PICTURE FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Sandy Xiong, Lesley Xiong, Jouachao Blong Xiong, Youa Vang, Lasley Xiong, and Nancy XiongMERCED, CA. - It’s said that every Hmong parent wants their child to become Doctors and Lawyers. Our feature family of the month, the Jouachao Blong Xiong family in Merced, have accomplished just such a feat. They have three daughters with degrees in the health care field and another in undergraduate school aiming to go into Optometry. Lesley Xiong, 27, has a MD degree, Lasley Xiong, 26, has a Doctor of Optometry degree, Nancy Xiong, 25, has a Pharmacy degree, with Sandy Xiong, 22, in the process of applying to Optometry schools. As one can image accomplishing their goals was difficult for such young ladies. They faced many challenges including financial and emotional ones. Their decision to take this path into the healthcare field was paved by their dad, Jouachao, who is a medical assistant in a Merced clinic for about 19 years. He suggested that they put in some volunteer work at a hospital to see if they would like to go into the healthcare field.
Leslie the oldest, and the first to tell her dad that the health care field was something she was interested in and would like to pursue. She states “During these volunteering experiences did we realize the tremendous need for Hmong providers due to linguistic and cultural barriers.” As the oldest, she also “set the standard” for the rest of the girls, who also proclaimed their interest in the healthcare field. Leslie graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor’s degree in cell biology. Knowing what field she wanted to go into, Leslie searched around for programs to expand her education, and came across the HCOP (Health Career Opportunity Program). This six week all expenses paid program held at Stanford University for Pre-Med students is designed to expose students to a real health care experience; which all four sisters got to attend as undergraduates. With this program, and her previous accumulated volunteer work, combined with her ability to “bring (her) “A” game on” at the interview, earned her a position as one of 200 students accepted into Georgetown University School of Medicine, in Washington D.C. out of the 15,000 applicants. While going to med school Lesley missed the blissfulness of a lazy sunny day, as her schedules were packed throughout the day, from 6am to 5pm for classes, then 2 or more hours afterwards for labs and then more hours for study, sometimes going late into the night.
Lasley followed suit, and obtained a bachelor’s degree in genetics, however she went away to school, attending Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Pennsylvania. The most difficult part for Lasley was the first few months of med school, because her schedule was so booked up like Leslies. “The minimum study time, just to possibly pass, you must put in about 50 hours of study per week” she said, and that was her regular schedule for about 2 years, but with support and motivation from her family she was able to keep striding on. Being at school and living by herself, really made Lasley yearn for the comfort of her parents and sisters; sometimes even missing family emergencies due to her schedule.
While in training, Lesley and Lasley experienced a wide variety of emotions. The first time Lasley encountered Cadavers, she was so nervous that her legs couldn’t stop shaking, however she overcame her nervousness through perseverance and practice. Leslie called her dad one time saying, “Dad, I can’t do it anymore. I see their lives cut off in front of me. Their parents are crying, their siblings are crying, and there was nothing else I could do. I did everything I could and it didn’t help, so I don’t want to do it anymore. How am I going to bear with this for the next 30, 40 years?” Working as a medical assistant himself, Jouachao understood what she was going through and responded, “Don’t be upset. You gave everything in your knowledge to help the patient to the end.” The experience really opened up her eyes to the value of life, and realized that what needs to be done, should be done, and what’s worth saying, should be said, because life is precious. Making her realize that one should love their families even more, and give help and support to those who are lacking. This is one of the reasons the sisters cofounded the H.I.H. (Hmong In Health) organization at UC Davis, a support group for students going into the healthcare profession.
Nancy decided that going into the Pharmacy field was more to her liking, so after receiving her bachelor’s degree in cell biology, she attended Creighton University School of Pharmacy in Nebraska. It was hard for Nancy for most of the first year at Creighton, due to having no means for transportation, since Jouachao and Youa Vang (mom) was only able to financially provide cars for the first 2 daughters that year. She remembers waking up at 6:30am just to ride her bike partway up a steep hill, and having to walk her bike the rest of the way up. Sometimes even slipping and falling in the rain and snow to school. Those moments made her wonder why she was putting herself so far away from her family, just to go to school in Omaha, NE., and not having her sisters with her as she’s used to at UC Davis. Where they were able to go to school together, cook together, and ate together, “Now I’m cooking for myself of 1, (and) I have no one else to talk to” she mentions. Her motivation to continue on, were the phone conversations, and encouragements from her older sisters and parents. By the end of the first year, her parents were able to round up some money along with help from her sisters, and her own funds to get a car. It wasn’t a brand spanking new car, but it ran just fine, and she was so happy to finally have one that she felt like it was her birthday. Nancy states with a giggle, that the thing she sacrificed while away at school was “my appetite”. She missed her mom’s spicy peppers and steamy rice so much, that on one of her trips home, she made sure to tote a bag of rice and a bowl of red peppers in each arm back with her. Going into the Pharmacy field, Nancy’s schedule weren’t as complicated as her MD sisters. Pharmacy classes only lasted from 6am to about 3pm, and only occasionally into the night, if she needed to study for an exam. After the third year, her last year of school would be spent doing rounds with the Resident doctors, learning and providing information.
Financially it was hard for all the sisters to reach their goal, but Jouachao knew that education was the best investment and encouraged them on despite the accumulating loans, because he knew the end results would pay off. “The most important thing is that you kids do not waste time, that right after the bachelors degree, you go straight for your Doctors” he told them, and urged them to continue on as full time Med students. Getting into Med school is a long drawn out process, of which they would have to start preparing for in their Junior year of college. Before even being accepted into any of the 126 medical schools, the sisters had to pay out of pocket for the application process to any school they applied to. In the application process there are three steps to take and each step has a fee. First would be submitting their application, second is their secondary questions, and if picked the third process would be the interview. The first two steps ranges from $300 to $500 dollars, and if chosen for an interview they have to pay for the flight, hotel, and car rental, so one round of these could cost up to $2000. So if applying for a couple of different schools, it could be costly and with no guarantees. To top things off, it’s mandatory to take an 8 hour exam and a $2000 course before acceptance, and all done while still an undergraduate so they’ve got their regular classes and the exam to study for. So that’s running a minimum of about $4000 just to get into Med school. The majority of Hmong families find it difficult to come up with even the minimum about of money, and would most likely put in a suggestion to pursue a less costly path. Not for Jouachao and Youa though, they encouraged their daughters to save money by cutting back on the little stuff they buy. So some months the girls would go all the way to Sacramento from UC Davis, to a slaughter house for a pig, instead of at the supermarket, just to save some extra money. So in the end, all of their hardships did pay off and the three sisters are doing what they have always wanted to do. Leslie is now a member of the Stanislaus Family Medicine Residency Program of Modesto, CA. and just recently got married to a long time, supportive boyfriend who cheered her on from the sideline. Lasley is a member of the Mercy Family Medicine Residency Program of Merced, CA and Nancy is a member of the St. Joseph Medical Center Pharmacy Residency Program of Stockton, CA.
When asked if they have any advice to give their fellow classmates all responded: “Don’t ever let anything or anyone tell you that you can’t do it. You won’t know until you try. There’s always hope. Put in some volunteer community work in your profession. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, because if you don’t ask, no one will know how to help you.” and Lasley gave an advice to the parents from a students’ point of view; “Many Hmong parents, want their kids to become a lawyer or a doctor, but don’t stop to think that maybe it’s not what the kids want. So if it’s something that they don’t want to do, don’t push them into it, because it is the rest of their lives. And if it’s a job that they don’t want to do, then getting the degree will not help them because it may not even be a profession that they will pursue.” Their dad, Jouachao, also put in an advice to the parents and that is; “Whatever profession your children wants to major in, take the step to research the information on that major. Like what programs would be beneficial to them, guide them to doing volunteer work in that profession, to see if they would like it first. Another important factor is that, as a parent you must make sure that your kids have at least 3 meals a day. They must have breakfast before going to school, because they may not have time to eat school breakfast before the bell rings. They must also have lunch when they get back from school because they may not always like the school lunch. Once fed, then give them some rest time and then have them start on their homework” His opinion is that food feeds the mind, and if one is hungry then focusing on their studies will be harder, because their stomach is asking for food.Jouachao feels that even though his daughters were all unwed, their education is still the most important thing, and does not have any regrets that they didn’t follow Hmong customs in getting married early. In older generations, one would be considered an old maid if they remained single too long after high school graduation. However, in the society that we live in today, Jouachao feels that if one is educated, then they will know the means of how to help their family in times of need.
