and better experiences for both patients and providers.

I am one of the UCSD SOM Class of 2026 STARS representatives. My interests in value-based medicine stemmed from witnessing the cost burdens for patients with complex cancer diagnoses. I am interested in value-based medicine as it incentivizes innovation, better utilizes evidence-based decision-making, and focuses on high-quality personalized treatments. 

I am a first-year medical student and co-president of the VBM SIG. I have a background in information technology and am interested in using Clinical Informatics approaches to promote value-based medicine. I am also interested in digital health and clinical decision support tools. 

I am a current first-year medical student and Co-President of the Value Based Medicine SIG. My academic and research backgrounds are in anthropology, structural/systems-based thinking, and health equity. I believe that understanding how to discuss and provide cost-effective, high value care is not only advantageous for building strong patient-physician relationships but deeply necessary in our pursuit of sustainable and equitable healthcare systems. 

I’m one of the 2022 STARS representatives. My research background and interests are in surgical and procedural cost-effectiveness as well as efficient resource allocation to improve quality of care for underserved populations.

I am one of the 2022 UCSD SOM STARS! I have a background in BioEngineering and computational drug discovery. I'm interested in value-based medicine especially as it pertains to preventative care, at home diagnostic monitoring, and the discovery / pricing of new medications. 

I am one of the 2021 Choosing Wisely STARS. I have a background in public health and health services research, and am passionate about improving health care value and educating future clinicians about research stewardship. During my gap year, I am serving as the 2022-2023 Value Based Health Care Fellow at Dell Medical School's Musculoskeletal Institute in Austin, TX.

I am one of the 2021 Choosing Wisely STARS. Obtaining my Master’s in Public Health prior to medical school has informed and enriched my clinical experiences. I am committed to incorporating high-value care and prevention messages into my future practice as a primary care physician in underserved communities in California.

I am one of the UCSD SOM Class of 2024 STARS representatives and former co-president of the VBMIG. I am interested in value-based medicine because it provides a language and framework for answering the critical questions of how to center patient goals, build a more equitable and sustainable healthcare system, and support innovation in patient care.