I read an essay advocating the disclosure of personal trauma on medical school applications as a means of overcoming stigma and taboo often associated with rape and other forms of trauma. The authors lamented that a culture of silence persists in medic…
One of my most stressful high school class memories was an AP English class I took during my junior year. Each week, we had timed writings where we were given a specific amount of time to write an essay on a given topic. As soon as the timer went off, …
In an impromptu listing of all the diseases his children had, I never would have guessed that the next word to come out of my attending’s mouth was “gay.” As an LGBTQ+ medical student with scars on my chest to prove it, this encounter…
Closing a residency program can significantly disrupt a physician’s training. In 2019, the closure of Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia forced 570 residents to find new placements. First-year residents discovered a week before they st…
Taking a leave of absence (LOA) from medical school is a significant decision that involves careful consideration of various factors. In this article, I will consolidate valuable information on types of LOAs, reasons for taking one, and crucial conside…
When the University of Pennsylvania’s president Liz Magill was forced to resign her position due to her equivocal stance regarding antisemitic harassment on Penn’s campus, J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, was soon announced as her interim success…
A Harvard medical school student realized in his third year that he had lost his desire to become a doctor. Nevertheless, the student decided to complete his fourth year and obtain his MD degree. The student is now planning for a career in pharma or ev…
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said he can’t define pornography, but he knows it when he sees it. Stewart might just as well have been talking about leadership—reflecting the difficulty in providing a precise definition of leadership b…
Considering that the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) primarily evaluates candidates’ general medical knowledge, there is a growing need to introduce specialty-specific pre-training examinations (PTEs). This is because the USML…
With my first thrust on his chest, I shattered his sternum, feeling his bones crumble in my hands. His eyes were wide open but lifeless. Dried secretions crusted his lips. His dusky skin tone indicated my efforts would be futile. Nonetheless, I proceed…
