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David Velasquez, MD
@davidevelasqu
Resident physician @BrighamWomens | fighting to make systems work for everyone l alum @USC ✌🏽@HarvardHBS @Kennedy_School @harvardmed | #firstgen
Boston, MA
Born August 7
Joined December 2017
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13.2K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 24, 2024
    This is my mom. She was an asylum seeker. She slept in a church b/c she had nowhere else to go. She is a housekeeper & a waitress. She is my hero. These degrees are for her. Harvard Medical School, M.D. ✅ Harvard Business School, M.B.A. ✅ Harvard Kennedy School of Government,
    10M
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 24, 2024
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    And this is me. I am a product of my mom, dad, brothers, friends, and mentors. To them, I owe everything. Signing off for the first time ever as, Dr. David Velasquez, MD, MBA, MPP
    568K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 27, 2023
    On Thursday, I graduated from the Harvard Business School & the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. On Tuesday, I restart my 7th and final year at Harvard Medical School. Next year, I will become the 1st person in history to graduate from these three institutions. 1/x
    2.8M
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 24, 2024
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    This is my dad. He was shot twice fighting for democracy in his home country, Nicaragua. He lost his brother in battle. His calloused hands remind me of the manual labor he worked to make sure I could focus on school. He transports elderly patients to their doctors'
    902K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 24, 2024
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    These are my brothers. My oldest (far left) brother raised me when my parents worked multiple jobs. My older (second to the left) brother pushed me on the track & helped me become a better version of myself. My little brother (far right) taught me how to be a big brother--the
    830K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Dec 15, 2024
    At 18, I nervously walked into my college’s pre-med office and said I wanted to be a doctor. They suggested I consider other careers—why? Maybe because I came from a small town. Maybe because I was Latino. Maybe because I was poor. I didn’t listen. Now, for the first time, I’m
    302K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Oct 28, 2024
    I sat next to Frankie (pseudonym), a Puerto Rican man, in the hospital for weeks as he battled a new cancer diagnosis. He confided in me, partly because I spoke to him in Spanish. On my last day of seeing Frankie, he said, "I want to tell you a story." 1/x
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    Acyn
    @Acyn
    Oct 27, 2024
    “There’s a lot going on. I don’t know if you know this but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico”
    00:00
    1.7M
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Jul 8, 2021
    Last night, I saw an elderly Honduran woman in clinic. As the nursing student took her blood pressure, her granddaughter turned to me and whispered, “Felicidades. Lo hiciste.” 🥺
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 10, 2020
    Can you believe that this woman slept in a church for two years when she first arrived to America? Unbelievable. I love you, mom. #HappyMothersDay💐
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Nov 25, 2019
    When I was a kid, I couldn't order off the Carl's Jr dollar menu because of cost. Yet, I was expected to pay +$1200 for a MCAT test prep course🤔 Privileged to have a voice in the @nytimes on the barriers that low-income medical students face.
    David Velasquez, a third-year medical student at Harvard University, said he had $4.80 left in his bank account after signing up for the MCAT test prep.
    ‘I Have a Ph.D. in Not Having Money’ (Published 2019)
    From nytimes.com
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 27, 2023
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    ...who somehow provided nurturing love to me and my brothers even when we were homeless, and who, to this day, may be your @Uber driver, @Marriott housekeeper, and restaurant server. Thank you, Mom & Dad. 3/x
    124K
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Oct 28, 2024
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    I share this story with you because of the derogatory comments made against Puerto Rico at @realDonaldTrump's rally last night. Frankie and Puerto Ricans everywhere deserve respect. Not only because over 375,000 Puerto Ricans have served in the U.S. military--with many having
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    Jul 28, 2020
    Before starting my junior year of college, I made a trip to the local Walmart. I shopped for chicken, eggs, and milk when I noticed a man shyly approaching other customers. He looked to be in his forties, and I could overhear him nervously speaking in Spanish. 1/x
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    David Velasquez, MD
    @davidevelasqu
    May 27, 2023
    Replying to @davidevelasqu
    As excited as this makes me, what truly makes me smile is doing this as the son of two formerly undocumented, non-English speaking immigrant parents who slept in the attic of a church for 2 years when they first arrived in the U.S... 2/x
    132K