Scenes from a medical student’s rotation in psychiatry

Education
January 25, 2018

My classmate and I were walking back to the residents’ workroom when we realized one of the psychiatry patients was trailing along behind us. I glanced over my shoulder and found a very short gentleman in a patient gown walking just a little too close to me.

“Serena,” he said, smiling at me.

I looked at my classmate. We were on inpatient psychiatry, and he looked as nervous as I was. Our …

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Scenes from a medical student’s rotation in psychiatry

In medical school, not all gunners are created equal

Education
October 4, 2017

I’m three weeks into my second year of medical school, and my classmates and I are sharing feelings of being “old” compared to the first years on campus, who are “bright-eyed eyed and bushy-tailed” — not yet jaded by med school bureaucracy, and (rightfully) excited by all the opportunities that lie ahead of them. I’ve also heard a few of them use an often-judgmental term that has always confused me: …

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In medical school, not all gunners are created equal

Doctors will inevitably make mistakes because they are also human

Education
June 20, 2017

Every time I walk into a bookstore, I pass Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air and am reminded of a specific anecdote he shared.

Kalanithi, MD, was a seventh-year neurosurgery resident and his lung cancer had metastasized – a process which was only being controlled by a new drug his oncologist had decided to try. But one day, Kalanithi had severe nausea and had to be hospitalized to stay hydrated. A …

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Doctors will inevitably make mistakes because they are also human

What this medical student learned after working with foster children

Conditions
May 9, 2017

During my two years off from medical school, I’ve been volunteering as a court appointed special advocate for children in the foster care system. And I’ve spent a lot of time reading about how these kids’ experiences could affect the rest of their lives.

The seminal research on this happened in the late 1990s using data from more 17,000 Kaiser patients. What the researchers found was that patients who reported more adverse …

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What this medical student learned after working with foster children

The jurors who evaluate physicians’ testimony in court

Education
February 16, 2017

Two doctors I work with were recently asked to testify in court. I knew it was a case involving domestic violence and I knew I wanted to see what it was like to testify: One day I’d like to work with families in the foster care system, and that will likely mean having to testify in court. So I asked my clerkship director, and with her support, the clerkship coordinator …

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The jurors who evaluate physicians’ testimony in court

Top 5 reasons why medical students need to volunteer

Education
November 1, 2016

As the process of applying to medical school and residency becomes hyper-competitive, we medical students often feel forced to pursue our passions only in ways that are “high yield.” It may seem counterintuitive, but the further we go in our medical training, the more inertia we seem to have about giving our time and energy to the everyday people in need. We’re so pressed for time from our participation in …

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Top 5 reasons why medical students need to volunteer

The bacteria that almost killed my grandmother

Conditions
February 8, 2015

“Hefur þú lært um Staphylococcus aureus?” I almost don’t recognize the bacteria name because my grandmother pronounces it differently in Icelandic.

“Já–” I’m about to translate my microbiology flashcard for her when she interrupts, her hands busy kneading the cookie dough and her eyes on my little sister near the oven.

That’s the bacteria that almost killed her eleven years ago, she tells me. I can hear her words building up. This …

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The bacteria that almost killed my grandmother

Treating Ebola patients in Uganda: The dilemma of a doctor’s touch

Education
October 10, 2014

A thick green glob landed on my scrub top at the same time that the first drop of sweat rolled down the small of my back. I tried not to grimace and discretely walked over to the hand sanitizer dispenser. But like every other hand sanitizer I had tried, this one was empty. Yesterday I had also discovered that the only bathroom in the hospital had no toilet paper. It …

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Treating Ebola patients in Uganda: The dilemma of a doctor’s touch

A 4-year-old taught me the most important lesson in medical school

Education
July 1, 2014

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We recently took our last exam as first-year medical students. Sitting in the same library that I used to as a pre-medical student, I thought about what it was, exactly, that changed this year. For me, the point of transition from pre-med to med student really happened over last Thanksgiving break.

I had come home from my first term of medical school more …

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A 4-year-old taught me the most important lesson in medical school

A parting gift from my grandfather

Education
June 9, 2014

Recently, I began to think of death as a friend. My grandfather was hospitalized on Mother’s Day, and by the time my parents called me on Monday morning they couldn’t tell me anything more than, “He’s in the ICU with multiple seizures. They’re taking him off ventilation tomorrow.” Reaching for the knowledge I’ve spent all year chipping away at textbooks to acquire, I asked about neurologic exams, autonomic drugs and …

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A parting gift from my grandfather