The LAFP is excited to recognize Ms. Tiera Gulum as our March Member of the Month. Ms. Gulum is in her second year of medical school at LSU New Orleans. She is also very active in the FMIG and a champion of Family Medicine.
Ms. Gulum grew up in Albany, New York with one older brother and one younger. Her mom worked for New York State in the Office of Medicaid, and her father was a carpenter. Her parents sacrificed a great deal to make sure she and her brothers were able to explore any interests, sports, or hobbies as kids. She credits her family with her success today. “My parents fostered a home full of laughter, love, and understanding. Without their commitment to our family, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
We asked Ms. Gulum how she chose to attend medical school and become a physician. She stated, “Throughout my life, it has always felt as if the right decisions settled into place for me without too much intervention. I got good grades in high school, a scholarship to Tulane, and a job within the medical field right out of college. That luck changed when I decided to go to medical school. I applied for three cycles, interviewing with schools here in Louisiana year after year only to be further disappointed with each rejection. A call to serve kept me coming back, even though I was happily employed and climbing the ladder in the clinical research field. I will never forget the call I got as I was driving to get coffee one morning. I had 24 hours to accept or decline a seat in the class of 2028 with LSU Health. It really sent my mind into a spiral, flipping everything I thought I knew about my future upside down. I had to leave a job (and a salary) I loved, figure out how to apply for loans to afford the tuition, and tell my partner that everything about our life together was going to change. Looking back now, I don't know how I managed to get it all done, but I am certain I made the right decision. Every day, it feels like I am making 14-year-old me proud.”
Ms. Gulum completed her undergraduate studies on scholarship to Tulane University, where she studied Biochemistry. When asked how she chose to stay in New Orleans, she continued, “In undergraduate, I was so busy with athletics and figuring out my place in the world that I delayed taking the MCAT. I spent some time after college working in the world of clinical research and found that I was always dreaming of being the lead physician on the trials. I took the MCAT, applied to the local medical schools for a couple of cycles, and was granted a position at LSU HSC after years of trying. I feel extremely lucky to be afforded the opportunity of learning medicine under our wonderful mentors at LSU Health New Orleans.
Ms. Gulum aspires to be a small-town family physician. She continued, “While working in clinical trials, I helped conduct many different studies for various specialties. I worked under physicians in infectious disease, dermatology, urology, internal medicine, emergency medicine, primary care, pediatrics, and ob-gyn. It seemed like every time I switched to work with a new physician; I switched my goals towards a desire to work in that field. It was this line of thought that led me to primary care. I think that family medicine is a wonderful option for people like me because there is such variety in who you can serve, and the possibilities of what you might encounter in your clinic are nearly endless. You can also provide comprehensive and preventative care to generations of families, something that is unique to family medicine and extremely fulfilling to both you and your patients. Family physicians have the opportunity to understand family dynamics and utilize their connection to their patients to improve their healthcare, and therefore, their lives.”
She talked more about her future goals, “I dream of being of small-town family medicine physician, like you see in old-timey movies. I want to know everyone and their family members, truly embodying the "How's ya momma an'em " New Orleans culture. I want to see mothers, fathers, their children, and then eventually their grandchildren. I want to be there for the local high school football game, your first call when you accidentally step on a nail, and who you see for your annual visit just to check in. I would also love to provide OBGYN services to the families I provide healthcare to. I want to be a doctor that my patients can trust with anything that's going on in their lives.”
Ms. Gulum has become a truly New Orleanian. Having been her for 18 years, she talked about her love for the city, “In many ways, I feel that New Orleans has built me into who I am today. Moving here at 18 years old may be the single best decision I have ever made. Once I thawed out my northern attitude, I made lifelong connections here that gave me my own chosen family and showed me how to be a more patient, kinder, and softer me. New Orleans has taught me how you can and should treat other people, and I am going to honor the city by funneling that passion right back into the community that has given me so much. And who doesn’t love the parade season?!”
Please help us congratulate Tiera Gulum as a future family physician and our March Member of the Month!
LAFP’s Member of the Month program highlights Louisiana family physicians in the Weekly Family Medicine Update and on the LAFP website. We feature a biography and a Q&A with a different LAFP member each month and his or her unique approach to family medicine. If you know an outstanding family physician colleague who you think should be featured as a Member of the Month or if you’d like to tell your own story, nominate yourself or your colleague by contacting Lee Ann Albert at