Recently, at medical schools across the country, first-year students officially donned the physician’s traditional white coat for the first time. The white coat ceremony is a powerful symbolic moment. It signifies that the students are moving bey…
Category: Medical school
How studying abroad helped get me into medicine
Think studying abroad doesn’t fit with your future plans? Think again. Since the day I applied to university, I had been researching how I could incorporate global learning into my undergraduate degree program, while also thinking about my future goals…
Medicine’s not what it used to be
When I was accepted to medical school, I debated — hard — whether or not to attend. Out of the physicians I shadowed and interviewed, 19 out of 20 advised me not to become a physician. Their dissatisfaction was rampant. Over and over, I was told, “Don’…
Teach mindfulness in medical school
Mindfulness and meditation. Meditation and mindfulness. Allow me to elaborate. I went to medical school in the 1980s. Nobody talked about complementary and alternative approaches to healthcare or mind-body medicine. It wasn’t because we students th…
Cookie-cutter medical students need decorating
“First Aid For The USMLE Step 1 — cost: $45, format: reference book.” “Pathoma — cost: $99 (1-year subscription), format: video explanations + reference book.” “SketchyMedical — cost: $150 (1-year subscription), format: cartoon video memory device.” Ou…
4 essential tips for residency interviews
I have just finished another round of that dreaded process that we call “the interview process.” Without fail, this process has haunted me almost cyclically every 3 to 4 years in the last 11 years of my life. First, there were medical school interviews…
Physicians must first establish their life priorities
An excerpt from Career & Life Planning Guidebook for Medical Residents: The Best Part of Your Journey Is about to Begin. Life is a journey. Where is this journey of life taking you? Do you know? If I asked you where you will be in seven years, coul…
When a medical student is victim-blamed
After third-year medicine, I was required to withdraw for handing in an assignment late. It was a paragraph of self-reflection; I couldn’t believe I was being kicked out for something so seemingly inconsequential. My dealings with the faculty bec…
When a medical student is victim-blamed
After third-year medicine, I was required to withdraw for handing in an assignment late. It was a paragraph of self-reflection; I couldn’t believe I was being kicked out for something so seemingly inconsequential. My dealings with the faculty bec…
Nurturing professional identity and maintaining pass rates: an important goal in medical education
The doctor shortage across the United States is coming and has the potential to be painful to millions of Americans. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, by 2023, the country may experience a deficit of up to nearly 122,000 physic…
