Preparing to Make an Impact

PROVO, Utah – May 30, 2018 – Megdalynn Fisher is ready to make a difference in the world—not by the thousands but by the millions. 

With personal trials involving her mental health, breast cancer, loads of debt, and her husband failing to get residency after medical school, Fisher relied on Heavenly Father to guide her through. These experiences and guidance led Fisher to her first year in the BYU Marriott MPA program, where she is one step closer to making a lasting impact. 

The Orem, Utah, native is a full-time student in addition to being a mom of four kids. When it comes to work and life balance, Fisher’s family is her priority, but school is also important, so Fisher has learned to rely on communication, trust, and faith. 

“Meg brings a great energy to class discussions,” says Robert Christensen, Romney Institute associate professor. “She comes prepared not only to share her insights but also to learn from others’ perspectives as well. She understands and promotes graduate-level dialogue.”

During her first semester in the MPA program, Fisher was put into teams for several of her classes. Fisher’s past experiences of working in professional and volunteer teams typically ended with her doing all of the work, but that was not the case for her MPA teams.

“We worked together, and everyone pulled their weight,” Fisher says. “It was amazing. We were tight-knit and supported each other. I anticipate the people on those teams will be my friends for the rest of my life.”

Listening to Heavenly Father not only directed Fisher to go back to school, it also physically saved her life. Right before Fisher was diagnosed with breast cancer, she was prompted to start working out and getting healthy. Exercise became her medicine and made dealing with health issues a lot easier—it was all interwoven.

During the years of treatment and the time her husband was unable to find residency, Fisher saw first-hand how the medical field functions and realized that, while being a doctor is a wonderful way to make a difference, she was not a fan of how the system operated. 

“I started wondering if I could have a bigger impact if I approach this from a different angle than actually getting medical training and helping people with their problems one on one,” Fisher says.

Fisher has always loved economics, so when she discovered the field of healthcare in economics, she thought to herself, “This is it!” She plans to use economics to study the healthcare system and make improvements, whether it’s through research in a specific diagnosis or different processes in hospitals. 

While she does not have a certain path to accomplish her goals yet, Fisher has a several options she feels comfortable with: moving into the healthcare industry as a consultant, working with healthcare policy in the state, getting a PhD to do research and teach, or a combination.

“Doctors influence hundreds and thousands of lives by the time they retire,” Fisher says. “I want to take it to the next level—I want to influence millions.”