Dr. Linda Susan Aranaydo (

Muscogee Creek The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern Woodlandsphysician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, educator, and activist. Aranaya recognized the impact that health care inaccessibility had on her community and decided to steer her career toward involvement in public health and family medicine. Among other honors, Aranaydo is the recipient of the 1995 David Vanderryn Award for Outstanding Community Service as a Family Physician.

Education

Linda Aranaydo earned a B.A. in social sciences at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. At the age of 37, Aranaydo began medical school and earned an

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...

at the

University of California, San Francisco The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) is a public land-grant research university in San Francisco, California. It is part of the University of California system and is dedicated entirely to health science and life science. It con ...

in 1992.

Career

Dr. Linda Aranaydo started her career as a preschool teacher at Hintil Native American Children's Center in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. She continued teaching for 11 years before deciding to go to medical school. After attending medical school, and earning her postgraduate medical degree, she started her new career in the medical field. After earning her M.D., she worked in a variety of professional settings, from being a medical provider to providing technical assistance and individual teaching services to Indian clinics. Dr. Aranaydo was a

primary care provider Primary care is the day-to-day healthcare given by a health care provider. Typically this provider acts as the first contact and principal point of continuing care for patients within a healthcare system, and coordinates other specialist care th ...

based in Northern California for five years. Dr. Aranaydo has also served on several councils and boards. In 1977, she served on the Governor's Task Force on Early Childhood Education. From 1978 to 1980 she was a part of the California State American Indian Education Council. Currently, Dr. Aranaydo is the director of medical services for the California Rural Indian Health Board. Aranaydo described how her career goals related to her life experinece in an interview for ''Changing the Face of Medicine:''

"Since a young age I had seen the tragic effects of untreated chronic illness in family, friends and elders who were reluctant to seek or unable to obtain health care. I have lost dear family members in California and Oklahoma to the complications of diabetes. My goal was to become a primary care provider and to help provide easily accessible, culturally appropriate quality health care to American Indians and other underserved people."

Activism

Aranaydo was one of 14 people who first attempted to occupy

Alcatraz Island Alcatraz Island () is a small island in San Francisco Bay, offshore from San Francisco, California, United States. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military pri ...

on November 9, 1969. On November 20, the group returned to the island and initiated the

Occupation of Alcatraz The Occupation of Alcatraz (November 20, 1969 – June 11, 1971) was a 19-month long protest when 89 Native Americans and their supporters occupied Alcatraz Island. The protest was led by Richard Oakes, LaNada Means, and others, while John T ...

protest. During the occupation, Aranaydo taught in the school and worked with

Luwana Quitiquit Luwana Quitiquit (Pomo, November 13, 1941 – December 23, 2011) was a Native American administrator, activist, and basket weaver. During the Occupation of Alcatraz she worked as one of the cooks who provided food to those living on the island. H ...

(

Pomo The Pomo are an Indigenous people of California. Historical Pomo territory in Northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small ...

) to run the kitchen for the occupants. She attended the protest while pursuing her education at UC Berkeley. This protest ultimately had a major impact on federal Indian policy.

Awards and honors

Dr. Aranaydo obtained several awards and honors throughout her academic and professional career. In 1970, while pursuing her Bachelor's degree at the University of California, Berkeley, she won an award of distinction in general scholarship for her academic achievements. While studying at the University of California, San Francisco, she was the recipient of the Robert Crede Award for Excellence in Primary Care Medicine for her outstanding academic work. Dr. Aranaydo's work to help her Native American community avoid preventable diseases earned her the David Vanderryn Award for Outstanding Community Service as a Family Physician in 1995.

Selected works

References

1948 births Living people 20th-century American physicians 21st-century American physicians 20th-century American women physicians 21st-century American women physicians 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans Muscogee people Native American physicians UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science alumni University of California, San Francisco alumni 20th-century Native American women 21st-century Native American women {{US-physician-stub