Empowering Transformative Change

The Lineberry Physician Retention Award rewards School of Medicine students and alumni for their dedication to clinical care at UNM

By Michelle G. McRuiz

Medical students at The University of New Mexico School of Medicine take on a heavy load when they graduate and complete their training. For starters, the nature of the job itself is stressful. And UNM doctors often take on leadership roles in addition to clinical care, such as teaching and administration. The financial burden of repaying student loan debt can weigh heavily on their minds, too.

For 10 years, the Lineberry Foundation has supported the School of Medicine generously via its Physician Retention Fund. To date, the School of Medicine has received $X from the Foundation.

The Physician Retention Fund has two parts: The Lineberry Scholarship, which provides $20,000 to physicians who have completed at least part of their training at UNM and are now faculty members; and the Lineberry Award, which offers $20,000 in student debt relief for select recipients. Both programs recognize and reward UNM medical students and doctors who demonstrate commitment to improving the lives of patients and choose to stay in New Mexico to do so.

Dedicated to New Mexico

The Lineberrys, Novella and Edwin, lived in Taos and had always loved helping people in need. Edwin, originally from Colorado, graduated from Santa Fe High School and moved to Taos in the 1930s. He played a major role in bringing a fresh drinking water supply to Taos, building the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, and creating Centinel Bank of Taos. In addition, he was a real estate entrepreneur and built Taos’ first grocery store. He raised chickens and built a mill to bring eggs and flour to the store.

In 2003, one year after Edwin’s death, Novella, who passed away in 2013, created the Lineberry Foundation in her husband’s memory.  For 22 years, the Foundation has been providing funding for New Mexico organizations whose missions focus on health, arts and culture, the environment, and animal welfare

Like the Lineberrys, UNM doctors and medical students want to improve life and health for all New Mexicans. They are aware that they could have greater earning potential outside of New Mexico, but they choose to stay because they love it here. Clinicians realize, too, that the UNM Health System offers many opportunities to make a tangible difference in people’s health. So, receiving financial help to help them remain in the state is an invaluable gift.

“Financial support for our students and faculty makes a huge difference,” says Dean Patricia Finn, Dean of the School of Medicine. “Not only does it help individuals and their families meet immediate needs; it shows them we value what they are doing and their commitment to our communities. It also helps build a collective culture of giving, where faculty and alumni are more likely to give back and support their peers, knowing the impact such support had on their careers.” 

Staying for the mission

Nat Prapasuri, MD, MPH, FACP

“The faculty, my colleagues, and everyone at the School of Medicine helped shape who I am today,” says Nat Prapasuri, MD, MPH, FACP, a primary care physician at UNM. He received the Lineberry Award in 2024. “When I saw how supportive the attending doctors were, I applied for my residency here.”

In addition to his patient load, Nat is Associate Chief of Medical Information Officer for Ambulatory Services at UNM Hospital. He is the middleman between clinicians and information technology, helping to improve workflow whenever IT changes are made that affect the doctors’ work.

“The Lineberry Award empowered me to grow as a healthcare leader,” Nat says. “And it inspired me to give back.”

With some of the money from the Lineberry Award, Nat created an endowed fund for School of Medicine scholarships in honor of his mother. He also partnered with two other donors to launch a matching gift challenge to raise $50,000 for the Center for Inclusive Health, which cares for the unhoused population of Bernalillo County.

The Lineberry Award, Nat says, “is a recognition that I’m doing good work to serve New Mexicans.”

Dusadee Sarangarm, MD

Dusadee Sarangarm, MD is a 2021 recipient of the Lineberry Award. She is an emergency medicine doctor and Chief Medical Information Officer at UNMH, and the Regents’ Lecturer and Professor at UNM. On top of that, Dusadee is earning a master’s degree in healthcare management at Harvard University.

When she joined the School of Medicine faculty after her residency, she began helping with the transition to electronic charting and found she enjoyed making things better behind the scenes as much as she did in the emergency room. Her leadership at UNMH made her an ideal candidate for the Lineberry Award. The recognition was fulfilling to her personally, and the financial relief was significant.

“Student debt is such a weight,” she says. “The award helped tremendously.”

Being thanked for choosing to remain in New Mexico is touching for her as well.

“It adds to the gratitude I feel for New Mexico and for UNM taking care of its doctors,” Dusadee says. “UNM is the critical-access hospital in the state. Their mission of care is a huge reason why people come to UNM and stay.”

For native New Mexican C. Mateo Garcia, MD, the path to medicine was a winding one. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to do after high school and worked as a firefighter for the U.S. Forest Service, a cook, and a UNM ER technician. At UNM, he realized that medical school was achievable for him – and it felt right, too.

C. Mateo Garcia, MD

He went through the Premedical Enrichment Program at the School of Medicine – a program for educationally disadvantaged students that he now directs – and after graduation, completed his residency in emergency medicine. Mateo, who also is Medical Director of the UNM Emergency Medical Services Academy and teaches paramedic pharmacology, is a 2022 recipient of the Lineberry Award.

“I love being able to take care of anybody, no matter who they are or where they come from,” says Mateo. “I believe in UNM’s mission of providing care at the highest level to anyone.”

The financial aspect of the award was undeniably helpful, but Mateo says the real worth is knowing that people have found value in him and the work he does.

“Being a physician is a high-stress job,” he says. “We see people suffering a lot. But it’s also a profound privilege. It’s incredible to be part of a team of people who believe our patients deserve the best.”

And that’s likely just what Edwin and Novella Lineberry would want to hear. Their commitment to building a legacy in New Mexico now helps support current and future generations of physicians at the UNM School of Medicine.