Juan Paredes Magana, MD MHA was born and raised in Salinas, California, specifically the Boronda neighborhood. He attended local public schools. After completing his undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley, he went on to attend the University of Washington School of Medicine where he completed a dual MD/MHA degree. He completed his medical training in Internal Medicine at Duke University and returned home to join the medical team at Community Hospital of Monterey County as a Hospitalist. His role is to work within a multidisciplinary team of providers to care for hospitalized patients.
His parents always stressed the importance of “service, community, and acting rather than complaining when we see a need”. Following the footsteps of his two sisters, who returned home to work as medical providers for patients living in the Salinas Valley, he felt it was important to return home and give back to his community.
He would not be where he is today if it were not for the support of his family, friends, Garcias, mentors, professors and individuals who believed in his dream of becoming a physician. He gets to live his dream every day because of the support he received, and he feels it is only right to “pay it forward and do the same for others who wish to walk along a similar path”.
He is passionate about opening the doors to students who come from low-income, first-generation college backgrounds who wish to pursue a career in medicine. His hope is that students who move on to complete their medical training return home to work in Monterey County.
Magana presented to the local Monterey County students during the 2026 Student Ideas Festival; his message will reach 20,000+ local students.