Meet the Team!

Mohnish Alishala

Lead Director

Mohnish is a medical student at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA with an extensive background in education and community health. Driven by his passion for teaching and a personal commitment to addressing cardiovascular health disparities, Mohnish partnered with Dr. Nirosh Mataraarachchi to launch the inaugural chapter of Cardiac Camp at UCLA. His vision is to empower high school students from underrepresented backgrounds with the clinical skills and mentorship necessary to become the next generation of healthcare leaders.

Cardiac Camp was originally founded at UCSF by then-medical student Nirosh Mataraarachchi. Upon starting his internal medicine residency at UCLA, Dr. Mataraarachchi partnered with Mohnish to launch this next iteration of the program.

Mohnish’s commitment to service began long before medical school; he has been passionate about teaching since high school, eventually leading a free college counseling initiative for a Title I school in San Diego and organizing health education workshops for free clinics in Mexico. Having seen firsthand how cardiac conditions impact his own community, Mohnish was driven to create a platform that teaches high schoolers about the importance of preventive care and long-term health.

Drawing on his extensive background in college counseling, Mohnish’s vision for the UCLA chapter includes a robust mentorship program designed to bridge the gap between high school and higher education. While this program is now a core pillar of the camp’s operations managed by his Board of Directors, Mohnish continues to oversee its strategic goal: motivating students to succeed in college admissions and beyond.

For the inaugural camp, Mohnish successfully secured the funding to launch the pilot program and recruited a dedicated team of medical and undergraduate students to serve on the Board of Directors, ensuring the program’s lasting impact on the Los Angeles community.