He came back.
Juan Paredes Magaña could have gone anywhere to practice medicine in 2018. After a 15-year educational odyssey — graduating from the University of California, Berkeley with a bachelor's in public health, the University of Washington School of Medicine with dual MD/master’s degrees in health services administration, and a residency in internal medicine at Duke University — Magaña could have handpicked his next move.
“I was blessed to get into Duke,” Magaña says. “Being trained at Duke opened doors that I could have walked right through. But all roads were always pointing back to Salinas.”
Magaña, whose mom was a farmworker and father worked as a heavy equipment operator, was born and raised in Salinas — the Boronda neighborhood, specifically. And “at least 1,000 times,” he promised himself he would return. “I’m very proud to be from Salinas. Very proud. This is where some of the hardest-working people in the country break their backs every day to feed this world.”
My dream to become a doctor was born in Salinas, and it is only right that I came home to fulfill that dream.
—Dr. Juan Magaña, Minorities in Medicine founder and Hospitalist at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula
On September 26, Magaña’s devotion to supporting the community will be celebrated as he receives the annual Alfred Diaz-Infante Award from the Siembra Latinos Fund of the Community Foundation for Monterey County (CFMC). The honor is reserved for community leaders who work collaboratively to uplift the Latino community.
“He came back to where he grew up, and he’s now paving the way for future generations,” says Cecilia Romero, Director of Gift Planning at CFMC.
“The Hispanic population is the fastest-growing demographic in Monterey County. It is important to have a diverse healthcare field that reflects this. Dr. Magaña’s work toward achieving that is truly admirable.”
Although the award was a “complete surprise,” Magaña will proudly accept it.
“This award is reflective of the work my peers and I are doing together, and I could not do it without them,” Magaña says. “The award also recognizes that I kept my promise to those who invested in me. I told my mentors that I would fight to open doors for others when I had the opportunity. I hope this recognition helps to keep them and others motivated to keep making a difference in the lives of first-generation, low-income students who dream big.”
The distinction highlights Magaña’s hospitalist work at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula and his work in establishing and directing Montage Health Foundation’s Minorities in Medicine program, which had its first cohort in 2021. The program provides underrepresented and low-income aspiring medical professionals in Monterey County with mentorship, financial support, and hands-on clinical experience to support their pursuit of a career in medicine.
“I’ve been doing mentorship work since 2005,” says Magaña, who stayed at UC Berkeley as part of the Biology Scholars Program (BSP) for three years after graduating to serve as an academic advisor to low-income, first-generation students. “I wouldn’t be here today without the support I received as a BSP student. I had mentors in BSP who went out of their way, spent their precious time — family time, sleep time, baseball game time — to invest in students like me, with backgrounds like mine. The least I could do was pay it forward.”
Minorities in Medicine boasts a 2023–2024 cohort of 25 students who have spent more than 2,000 hours shadowing doctors in clinical settings. The hope is that they will someday return to practice medicine in Monterey County.
“It’s great when we have Latino physicians in our community,” says Joel Hernandez Laguna, Community Impact and Equity Manager at CFMC. “They can speak your language and understand your culture.”
“My dream to become a doctor was born in Salinas, and it is only right that I came home to fulfill that dream,” Magaña says.
