Medical education

2,303 articles · Since 2007

Articles, page 105

5 easy steps to become a better medical student

June 1, 2011Jun 1, 20117

I recently had quite a long conversation with a college senior that was just accepted into medical school for this coming fall. As a rising fourth year medical student myself, I would like to think that I have navigated the…

I recently had quite a long conversation with a college senior that was just accepted into medical school for this coming fall.

As a rising fourth year medical student myself, I would like to think that I have navigated the waters of academia and figured out both efficient paths to success and avoidance of roadblocks and setbacks. …

Practical advice for medical students starting clinical rotations

Mary L. Brandt, MD

June 1, 2011Jun 1, 20113

Here's some advice to think about before starting clinical rotations during the third year of medical school. Don’t sit in the back of the plane The basic sciences are important to learn the vocabulary and grammar of medicine. Clinical rotations…

Here’s some advice to think about before starting clinical rotations during the third year of medical school.

Don’t sit in the back of the plane

The basic sciences are important to learn the vocabulary and grammar of medicine. Clinical rotations are different – it’s where you actually learn to be a physician. If you use the analogy of learning to fly, …

Why medical students should be closely observed with patients

Christopher Johnson, MD

May 31, 2011May 31, 20118

I went off to medical school thirty-seven years ago. For the era, I went to what folks regarded as a very progressive place. It had a curriculum that was quite revolutionary for the time. Among other things, we started having…

I went off to medical school thirty-seven years ago.

For the era, I went to what folks regarded as a very progressive place. It had a curriculum that was quite revolutionary for the time. Among other things, we started having interactions with actual patients during our first year, rather than the third year, as was traditional then.

These days many, probably most, medical schools …

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Would free medical school be enough to save primary care?

Kevin Pho, MD

May 31, 2011May 31, 201133

Medical school should be free. That's an argument made by physicians Peter B. Bach and Robert Kocher in the New York Times. This isn't a new concept. I've discussed whether medical school should be free for students who choose primary…

Medical school should be free.

That’s an argument made by physicians Peter B. Bach and Robert Kocher in the New York Times.

This isn’t a new concept. I’ve discussed whether medical school should be free for students who choose primary care. And, for some in the country, it’s already happening. Like at Case Western Reserve University, for instance. The Cleveland Clinic …

Doing the physical exam for the first time as a medical student

Jessica Gold

May 26, 2011May 26, 20114

Armed with tools I have never used or seen before I entered a physical exam practice room for the first day of learning. Having finished history-taking practices last semester, we were now beginning a new chapter, learning to take a…

Armed with tools I have never used or seen before I entered a physical exam practice room for the first day of learning.

Having finished history-taking practices last semester, we were now beginning a new chapter, learning to take a head-to-toe physical exam. Before class began, we were told to read a book and …

How medical students are key to innovating in medicine

Aaron J. Stupple, MD

May 24, 2011May 24, 20118

Why does health care seem to lag behind other industries in innovation? There's a temptation to manufacture reasons that don't necessarily explain why health care has not seen the kinds of revolutionary changes evident in industries from computing and telecommunications…

Why does health care seem to lag behind other industries in innovation?

There’s a temptation to manufacture reasons that don’t necessarily explain why health care has not seen the kinds of revolutionary changes evident in industries from computing and telecommunications to music and retail? People routinely marvel at how easy it is to manage their bank account these days, but they don’t appreciate continuing to wait hours in their doctors’ offices, …

Getting into residency: What medical students need to know

James Lamberg

May 24, 2011May 24, 20112

When medical students are applying for residency positions, what do program directors care about most? This may become the ultimate question for many students on clinical rotations. Thankfully, publications exist to help answer this very problem. Unfortunately, many students are…

When medical students are applying for residency positions, what do program directors care about most? This may become the ultimate question for many students on clinical rotations.

Thankfully, publications exist to help answer this very problem.

Unfortunately, many students are not aware of this published information. In a 2005 article from Medical Education Online titled “Residency Selection Criteria: What …

Transitions of a first year medical student

Kristine Casal

May 23, 2011May 23, 201115

The moment you get accepted to medical school, you never really think about how everything is going to be different. You figure everything’s going to stay the way they are, with the exception of the inevitable long and laborious hours…

The difficult road to becoming a doctor

Kevin

May 20, 2011May 20, 201111

On May 15, 2011, 147 students embarked on their careers as doctors as they graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. One student, Jenny Rowland, who will pursue a career in Radiology and continue her training at Penn,…

On May 15, 2011, 147 students embarked on their careers as doctors as they graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

One student, Jenny Rowland, who will pursue a career in Radiology and continue her training at Penn, shared her personal thoughts and emotions as she prepared to graduate.

by Jenny Rowland, MD

I’m not a typical PennMed student.

I’m 31 years old, and I …

Read more…

The difficult road to becoming a doctor

Going through Netter’s to teach medical students pelvic anatomy

Nicholas Fogelson, MD

May 20, 2011May 20, 20114

I recently had the opportunity to go to the anatomy lab and help the first years go through the pelvic anatomy. What a blast! There is nothing like dissecting a cadaver to tune up one’s surgical anatomy skills, and helping…

Prior to going into the lab, I spent many hours going through Netter’s atlas to brush up on the anatomy so …

The science of getting into medical school

Jason Spears

May 19, 2011May 19, 20112

An excerpt from Med School Admissions Secrets. by Jason Spears There are currently 134 allopathic medical schools in the United States and you need to select approximately 20 schools. You are not going to randomly pick, instead there is a…

An excerpt from Med School Admissions Secrets.

by Jason Spears

There are currently 134 allopathic medical schools in the United States and you need to select approximately 20 schools.

You are not going to randomly pick, instead there is a system to getting into medical school.

The first step is ranking schools in the following manner:

Top-tier/Dream Schools
Competitive Schools
Safety Schools

Obviously, the top-tier med schools have high admissions standards based on MCAT and GPA. No …

Medical school starts with anatomy lab

Jessica Gold

May 18, 2011May 18, 20113

When does medical school officially begin? Is it when you are given your white coat? When you sit through your first orientation activity? When you listen to your first lecture? Or when someone first mistakes you for a doctor? While…

While medical school commencement is truly is an amalgam of all of these things, the answer to this question is …

Read more…

Medical school starts with anatomy lab

Why doctors should pursue another degree

Scrub, MD

May 14, 2011May 14, 20118

Becoming a doctor is a long and arduous process. Between taking pre-med courses, taking the MCAT, applying to medical schools, matriculating, then taking test after test after test until you take the big one (USMLE Step 1) before which you did questions all day long for weeks from a good USMLE question bank program, after which you take rotation …

Medical students asking a patient about death

Jessica Gold

May 13, 2011May 13, 20116

Like any kid who always wanted to be a doctor, I went to medical school to learn how to help people. Just wearing the white coat during orientation week had people looking at me differently, expecting me to know something…

Why medical students should go through a psychiatry rotation

Maria Yang, MD

May 9, 2011May 9, 20118

"Psychiatry consult, returning a page,” she said, cradling the phone between her left ear and left shoulder. Digging around in her pockets, she eventually pulled out a half-sheet of paper that wasn’t already covered in barely legible writing and boxes…

“Psychiatry consult, returning a page,” she said, cradling the phone between her left ear and left shoulder. Digging around in her pockets, she eventually pulled out a half-sheet of paper that wasn’t already covered in barely legible writing and boxes marked with Xs. Her right hand clicked the pen and prepared to write.

“Hi, this is Cardiology,” the male voice on the phone said. Doctors tend to lose their names when they

…

How skipping medical school lecture is preparing doctors for the future

Chris Chen

May 4, 2011May 4, 201112

Recently in lecture, our professor wryly mentioned that in his many years of teaching, he had never seen so many laptops out as well as so many people taking advantage of the option to watch videos instead of attending class.…

That was fine with him, he commented, as long as people were learning—although he was skeptical that students on laptops would learn as much, given the …

A moral imperative to address the costs of training our doctors

Andrew M. Ibrahim, MD & John A. Brockman

April 25, 2011Apr 25, 201146

by Andrew M. Ibrahim and John A. Brockman Despite the landmark progress of recent healthcare reform, it missed the mark on long term cost control by failing to address medical education. Radical changes are needed in the way we finance…

by Andrew M. Ibrahim and John A. Brockman

Despite the landmark progress of recent healthcare reform, it missed the mark on long term cost control by failing to address medical education.

Radical changes are needed in the way we finance tuition and how we teach our students.

While last month a new graduating class of medical students celebrated their …

Does being a disadvantaged applicant affect my medical school application?

Jennifer Adaeze Anyaegbunam

April 19, 2011Apr 19, 20116

When applying to medical school, the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) asks aspiring physicians if they would like to be considered "disadvantaged" applicants or not. Many premedical students find themselves troubled by this question and wonder, what does it…

When applying to medical school, the American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS) asks aspiring physicians if they would like to be considered “disadvantaged” applicants or not.

Many premedical students find themselves troubled by this question and wonder, what does it mean to be disadvantaged? How does being a disadvantaged applicant affect my medical school application? According to the information American Association of …

Think about medical school tuition debt before becoming a doctor

Skeptical Scalpel, MD

April 7, 2011Apr 7, 201125

Recently, I received a call from the son of some old friends. This 30-year-old man has been an elementary schoolteacher for the past few years and recently decided that he would like to go to medical school and eventually become…

Suppressing the urge to tell him not to even consider …

A medical student goes back to the anatomy lab before residency

Christopher Bayne

April 5, 2011Apr 5, 2011

I still remember the first time I entered the anatomy lab. Heck, I remember the first time I entered the hallway leading to the anatomy lab. I wouldn't say an anatomy lab "smells." That is, an anatomy lab doesn't smell…

I still remember the first time I entered the anatomy lab. Heck, I remember the first time I entered the hallway leading to the anatomy lab.

I wouldn’t say an anatomy lab “smells.” That is, an anatomy lab doesn’t smell “bad”: the odor can’t be defined as good or bad. Really, it’s neither. But the scent is distinctive. If you’ve been there, then …

Medical education

Articles, page 105

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