Elliot Kalauawa, now an assistant clinical professor at the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, was recently honored with Whitman College’s Alumni of Merit Award—the highest award given by its alumni association—recognizing his decades of work expanding healthcare access for underserved communities in Hawaiʻi. On December 6, Whitman College hosted an award presentation at JABSOM in his honor.
Kalauawa has taught future physicians at JABSOM for more than 40 years, serving as a preceptor who guides students through hands-on clinical training in community health. He works closely with learners at Waikiki Health, where he spent nearly four decades caring for vulnerable and houseless populations. Many students consider their time with him a formative part of their medical education because of his patient-centered approach and deep commitment to health equity.
From Whitman to Hawaiʻi
His journey began nearly 50 years ago as a Hawaiʻi student adjusting to life far from home.
“I definitely wanted to come back already,” he said. “Washington and Oregon are beautiful states, but to me, Hawaiʻi is still the best place to live.”
That goal to become a physician formed when Kalauawa was about 11, after a long wait to see a doctor at the Queen Emma Clinic. “Must be they don’t have enough doctors, so I think I’ll be a doctor,” he remembered. Once he decided, “there was no changing, there was no thought of anything else.”
Even with the prestigious honor, Kalauawa remains humble. “Nobody receives an award on their own… It’s not just me, it’s definitely not a one person type of thing,” he said.
Read more at JABSOM.
