DeBakey students bring ‘Music as Medicine’ to Faculty Awards Day

As faculty were honored for their many contributions to Baylor College of Medicine, music played by students from DeBakey High School for Health Professions and other local high schools filtered through the celebration.

Part of the nonprofit organization, Music as Medicine, the high school orchestra performed for Baylor faculty and their families and friends during the annual Faculty Awards Day on May 22.

Music as Medicine was founded as a club by DeBakey High School students during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Mary Shim, 2024 DeBakey graduate, Hailey Hua, rising senior at DeBakey and Diya Gaur, rising senior at Lamar High School, worked together to turn the club into a nonprofit organization, according to the organization’s website.

(L-R): Hwi-Eun (Mary) Shim, Deborah Fernandez, Sofia Galvan, Justin Wang, Christina Wang, Thy Yen Tong, Sofia Concha Pinto, Nathan Giang, Hailey Hua

“With a group of 60 high school members, (Shim) founded the DeBakey Music as Medicine Club during her freshman year. As Music as Medicine grew to hold live performances and music workshops in collaboration with national institutions, she evolved the club into a nonprofit organization in hopes of expanding the positive impact of their work,” the website reads. “Today, Music as Medicine is a national President’s Volunteer Service Award-certifying 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.”

Shim, a longtime violinist and CEO of Music as Medicine, hopes to bridge the fields of music and medicine, providing comfort and mentoring younger students on the mission. She plans to continue her work at Princeton University for the next four years, the website reads.

Hua is listed as chief financial officer, organizing fundraisers and designing merchandise. She’s an aspiring singer who plays guitar and hopes to help children cultivate their musical interests and unite the community by spreading a love of music.

The group has partnered with medical and community-based organizations to bring music to schools and hospitals. The group has performed at Houston Methodist and Memorial Hermann Hospitals, in addition to Baylor, and was featured on KHOU and FOX26 in 2023.

Learn more about Music as Medicine.

By Julie Garcia