Tanvi Kale

Tanvi Kale is a pre-med student at the University of Washington. Her passion lies at the intersection of healthcare equity, youth engagement, and narrative medicine. As Editor-in-Chief of the journal of narrative humanities on her college campus, she amplifies minority student voices and explores how storytelling and art can deepen empathy in healthcare spaces. Her academic and extracurricular experiences reflect her commitment to understanding medicine not only as a science, but as a social and cultural practice. Tanvi also conducts research in the UW Gastrointestinal Health and Wellness Lab, where she studies comprehensive self-management interventions for individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Her work includes examining how IBD affects women during menopause, an area that remains significantly underexplored in current research. Her interests in health disparities are deeply personal. Growing up witnessing her grandmother struggle to access adequate care due to insurance restrictions has shaped her commitment to advancing equitable systems of care. With skills in Hindi and Spanish, she has used her bilingualism while volunteering in hospital settings to better support patients with limited English proficiency. Beyond research, Tanvi is active in student leadership and community engagement, including volunteer work addressing homelessness and involvement in organizations that promote accessible, inclusive mental health innovation such as Headstream. She is particularly passionate about youth co-creation and participatory design in digital health, believing that young people should help shape the technologies and interventions intended to support them. Through medicine, advocacy, and storytelling, Tanvi hopes to contribute to more just, culturally responsive healthcare systems.

COI Statement: Tanvi Kale has nothing to disclose.