Noelle Wojciechowski

Noelle Wojciechowski, MD’25, describes herself as a proud Chicagoan, dog lover, baker, hockey fan, trivia buff, painter, avid reader, and of course, a future physician.

Her interest in medicine stems partly from her father’s multiple sclerosis, diagnosed before she was born. As his disease progressed, Wojciechowski helped her mother, a nurse, care for him.

When she was 10, Wojciechowski went to a summer camp for children of parents with MS. Wojciechowski had been fascinated by the activity and the caring attitude exhibited in the hospitals when she visited her father, but the physicians who came to the summer camp explained the science underlying a potentially frightening disease in terms children could understand.

“I want to be able to help people who are afraid or upset,” she said. “I want to be able to explain to them what is happening and create this partnership that I think is so unique within medicine; to be able to say, ‘This is our plan, how we will be moving forward.’”

Wojciechowski co-founded the school’s Disability Advocacy Team, a vertical interest group that reviews medical school curriculum and suggests revisions to better educate physicians on disability and chronic illness. The team also organized academic and peer support resources for Medical Campus students with disabilities. She served as co-chair for Socially Responsible Surgery, which is focused on addressing social determinants of health by screening post-operative patients and providing necessary resources for a successful discharge.

“I saw how caring people were to my father and I decided I want to be like that. I want to care for people and make them feel not afraid when they are afraid,” she said.