So week one of MS one is over...meaning now things about only about to begin. All the little orientation activities drove me insane by the end. Lectures are one thing. But sitting through 2-hour session after 2-hour session back to back to back of boring presentations gets really old really fast. One more and I think I'd have just started skipping. I've already found a super-gunner...for those uninitiated:
Gunner = medical student hell-bent on achieving the most possible at all costs. Has no social life, does not go out on weekends, studies every waking moment, and will talk down to fellow class-mates. Extremely competitive. Usually going for surgery, plastics, dermatology, ophthalmology, and in some cases radiology. Always annoying.
This girl wears her scrubs...during morning lecture. There's no need for this, as you're given plenty of time to change around 3 PM before anatomy lab starts. I see her walking around at 9 AM in scrubs, her name-tag proudly and deliberately displayed on the front pocket. Nobody else does this, because there's just no need to. Plus, those are supposedly scrubs from lab...they're likely pretty nasty, unless (heaven forbid) she has a clean pair just to wear for the hell of it during the day. She goes to eat at one of the on-campus hospitals and makes sure everyone sees her, sits in the very front row at lecture, and doesn't talk to anyone. To her, I say: Have fun with that!
Anyway, I really enjoyed the intro. lecture to Molecular Cell Biology this morning. I like the room it is in, and the professors seem very excited, friendly, helpful, and even fun! It's probably my favorite topic of all the classes I'm in right now, so I see it as quickly becoming my favorite class of the semester. Speaking of which, this is my proposed schedule for next week, Monday through Thursday...I think this is a decent start. It's going to be madness, I tell you.
8:00a - Wake up (pissed, no doubt)
9:00a - Arrive at lectures at school
12:00p - Lunch
1:00p - Anatomy lecture (MWF), other classes (TR)
3:00p - Anatomy lab (MWF), other classes (TR)
4:00p - I'm outta here! (TR)
5:00p - Anatomy lab should end (MWF)
6:00p - Get home, grab dinner, shower anatomy-smell off, regroup my thoughts...
7:00p - Off to Barnes-and-Noble/Starbucks/Apartment for focused study
11:00p - Dedicated AIM/phone time for friends/additional study/thoughts of bed?
12:00a - Watch anime episode to cool-down before bed/go to bed
1:00a - Passed out
So, 7-11pm, if I can pull it off, is the most valuable time of my days. If I can make good use of that time and get in the habit of focusing daily, I can keep up (and still, jussst barely). Weekends are a wild-card. I can plan on Friday-night off, but towards exams, weekends will be crunched. Sundays are generally going to be full-on study days as well. You learn fast here that time is precious.
First semester is the big hump, the proving grounds, the do-or-die, the sink-or-swim. If I can get past this huge monster, no more labs await me, ever. Histology and Microbiology lab are nothing compared to the involvement of anatomy lab. Some gems lie ahead, such as Christmas break and next summer, but I'll get to those when they come. Right now? Day by day...
Friday, August 17, 2007
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Calm.
Ok, so I've calmed down a little.
Found an alternate route to school that saves 5-7 minutes and bypasses about 8 (count 'em!) traffic lights, giving my car an easier time and increasing overall gas-mileage. Interstates can be crowded in the mornings, but they keep things moving nonetheless.
This first week is pretty light...I like to think of it as a transitional week. The only class I have is gross anatomy (and lab), plus a molecular cell biology (MCB) lecture Friday morning. The rest of the time is (unfortunately) spent doing what I call really soft stuff. Part of my school's curriculum is hard-science; the meat-and-potatoes of medical school. But, of course, they have a soft side that deals with ethics, moral reasoning, understanding patient's social contexts and all that. Good stuff, but I say its best left to specific classes like Intro to Clinical Medicine, which I'm taking.
So anyway, as part of this week, we spend time in ... workshops or modules, talking in little groups and "exploring" these other aspects of being a physician. Reasonable enough rationale, but in practice, it's really boring and annoying. I dread going in tomorrow morning to another four-hour block (8a-noon) of this crap. I'd rather wait and have an extra week of summer, then jump head-first into all my classes.
Whatever. It's just been funny, because here I am, officially started medical school, and I've spent my days playing games and watching anime. That'll all change soon enough, but I can't help but cling desperately to that last shred of freedom.
Ok, this is for real. This path is tough! You work your ass off to get in in the first place, then an up-hill battle awaits you. Talk about needing dedication! I'm already feeling like I'm drinking from a fire-hose and nothing has really started yet. But here are the good points, if there are any:
Textbooks Are History
That's right; virtually no textbooks. I know a 4th year who used none and did awesome. You can easily get by on notes alone. I personally have two and only two text-books. One is the anatomy dissection guide so I can study the cadaver better ($51.00). The other is a hand-me-down from my older sister; an anatomy atlas. That's it. I spent about 1/6 the money I usually do for a semester of college. But here's where it gets nasty. The notes, which you have to know cold, are pretty much entire reams of paper for each class.
I got my gross anatomy note packet (all shrink-wrapped and all) and was delighted! Oh, look at all these notes! It's 1 1/2" thick, thicker than a bible, and has to have around 400 pages! I realized only later that this is just the packet for exam 1, of which there will be 3 exams. Multiply that stack of paper by 3 and you have a stack of paper as high as about 3 Holy Bibles stacked on top of each other. Each page containing loads of information you are responsible for. And that's just anatomy...
Throw in Molecular Cell Biology, Immunology, Biochemistry, and two "soft" classes and you have a sick amount of information to learn, even if only by notes. And that's just first semester of first year.
Overwhelmed doesn't even start to describe what I am.
The fact that I haven't ran to the Dean's office crying "I quit" is testament to my desire to actually do this, so I think I'm going to make it.
Medicine really does threaten to consume you, but I've met enough Emergency Medicine doctors who have big-time lives outside of medicine to be convinced that you don't have to die for it. Plus, my friend from Livejournal graduated from my school and is a 1st year resident. A huge gamer like me, his advice to me was helpful.
I'm overwhelmed. As long as I retain important contacts/relationships and have fun now and then, I'm up for anything...
You'll Spend Less and Less Time at School
Yeah, my schedule is kind of crappy. 8a-5p most days for now. Later in the semester, it cuts back some and I get to come in a bit later, but typically, first semester is by far the worst when it comes to time spent at school. The reason is gross anatomy lab, which consumes hours and hours of time at school. I spend Mon/Wed/Fri in lecture for that class, 1p-2:30p, then hit the lab from 2:30p-5:00p and more if they had their way.
Spending 9 hours a day at school then going home with only studying to do is quite, quite demoralizing and dehumanizing. But there is hope...
All lectures are recorded and posted online. Most are even video-taped and posted online. All recordings are typed out verbatim and posted online. Get this? This means you don't have to come to lecture at all. And many don't. After the drudgery of first-year anatomy lab, the focus shifts to predominantly lectures, most of which I plan to skip. I retrieve the information at home and get a heck of a lot more done. Get this:
A) Spend the hour driving through rush-hour traffic to and from school, walking to and from your car, dealing with in-between class nonsense, lunch, etc to get home at 6:00pm exhausted
B) Get up, study, retrieve lectures, study them, finish a full day of focused work by dinner-time (at home) and spend the evening chilling out/going out.
Yeah, I choose choice B. You'll get just as much (or more) done during a full day at home from 9a-5p then you will from 9a-midnight going to school. Energy is important. Trying to get your best studying done when you're exhausted from a day at school is counter-productive. I'm all for efficient, convenient at-home learning which saves time for better things later.
Now, I can't practice this wonderful philosophy just yet; first year has far too many at-school engagements. But mark my words, I'm going to milk this system for all its worth and get the most out of it. That's how I like doing things and I plan on having fun!
Study Habits
Haven't figured this out yet. In college, I did my most heavy-duty work at the computer-lab, which was a 5-minute walk from my dorm. I can't just walk to places anymore. Studying in my room is looking to be more and more something I don't want to do, but it takes so much energy to go anywhere that I don't want to leave it. My 1st choice is Barnes and Noble; I can get my latte/chai/french-vanilla or what have you, and work efficiently. Then I can browse/buy manga when I'm done! There's a Starbucks really close to where I live, but I like the book-store aspect of things.
I'm not someone who likes studying at school (at all), so studying at the medical library or in a lounge on campus is out of the question. It's a decent campus, but to me it is strictly a tool for using and getting out when possible. I study best at my own places where I'm comfortable.
So I might try studying at home at first when things get tough. Then I'll see how that goes and try at the bookstore and compare the two. Who knows what will transpire. I'm just overwhelmed right now so excuse me.
Found an alternate route to school that saves 5-7 minutes and bypasses about 8 (count 'em!) traffic lights, giving my car an easier time and increasing overall gas-mileage. Interstates can be crowded in the mornings, but they keep things moving nonetheless.
This first week is pretty light...I like to think of it as a transitional week. The only class I have is gross anatomy (and lab), plus a molecular cell biology (MCB) lecture Friday morning. The rest of the time is (unfortunately) spent doing what I call really soft stuff. Part of my school's curriculum is hard-science; the meat-and-potatoes of medical school. But, of course, they have a soft side that deals with ethics, moral reasoning, understanding patient's social contexts and all that. Good stuff, but I say its best left to specific classes like Intro to Clinical Medicine, which I'm taking.
So anyway, as part of this week, we spend time in ... workshops or modules, talking in little groups and "exploring" these other aspects of being a physician. Reasonable enough rationale, but in practice, it's really boring and annoying. I dread going in tomorrow morning to another four-hour block (8a-noon) of this crap. I'd rather wait and have an extra week of summer, then jump head-first into all my classes.
Whatever. It's just been funny, because here I am, officially started medical school, and I've spent my days playing games and watching anime. That'll all change soon enough, but I can't help but cling desperately to that last shred of freedom.
Ok, this is for real. This path is tough! You work your ass off to get in in the first place, then an up-hill battle awaits you. Talk about needing dedication! I'm already feeling like I'm drinking from a fire-hose and nothing has really started yet. But here are the good points, if there are any:
Textbooks Are History
That's right; virtually no textbooks. I know a 4th year who used none and did awesome. You can easily get by on notes alone. I personally have two and only two text-books. One is the anatomy dissection guide so I can study the cadaver better ($51.00). The other is a hand-me-down from my older sister; an anatomy atlas. That's it. I spent about 1/6 the money I usually do for a semester of college. But here's where it gets nasty. The notes, which you have to know cold, are pretty much entire reams of paper for each class.
I got my gross anatomy note packet (all shrink-wrapped and all) and was delighted! Oh, look at all these notes! It's 1 1/2" thick, thicker than a bible, and has to have around 400 pages! I realized only later that this is just the packet for exam 1, of which there will be 3 exams. Multiply that stack of paper by 3 and you have a stack of paper as high as about 3 Holy Bibles stacked on top of each other. Each page containing loads of information you are responsible for. And that's just anatomy...
Throw in Molecular Cell Biology, Immunology, Biochemistry, and two "soft" classes and you have a sick amount of information to learn, even if only by notes. And that's just first semester of first year.
Overwhelmed doesn't even start to describe what I am.
The fact that I haven't ran to the Dean's office crying "I quit" is testament to my desire to actually do this, so I think I'm going to make it.
Medicine really does threaten to consume you, but I've met enough Emergency Medicine doctors who have big-time lives outside of medicine to be convinced that you don't have to die for it. Plus, my friend from Livejournal graduated from my school and is a 1st year resident. A huge gamer like me, his advice to me was helpful.
I'm overwhelmed. As long as I retain important contacts/relationships and have fun now and then, I'm up for anything...
You'll Spend Less and Less Time at School
Yeah, my schedule is kind of crappy. 8a-5p most days for now. Later in the semester, it cuts back some and I get to come in a bit later, but typically, first semester is by far the worst when it comes to time spent at school. The reason is gross anatomy lab, which consumes hours and hours of time at school. I spend Mon/Wed/Fri in lecture for that class, 1p-2:30p, then hit the lab from 2:30p-5:00p and more if they had their way.
Spending 9 hours a day at school then going home with only studying to do is quite, quite demoralizing and dehumanizing. But there is hope...
All lectures are recorded and posted online. Most are even video-taped and posted online. All recordings are typed out verbatim and posted online. Get this? This means you don't have to come to lecture at all. And many don't. After the drudgery of first-year anatomy lab, the focus shifts to predominantly lectures, most of which I plan to skip. I retrieve the information at home and get a heck of a lot more done. Get this:
A) Spend the hour driving through rush-hour traffic to and from school, walking to and from your car, dealing with in-between class nonsense, lunch, etc to get home at 6:00pm exhausted
B) Get up, study, retrieve lectures, study them, finish a full day of focused work by dinner-time (at home) and spend the evening chilling out/going out.
Yeah, I choose choice B. You'll get just as much (or more) done during a full day at home from 9a-5p then you will from 9a-midnight going to school. Energy is important. Trying to get your best studying done when you're exhausted from a day at school is counter-productive. I'm all for efficient, convenient at-home learning which saves time for better things later.
Now, I can't practice this wonderful philosophy just yet; first year has far too many at-school engagements. But mark my words, I'm going to milk this system for all its worth and get the most out of it. That's how I like doing things and I plan on having fun!
Study Habits
Haven't figured this out yet. In college, I did my most heavy-duty work at the computer-lab, which was a 5-minute walk from my dorm. I can't just walk to places anymore. Studying in my room is looking to be more and more something I don't want to do, but it takes so much energy to go anywhere that I don't want to leave it. My 1st choice is Barnes and Noble; I can get my latte/chai/french-vanilla or what have you, and work efficiently. Then I can browse/buy manga when I'm done! There's a Starbucks really close to where I live, but I like the book-store aspect of things.
I'm not someone who likes studying at school (at all), so studying at the medical library or in a lounge on campus is out of the question. It's a decent campus, but to me it is strictly a tool for using and getting out when possible. I study best at my own places where I'm comfortable.
So I might try studying at home at first when things get tough. Then I'll see how that goes and try at the bookstore and compare the two. Who knows what will transpire. I'm just overwhelmed right now so excuse me.
Monday, August 13, 2007
You Get Used to It
It's not something that many people do, sinking a fresh scalpel blade into human flesh. I wasn't sure if I was putting enough pressure into the incision, but when I saw the layers of sub-cutaneous fascia peel back, I knew I had gone deep enough. Just above that lay the dermis and above that, the epidermis (skin). The epidermis is so thin; such a thin layer of cells to keep your body from catching the endless diseases and infections waiting just outside of it. The skin gave way so easily; a disturbing reminder of just how thin our security blanket is, like the skin on an apple.
The doors of the dissection table opened like a clam-shell, swinging 180-degrees down where we latched them back to each other at the bottom. Underneath lay a shrouded figure, a white-cloth covering a vague human form. I could see toes peeking out from underneath the bottom of the cloth...then, as about 25 other tables were opened, my nostrils flared and I coughed, the pungent smell of formaldehyde overcoming my senses.
We lifted the veil off and discovered an elderly lady underneath, lying sadly but intentionally on her stomach. Her arms and head covered in another white cloth, she didn't seem to mind the attention or the smell; she'd been dead for months after-all. Therefore, she didn't complain when we sunk our scalpel into her head, just inferior to her external occipital protuberance. It was an intense few hours. It took a little bit at first to overcome the psychological/emotional barrier of what we were doing. It's morbid, visceral, fascinating. I thought I'd know just what it would be like, but when you're there doing it...it is totally different. Within 15 minutes me and my lab partners were digging right in (literally). Clamp, forceps, scalpel...it all began to come together...if only it weren't for that strong smell in the air.
A network of large, flat plasma screens litter the lab. From the front, the professor or assistants display examples for all 125 or so students to see. We work fast. Dead bodies everywhere and after a few minutes, it all becomes normal, everyday business.
The doors of the dissection table opened like a clam-shell, swinging 180-degrees down where we latched them back to each other at the bottom. Underneath lay a shrouded figure, a white-cloth covering a vague human form. I could see toes peeking out from underneath the bottom of the cloth...then, as about 25 other tables were opened, my nostrils flared and I coughed, the pungent smell of formaldehyde overcoming my senses.
We lifted the veil off and discovered an elderly lady underneath, lying sadly but intentionally on her stomach. Her arms and head covered in another white cloth, she didn't seem to mind the attention or the smell; she'd been dead for months after-all. Therefore, she didn't complain when we sunk our scalpel into her head, just inferior to her external occipital protuberance. It was an intense few hours. It took a little bit at first to overcome the psychological/emotional barrier of what we were doing. It's morbid, visceral, fascinating. I thought I'd know just what it would be like, but when you're there doing it...it is totally different. Within 15 minutes me and my lab partners were digging right in (literally). Clamp, forceps, scalpel...it all began to come together...if only it weren't for that strong smell in the air.
A network of large, flat plasma screens litter the lab. From the front, the professor or assistants display examples for all 125 or so students to see. We work fast. Dead bodies everywhere and after a few minutes, it all becomes normal, everyday business.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Anxious
Whenever I go through a huge change or my mind is reeling 10x faster than normal, I tend to have to write to keep things from getting out of control. It is partially therapeutic and it helps other people know what is going on with me. Case-in-point, I began my LJ when I began college back in fall of 2003. Wow...forever ago!
And here I am on the eve of my very first true day of medical school, writing again. I had two days of orientation, yes, but tomorrow is the official, actual first day when the material starts hitting me from all sides! I plan on starting on the right foot, on hitting the ground running so I don't fall behind from the get-go. Daily discipline is how I plan on attacking things; forming solid study-habits early on and keeping up as best I can.
I feel strangely ready and confident, having had practically a year of almost no academic commitments. I have no excuse not to be ready after the huge break I've had. Yet, you slip all too easily into routines, and it will take effort to get my brain churning again. Tomorrow I have some things to do for the school, like some CPR-training (who knows why...), fit-testing (for these M95 masks...), and first anatomy lecture/lab. Eh, it'll go, I'm sure.
I'll let you know how it goes.
And here I am on the eve of my very first true day of medical school, writing again. I had two days of orientation, yes, but tomorrow is the official, actual first day when the material starts hitting me from all sides! I plan on starting on the right foot, on hitting the ground running so I don't fall behind from the get-go. Daily discipline is how I plan on attacking things; forming solid study-habits early on and keeping up as best I can.
I feel strangely ready and confident, having had practically a year of almost no academic commitments. I have no excuse not to be ready after the huge break I've had. Yet, you slip all too easily into routines, and it will take effort to get my brain churning again. Tomorrow I have some things to do for the school, like some CPR-training (who knows why...), fit-testing (for these M95 masks...), and first anatomy lecture/lab. Eh, it'll go, I'm sure.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Friday, August 10, 2007
First Day? Kind of?
All right, so I had orientation today. A long, boring day of buying materials, meetings, and more meetings.
Imagine sitting in a room with 290 other kids while department head after department head are thrown at you, presenting information on financial aid, student council, and various student services.
I arrived around 9:00AM and ended up being parked right across from the one other kid at this medical school that comes from my undergraduate college. He and I walked together to the main building (Medical Sciences) and got lost in the frenzy of kids and tables. I went to the first table and got my name-tag and folder full of orientation-type goodies. It was an hour and a half of scurrying about, getting money from the union building, getting my (anatomy) locker key, buying packets of notes, getting pictures taken, and other odds and ends. Boring.
We shuffled into the lecture hall for a few presentations from the faculty. A nice Dermatologist lady introduced us to the class she will teach: Introduction to Clinical Medicine: Patient-Doctor Relationship. That class seems like it will be really good. Then the anatomy professor came up...that class looks like it will be a real trip! The guy is really nice and seems cool, though. He told us all about cadavers and how those people died hoping that their bodies would educate doctors who would, in turn, heal many sick people.
Can you imagine the impact then, that these dead people have on ultimately 1,000s of patients? Accomplishing that much after you're dead is pretty cool!
We saw that we would end up having to learn over 10,000 terms over the course of anatomy, and that's just the terms. Agh! What a trip!
A word on the fellow students: boring! I'm sure that as the year begins, I will meet some neat people, but on the whole, typical medical crowd. Sports, boring stuff, sports all over. How did a geek like me get attracted to medicine when nobody else in medicine is like me? I'll never figure out how I share that one common point of interests with all those people.
Anyway, I met Johnny for lunch and he told me the stresses of Dental School. The afternoon was just a bunch of boring presentations from various people, and we took a Meyers-Briggs personality-type indicator. It tells you what kind of personality you have or something like that...last time I took it I got INTJ. But whatever, ya know?
We got it driven into our heads a lot that we will "undergo a transformation from civilian life to professional life", and even the financial guy was telling us about how huge income comes with huge responsibility. Yeah, yeah, I just wish I were in college again where things are actually fun. I'm here to learn a profession, not deal with all this paper-work!
Hmm, so it seems like a really good faculty and school. I have plenty of escapes around my state so I know I can stay sane. I look forward to getting the most out of my school, and then moving on to a really enjoyable career in perhaps Emergency Medicine or Anesthesia!
I'm sleepy. I have more "activities" tomorrow, including the white-coat ceremony.
Imagine sitting in a room with 290 other kids while department head after department head are thrown at you, presenting information on financial aid, student council, and various student services.
I arrived around 9:00AM and ended up being parked right across from the one other kid at this medical school that comes from my undergraduate college. He and I walked together to the main building (Medical Sciences) and got lost in the frenzy of kids and tables. I went to the first table and got my name-tag and folder full of orientation-type goodies. It was an hour and a half of scurrying about, getting money from the union building, getting my (anatomy) locker key, buying packets of notes, getting pictures taken, and other odds and ends. Boring.
We shuffled into the lecture hall for a few presentations from the faculty. A nice Dermatologist lady introduced us to the class she will teach: Introduction to Clinical Medicine: Patient-Doctor Relationship. That class seems like it will be really good. Then the anatomy professor came up...that class looks like it will be a real trip! The guy is really nice and seems cool, though. He told us all about cadavers and how those people died hoping that their bodies would educate doctors who would, in turn, heal many sick people.
Can you imagine the impact then, that these dead people have on ultimately 1,000s of patients? Accomplishing that much after you're dead is pretty cool!
We saw that we would end up having to learn over 10,000 terms over the course of anatomy, and that's just the terms. Agh! What a trip!
A word on the fellow students: boring! I'm sure that as the year begins, I will meet some neat people, but on the whole, typical medical crowd. Sports, boring stuff, sports all over. How did a geek like me get attracted to medicine when nobody else in medicine is like me? I'll never figure out how I share that one common point of interests with all those people.
Anyway, I met Johnny for lunch and he told me the stresses of Dental School. The afternoon was just a bunch of boring presentations from various people, and we took a Meyers-Briggs personality-type indicator. It tells you what kind of personality you have or something like that...last time I took it I got INTJ. But whatever, ya know?
We got it driven into our heads a lot that we will "undergo a transformation from civilian life to professional life", and even the financial guy was telling us about how huge income comes with huge responsibility. Yeah, yeah, I just wish I were in college again where things are actually fun. I'm here to learn a profession, not deal with all this paper-work!
Hmm, so it seems like a really good faculty and school. I have plenty of escapes around my state so I know I can stay sane. I look forward to getting the most out of my school, and then moving on to a really enjoyable career in perhaps Emergency Medicine or Anesthesia!
I'm sleepy. I have more "activities" tomorrow, including the white-coat ceremony.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Confucius
A journey of a thousand miles begins with...a single step. Well, no doubt about that; no way to get around the fact that everyone has to start somewhere, even the most arrogant, high-up guy or gal out there.
I have my orientation tomorrow - the day I consider to be the first day of actual medical school and the end of summer as I know it. We get ID cards, meet professors, meet each other (choke me now), and go through all the cute little motions you have to go through. Saturday is a few more activities (breakfast, tours) and then the initiation ceremony (white-coat). Then I have Sunday off before starting Monday. I'm petrified!
It all begins soon. It's all-or-nothing now. I plan to work very, very hard, but do not plan to be a gunner. I will balance myself and still enjoy life. Here goes...I'll keep you updated.
I have my orientation tomorrow - the day I consider to be the first day of actual medical school and the end of summer as I know it. We get ID cards, meet professors, meet each other (choke me now), and go through all the cute little motions you have to go through. Saturday is a few more activities (breakfast, tours) and then the initiation ceremony (white-coat). Then I have Sunday off before starting Monday. I'm petrified!
It all begins soon. It's all-or-nothing now. I plan to work very, very hard, but do not plan to be a gunner. I will balance myself and still enjoy life. Here goes...I'll keep you updated.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
The International Aspect
International education: what gives?
Though I'm hopelessly poor in international experiences, I do hold the belief that they can be vital to a person's resume, no matter what career they go into. I went to a college that stressed international education. In fact, its study-abroad program was basically its selling point, as it is one of the nation's better-known schools for having a large proportion of its student body study abroad (about 50%). That said, I was in the 50% that did not study abroad, and do I regret it? Not really.
My Mother came to the United States in the 70s from Indonesia along with her immediate family. Some other 1st-generation immigrants from her family are here in the States as well. I grew up around both my father's "American" culture and my mother's "South-East Asian" culture, being exposed to the practices, customs, and languages of both. However, I've been largely assimilated into U.S. culture, as I hardly know more than 3 words of my Mom's native language, and can only barely point the country itself out on a map (yeah, it's the one that shares an Island with Papua/New Guinea).
Anyway, other than being a hybrid of Chinese and White by blood, I'm a very American guy. I've had many friends/acquaintances go abroad for 3 months during college to...Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, China, Germany, even Peru. Their experiences have changed them and have been very valuable. I envy the clinical experiences they've had and the languages they've learned. But strangely, I feel right at home with the path I've taken. I've spent my summers doing research and my semesters loading up on the science courses I've needed.
Ultimately, I used my extensive research experience as my pitch to the admissions committee. Not every single person needs to boast working an AIDS clinic in Sub-Saharan Africa, right? It's a plus, but (at least not yet) it isn't an un-written rule like hospital volunteering is.
But just how important is the international experience? While shadowing the ophthalmologist last Thursday (who graduated from my college as well, albeit awhile ago), he asked me the dreaded question, mid-operation mind you: "So where did you go for your Study Service Term?"
"...Actually, I didn't do it. I took the alternatives instead."
"[Just about jabbed the sedated patient's eye with his scalpel] Are you kidding me? Yuki, Yuki, Yuki!"
The usual question, usual response, usual shocked answer. He wasn't actually upset, I mean it's my life, but he made his speech about how his time in Central America was so pivotal to his identity as a doctor.
"Down there...you practice real medicine. No bureaucratic systems or endless paperwork to get in your way; you do medicine on needy people and get to the heart of what it is all about. Only there are you a real doctor."
Yes, yes, I know. Things are different out there, outside the high-gates of this magical country stained with power-politics and malpractice suits. He kept telling the other docs that I was going to become a "missionary doctor", as if to poke fun at the fact that I've done nothing outside of the U.S. I didn't take offense then, and don't now, but he was just another person laying into me for not going abroad during college.
Is it that important? I don't doubt for a second that the experience is valuable...to understand another place, another culture, another people. Places where 911 doesn't get you to the nearest ER within 10 minutes, places where insurance is a foreign concept and places where germ-theory hasn't yet permeated common knowledge. I'm aware of this, and while brute knowledge/awareness is no substitute for experience, I'd say I'm more culturally sensitive than a lot of other pre-MDs I know. Unless driving the 2007 BMW your Dad bought you to school, and complaining about how "hard" life is at your $850/month 1 bedroom apartment on the Canal constitutes cultural sensitivity. Not every medical student is like this, but they do tend to come from higher tiers of society and these attitudes have been seen again and again.
But again, being an American citizen going to an American medical school to practice medicine in America for your entire life, will having visited or not visited a foreign country prior to medical training affect your skill at practicing medicine? America does have a great amount of immigrants living in it from every conceivable location; no matter what kind of doc you are, you are going to work directly with patients and patients come from everywhere. Just as with many other careers, inter-cultural awareness/sensitivity is important ("Diversity Training" on that show, The Office). Yes. I know this. Perhaps it is even more important in medicine because of the relationship you establish with your patients and the diversity of beliefs as they pertain to medicine found around the world.
I'm not sure what the general consensus is out there, but in the bubble that I've grown up in, people seem to think that your ability to practice medicine is directly proportional to how much international service you have done. I'm sure there are many great docs out there who have never left their state! I'm sure there are radiologists and pathologists out there who do impeccable work, never having spent a second serving in a foreign country. I'm also sure there are docs from this same pool who have spent time abroad and feel that it has helped them become who they are.
I think it is just a personal choice and that everyone has a different path. Sure, if I had spent time in Peru volunteering at a Peruvian hospital, I'm sure that my perspective on the human condition and patient care would be more broad today. But, won't I get the same training as the guy next to me who spends every other week in Haiti? I'll do schooling and residency and develop the skills needed to become an excellent physician. It all comes from within. Anyone reasonable enough to get into medical school has to have enough reason to acquire cultural sensitivity throughout their training and practice.
Bottom line? I agree that international experience can really help a physician have a wider perspective. But not having that experience can't hurt you if you work hard and do your part to become a great doctor. There's enough work to do in American health-care. This is where I ultimately want to practice. Can't I just focus here and not be hassled?
Though I'm hopelessly poor in international experiences, I do hold the belief that they can be vital to a person's resume, no matter what career they go into. I went to a college that stressed international education. In fact, its study-abroad program was basically its selling point, as it is one of the nation's better-known schools for having a large proportion of its student body study abroad (about 50%). That said, I was in the 50% that did not study abroad, and do I regret it? Not really.
My Mother came to the United States in the 70s from Indonesia along with her immediate family. Some other 1st-generation immigrants from her family are here in the States as well. I grew up around both my father's "American" culture and my mother's "South-East Asian" culture, being exposed to the practices, customs, and languages of both. However, I've been largely assimilated into U.S. culture, as I hardly know more than 3 words of my Mom's native language, and can only barely point the country itself out on a map (yeah, it's the one that shares an Island with Papua/New Guinea).
Anyway, other than being a hybrid of Chinese and White by blood, I'm a very American guy. I've had many friends/acquaintances go abroad for 3 months during college to...Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, China, Germany, even Peru. Their experiences have changed them and have been very valuable. I envy the clinical experiences they've had and the languages they've learned. But strangely, I feel right at home with the path I've taken. I've spent my summers doing research and my semesters loading up on the science courses I've needed.
Ultimately, I used my extensive research experience as my pitch to the admissions committee. Not every single person needs to boast working an AIDS clinic in Sub-Saharan Africa, right? It's a plus, but (at least not yet) it isn't an un-written rule like hospital volunteering is.
But just how important is the international experience? While shadowing the ophthalmologist last Thursday (who graduated from my college as well, albeit awhile ago), he asked me the dreaded question, mid-operation mind you: "So where did you go for your Study Service Term?"
"...Actually, I didn't do it. I took the alternatives instead."
"[Just about jabbed the sedated patient's eye with his scalpel] Are you kidding me? Yuki, Yuki, Yuki!"
The usual question, usual response, usual shocked answer. He wasn't actually upset, I mean it's my life, but he made his speech about how his time in Central America was so pivotal to his identity as a doctor.
"Down there...you practice real medicine. No bureaucratic systems or endless paperwork to get in your way; you do medicine on needy people and get to the heart of what it is all about. Only there are you a real doctor."
Yes, yes, I know. Things are different out there, outside the high-gates of this magical country stained with power-politics and malpractice suits. He kept telling the other docs that I was going to become a "missionary doctor", as if to poke fun at the fact that I've done nothing outside of the U.S. I didn't take offense then, and don't now, but he was just another person laying into me for not going abroad during college.
Is it that important? I don't doubt for a second that the experience is valuable...to understand another place, another culture, another people. Places where 911 doesn't get you to the nearest ER within 10 minutes, places where insurance is a foreign concept and places where germ-theory hasn't yet permeated common knowledge. I'm aware of this, and while brute knowledge/awareness is no substitute for experience, I'd say I'm more culturally sensitive than a lot of other pre-MDs I know. Unless driving the 2007 BMW your Dad bought you to school, and complaining about how "hard" life is at your $850/month 1 bedroom apartment on the Canal constitutes cultural sensitivity. Not every medical student is like this, but they do tend to come from higher tiers of society and these attitudes have been seen again and again.
But again, being an American citizen going to an American medical school to practice medicine in America for your entire life, will having visited or not visited a foreign country prior to medical training affect your skill at practicing medicine? America does have a great amount of immigrants living in it from every conceivable location; no matter what kind of doc you are, you are going to work directly with patients and patients come from everywhere. Just as with many other careers, inter-cultural awareness/sensitivity is important ("Diversity Training" on that show, The Office). Yes. I know this. Perhaps it is even more important in medicine because of the relationship you establish with your patients and the diversity of beliefs as they pertain to medicine found around the world.
I'm not sure what the general consensus is out there, but in the bubble that I've grown up in, people seem to think that your ability to practice medicine is directly proportional to how much international service you have done. I'm sure there are many great docs out there who have never left their state! I'm sure there are radiologists and pathologists out there who do impeccable work, never having spent a second serving in a foreign country. I'm also sure there are docs from this same pool who have spent time abroad and feel that it has helped them become who they are.
I think it is just a personal choice and that everyone has a different path. Sure, if I had spent time in Peru volunteering at a Peruvian hospital, I'm sure that my perspective on the human condition and patient care would be more broad today. But, won't I get the same training as the guy next to me who spends every other week in Haiti? I'll do schooling and residency and develop the skills needed to become an excellent physician. It all comes from within. Anyone reasonable enough to get into medical school has to have enough reason to acquire cultural sensitivity throughout their training and practice.
Bottom line? I agree that international experience can really help a physician have a wider perspective. But not having that experience can't hurt you if you work hard and do your part to become a great doctor. There's enough work to do in American health-care. This is where I ultimately want to practice. Can't I just focus here and not be hassled?
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