By Elise Coby

The harsh reality of life shaped many childhood dreams into new career goals and aspirations. It’s rare to see someone carry out a dream job they were hoping to pursue at 3-years-old.

However, for Anna Ferraro, a High Point University junior, a distinct childhood memory illuminated a path for her life.

“When I was 3-years-old, I noticed how difficult it was for my grandfather to walk,” Ferraro said. “He always seemed to be in excruciating pain and I had no idea why. Little did I know, he was in such immense pain because he was still suffering from the explosion of a grenade that launched shrapnel into his back while he was fighting for our country in Vietnam.”

In her opinion, this memory was not just a mere observation of a family member in pain, it was a life-changing moment.

Through her confusion and desire to help, Ferraro questioned why pain took the quality of life away from her grandfather and decided that she wanted to help give it back.

“Because I was so young, I was pretty confused when he burst into tears,” Ferraro said. “But I did know that I wanted to help him. So naturally, I picked out a kid’s Barbie-themed Band-Aid from the medicine cabinet and placed it on his back to help ease the pain.”

According to Dr. Eric Kandel, professor and director of the Kavli Institute for Brain Science at Columbia University, “While two and three-year-olds can remember things for a short time, the hippocampus is required for long-term storage of those memories.”

Since the hippocampus of the human brain is still underdeveloped at the age of three, it is notable that Ferraro was able to harness this memory as her long-term memory had not fully developed.

In 2019, entering High Point University in North Carolina, Ferraro was accepted into the Presidential Scholars program. This program specifically recognizes incoming freshmen that demonstrate outstanding achievement, good citizenship, strong leadership and exceptional scholarship during high school.

Since then, she has advanced increasingly into an astute, intuitive junior at High Point University. She has become involved in the Spanish club, chemistry club and is currently founding the botany club for the scientific study of plants. Additionally, she worked as a Spanish, biology and genetics tutor and continues to work for the Spanish department.

Currently studying biology, she confidently looks forward to her goal of entering medical school and maintains an ever-growing interest to pursue research for Alzheimer’s disease.

Little did she know, her grandfather would not be the only loved one she would see struggling from pain.

“Throughout my life, I have had and witnessed experiences that heightened my distrust in the medical profession,” Ferraro said. “Not only did it heighten my distrust, but in turn, it heightened my awareness of the importance of competent and passionate patient care.”

Ferraro’s personal struggle with effective medical care made her realize how frustrating it was firsthand to not gain the help and immediate attention she needed.

“When I was younger, I experienced a lot of pain with my reproductive system,” Ferraro said. “I mentioned it to multiple physicians, but it was written off as ‘just having bad cramps’ after enduring for years what I was convinced was normal. There was an especially painful week where I couldn’t get out of bed and it inspired me to see a female OBGYN specialist. She found a 10 cm. diameter ovarian cyst within the first visit.”

Her increasing distrust in the medical community continued to heighten when her younger brother underwent tests for over a year regarding an arm injury and continued to remain undiagnosed. Her mother, without any medical training, was the reason he was ultimately diagnosed after spending just a few hours of research online.

“She was so fed up with no one listening to them, or caring enough to actually hear what they were saying,” Ferraro said. “I think many doctors are so worn out and are quick to jump to popular diagnoses when in reality, some issues are much more complicated and require a deeper level of patient care.”

“I think many doctors are so worn out and are quick to jump to popular diagnoses when in reality, some issues are much more complicated and require a deeper level of patient care.”

Anna Ferraro

Not only did Ferraro observe the lack of professional treatment, but she experienced the lack of empathy shown to her and the rest of her family. Instead of remaining complacent to this treatment, she used it to intensify her desire for a change.

“Now, my passion for medicine as a whole definitely stems from the unprofessional medical experiences I have seen my loved ones go through,” Ferraro said. “Watching the people I love the most suffer because of something out of their control made me feel helpless. I view the unwillingness to listen from certain doctors I have encountered as a personal motivator to do better and learn more on a daily basis.”

While she continues to thrive and pursue her passion, she has never forgotten who influenced her in the first place.

“My grandpa and I are closer than ever. I am and will always be his ‘sweet little Anna’ and he asks me for medical advice all the time,” Ferraro said. “He refers to me as his doctor and he continues to instill confidence in me, emphasizing that I can do anything I want to do. I have never felt so unconditionally loved by someone and I would do anything for him.”

Her immense admiration for her grandfather also inspires her desire to advocate specifically for dementia patients.

“I think my love for grandparents in general really made me gravitate towards wanting to specialize in the elderly because I have such a soft spot for older people,” Ferraro said. “I think they are so wise and have so much to offer. They are often mistreated simply because of their age. It’s greatly frustrating to me that they often lack the proper guidance and have no one to advocate for them, dementia patients especially.”

Ferraro’s unconditional love and appreciation for the quality of human life continues to drive her perseverance. She boldly emphasizes the importance of not becoming discouraged to those who are unable to get the proper medical care they desire.

“Please persist and persevere,” said Ferraro. “There are medical professionals out there that care about you and want you to be healthy. It is my hope to one day treat my patients with the same love that I have for my own family.”

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Elise Coby is a junior at High Point University majoring in Environmental Journalism with a minor in Environmental Science. For contact inquiries, please email ecoby@highpoint.edu.