PHYSICIAN-IN-TRAINING / MEDICAL STUDENT CATEGORY
WINNER
2016 RICHARD SPEAR , MD , MEMORIAL ESSAY CONTEST
EXPLORING HUMAN CONNECTION FOR PHYSICIANS WITHIN SOCIAL MEDIA Kara Curry , DO
A
close friend of mine once described training in medicine as learning secrets no one else knew about the human body . I took that to mean the majority of the population will never have access , limited by whatever means , to the vastness of medical information a physician has the privilege to encounter during training and beyond . After experiencing residency first-hand , I have learned that there are all sorts of secrets kept from the general public in regards to the training of physicians and how medicine is actually practiced .
Such secrets are not all bad , neither are they purely factual in nature . Rather , the physician-in-training comes across many unexpected experiences , relationships and emotions , which can be surprisingly delightful ( even though one imagines the majority of residency training to be rather daunting ). For instance , there is camaraderie formed when an upper-level resident passes on his or her skills and walks an intern or medical student through his or her first procedure of some kind . There are strong bonds formed between the members of a medical team , even if only working together for a month on a service , as most residency rotations are designed . There are memories formed with and about patients — subtleties we learn about them , their lives , and funny moments with them that are cherished . How could I not find the following conversation between one of my geriatric patients and I humorous ?
I : It looks like you have a UTI . Have you ever taken Bactrim ? Patient : [ suspiciously ] How would you know I have a UTI ?
I : You gave us a urine sample to analyze . Patient : [ begrudgingly ] Well I hope you enjoyed it !
Only first-hand experience with patients will leave you speechless from their witty responses , though more prepared to handle them the next time . Only first-hand experience can provide you with tales one could never make up .
Another secret is that sometimes residents depend on their patients to provide reassurance and encouragement that they are indeed making good doctoring decisions and continuing on the right career path . When we are having an attack of self-doubt and colleagues or advisors are far from reach , the patients can lift us up . If that support really seems nowhere to be found , social media can serve as a sort-of substitute for the role of advisor , informant or source of comic relief .
It starts long before one enters medical school , before undergraduate studies even . Nowadays , prospective medical students scour the internet to research the surest path to land a place in medical school . Everyone has visited studentdoctor . net , where opinions and ideas are freely expressed by professionals at different points in their careers regarding an unlimited , randomly updated stream of topics related to training in medicine . After reading the dos and don ’ ts advised by others who have already “ been there and done that ,” one may leave the site feeling confident , prepared to pursue medical training , or more neurotic than ever . And after acceptance to medical school , when attempting to pin down a desired specialty ’ s expectations of an applicant , many find themselves there yet again , of course regretting the visit afterwards .
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