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Senior Policy Coordinator, Children’s Hospital Colorado
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INDIAN AMERICAN
Stephanie Nghiem Becoming a police officer was one of the toughest decisions I have ever made. Many people ask why I chose this path. After reporting a traumatic incident to the police, the individual I reported it to lacked knowledge on how to handle the situation. Over time, I was left with no justice and no closure. Rather than blaming the police for the crack in the system I had slipped through, I joined the police force in hopes of closing that gap for others like me. Police are often called upon during what could be the worst day of a person’s life, and I wanted to be someone who could help people through those times. I saw the opportunity to truly make a difference in peoples’ lives, which is why I chose to pursue law enforcement. In a male-dominated field, I always feel I have to prove myself and work twice as hard. I am the smallest one on my team and rumored to be the first Asian Female Officer in the department’s history. I know my physical limitations; I try to make up for it by training more at the shooting range and the gym. I refuse to allow my physical features to negatively determine my ability to do this job and protect my teammates. Photo Credit: Kai Davis Visuals
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I’ve seen the ways in which our healthcare system can do more damage than good, especially for our neighbors who have been systemically marginalized. Deep injustice exists in our systems of care, in large part because profit can be more of a motivator than the moral imperative to care for people in the ways that matter to them. In a country so rich and well-resourced, there are people who have trouble accessing a clinic because of a lack of affordable transportation, that there are people struggling to afford medication and out-of-pocket payments, that so many people who call this country home have gotten used to the idea that disease is something to be treated once it happens, not prevented before it shows up. It’s this passion and knowledge that we can and must do better in order to truly place people in the center of healthcare that set me on the path of public health policy.
VIETNAMESECHINESE AMERICAN
City of Aurora Police Officer Women Do It All | asian avenue magazine
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