Memorizing and retaining the medical knowledge you need to be a doctor is one of the hardest things you can do! If you ask any doctor about their medical school experience, they’ll probably recall hours of lectures, meticulous cadaver dissections, and countless long days and nights of studying, trying to learn a ton of material in a very short time. Of course, this experience can lead to major stress, taking a toll on your physical and mental health. What if medical school could be fun instead of torturous?
What if, for example, instead of looking at flashcards, you could learn about diabetes medications by listening to a song about drinking too much sweet tea? Music can make learning easier, much less stressful, and even fun! Just as many of us learned the ABCs through a song during childhood and still remember it, medical students can use songs to remember medical concepts. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather learn from a memorable song than from a dry lecture or textbook!
The idea of using music as a study tool came to me back in college when a professor used song parodies to explain some immunology concepts. One day during my first year of medical school, I miraculously had some extra free time, so just for fun, I decided to write a parody of Meghan Trainor’s All About That Bass reviewing acid loaders and acid extruders, which was a topic for an upcoming test. During the test, I was able to answer multiple questions correctly by mentally singing the parody lyrics to myself. I realized that by turning lecture notes into song lyrics I could review topics in just a few minutes and remember them long-term, reducing the amount of material I would need to relearn for board exams. I also realized that I could actually enjoy studying and study while doing other things. Songwriting became a prominent study technique for me, and when I shared my songs with classmates, some of them found them helpful, as well. Realizing the awesome benefits of learning through music, I later started my own medical music business. Now I get to be as silly as I want while teaching medicine, from anthropomorphizing microorganisms to singing about being a butt doctor!
While succeeding in medical school requires hard work, I believe the right study strategies can make the grind less intense. I have found creating medical songs to be one of these strategies for myself, and I wish to share it with anyone else who may benefit from it. More importantly, I would like to help other people experience how much more efficient and even enjoyable learning medicine can be when they prioritize “working smart” over working hard. As one of my high school math teachers said, “If there’s a hard way and an easy way to do something, why do it the hard way?”
J. C. Sue is a practicing, board-certified family medicine physician, founder of the medical music study resource Tune Rx, and co-author of the American Family Physician article “Septic Arthritis: Diagnosis and Treatment.” In addition to practicing family medicine, he practices medical musicology, and as a medical musicologist, he strives to make learning medicine fun and memorable by explaining medical concepts through song lyrics, which he shares through Tune Rx. He desires to use his other performing arts interests, including dance, juggling, and acting, to enhance his practice of medical musicology and improve medical trainee wellness through simultaneous learning and entertainment.
