U.S. Medical School to study social medicine?

[neu_psy_phy]

I am an undergrad student at liberal arts school as an international student. At first, I felt almost certain that I wanted to go to medical school, since I've enjoyed and done well on human biology, public health, history of medicine, chemistry, and neuroscience classes. However, I began to recognize the extremely competitive nature of getting into U.S. medical schools, especially as an international student. Also, I found myself being interested in culture and psychology, medical anthropology, and social science, and nevertheless not willing to let go of scientific research and working with patients. I would love to study social medicine, but it seems like many social medicine departments are only available to medical students. [for example, http://www.hms.harvard.edu/dsm/] My question is, do you have to go to medical school in order to study social medicine and be actively involved in public health policy changes (mental & physical) after graduation? Do you recommend any medical schools out of the U.S. that have a decent social medicine program? I would much prefer to go to medical school and study social medicine, but the chances of getting into U.S. medical school seem too rough. Hope to hear your words of advice.

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[Spartan Doc]

You should also consider a masters in public health. this degree allows you to create policy, do research, analyze trends, and participate in research projects. This degree can put you in a position to affect populations as a whole