Young Voices Driving Change: Shreya Suresh’s Journey in Health Equity
Healthcare inequities remain one of the most urgent and devastating challenges of our time. In underserved communities, access to timely care, culturally competent providers, and early detection often lags behind — leading to delayed diagnoses, worse outcomes, and long-term systemic injustice.
For Shreya Suresh, a University of Washington undergraduate and Husky 100 recipient, these aren’t just statistics — they’re stories she’s seen firsthand. Working as a medical scribe in the emergency department, she’s witnessed how language barriers, socioeconomic limitations, and a lack of trust can derail a patient’s journey before it even begins.
But Shreya’s mission to advance equity began even earlier. In high school, she founded Lift the Spirit, a nonprofit creating inclusive programs for children with special needs. Through creative, structured activities, Shreya gave these often-overlooked youth a platform to grow in confidence, communication, and connection.
Today, her impact continues in the lab. At UW Medicine’s Risques Lab, she researches early detection methods for ovarian cancer — a disease with disproportionately poor outcomes in marginalized populations. Her project focuses on identifying hereditary mutations missed in standard screening, merging hands-on lab work with data analysis to help save lives through precision medicine.
Whether through service, science, or storytelling, Shreya is a rising changemaker who embodies the next generation of healthcare leaders — rooted in empathy, driven by equity, and committed to action.
Impact at a Glance
- Founder of Lift the Spirit, a nonprofit for children with special needs
- Medical scribe and frontline advocate for underserved patients
- Researcher at UW Medicine’s Risques Lab: Early detection of ovarian cancer
- Investigating underserved genetic profiles for improved cancer screening
- Presenter at national medical and public health conferences
At TALTalks 2025, Shreya Suresh will take the stage to share how youth leadership, science, and compassion can come together to reimagine a more just and inclusive healthcare system — for all.
