Columnist Emeritus
Mayo Clinic
Dr. T. N. Diem Vu, MD is a surgical critical care fellow in the Mayo Clinic Department of General Surgery. She graduated from Mayo Medical School in the Class of 2016. She completed a BS in molecular & cellular biology with a minor in writing seminars at Johns Hopkins University in 2012. Her interests outside of medicine include illustration, writing, singing and playing ukulele, photography, film, food, books, and spending time with loved ones.
Med Student Shadows
As medical students, we shadow physicians to learn about the nature of medicine from them and their patients. In this column, Diem traces her own shadow, preserving and illustrating her experiences--in class, in the hospital, and in between--as a medical student.
“If you start feeling lightheaded or faint,” the surgeon told me in the operating room, “just don’t fall into the patient. You can fall anywhere else. Just not into the patient.” This was the first time I had ever shadowed a surgeon, and a dark cloud of fear started to cloak my feelings of excitement. I had never thought myself to be a queasy person, but suddenly I kept imagining myself plunging face-forward off of …
I went to a couple of talks this week that emphasized the importance of protein. While osteoporosis is a well-known public health problem, sarcopenia, or the loss of muscle mass, is less well-understood by both doctors and the general public. Prevention of sarcopenia is perhaps one reason why people who stand or move around at work may be healthier as they age than people who sit all day (like med students). In terms of the …
Third-year rotations come with a mix of emotions. It’s exciting to get out of the classroom and onto the floors where all the action is, but at the same time reality can set in with every patient that you see. The patient that you see with the acute lymphoblastic leukemia which you had read about extensively in Pathoma is now in your hematology-oncology clinic getting chemotherapy, surrounded by family members who are giving her support …
So you got into med school, congratulations! You have had your inauguration week and your white coat ceremony where you took an oath to do no harm and abide by the rules and save human lives and make gold out of poop! You watched a video of previous graduation ceremonies, proof that all the struggle is going to pay off and you are going to be a real doctor and change the world. You have …
[ca_audio url=” http://in-training.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/11-___Flawless-Feat.-Chimamanda-Ngozi-Adichie.mp3″ width=”500″ height=”27″ css_class=”codeart-google-mp3-player” autoplay=”false”] I grew up in a culture where boys are favored over girls. Most of the time, it’s something subtle like saying, “let’s hope it’s a son!” when a friend is expecting a child. With the one-child policy and a system where the availability of education is not as readily accessible to everyone, it’s easy to prefer a man to carry on the family name and the family honor. …
This winter, take time to relax with family and friends. For first years, you’re ready to breathe after a slew of examinations. For second years, you have Step 1 on your mind but aren’t fully committed to studying—unless you’re a gunner. For third years, you’re exhausted from the wards and it’s time for a break. For fourth years, you’re interviewing around the country and you can’t wait to sleep in your own bed for a …
Of all the sounds I expected to hear as I pushed open the thick door of Examination Room 3, the anguished sobs stopped me in my tracks. Wide-eyed and mouth agape, I stared. Agonizingly long seconds passed. “Hello, my name is Jimmy…” My mouth instinctively prattled the standard script I had practiced for the last two years. The woman looked up. Behind a mess of straw-colored hair, her red swollen eyes met mine. Dark streaks …
The long lines at coffee shops and large crowds in the library on a university campus often indicate that it is finals week. The disproportionate numbers of students carrying energy drinks and having zombie-like appearances are both dead giveaways as well. While we are stressfully cramming, consuming junk food (“study snacks”), and consequently depriving ourselves of sleep for just a few more hours of studying, how much are we gaining (or losing) from our shift …
Perhaps it was the combination of her being a mother and a pediatrician that made this pearl in particular one of my mother’s most frequently uttered—sometimes with a stern motherly tone, and other times in a teasing, singsong way. It’s a saying that she heard quite a bit while growing up in Kerala, India, and it became one that she not only took to heart, but ultimately defined her very life by. I must admit …
As a member of the Medical Scholars Program at UIUC for the last 4.5 years, I have been pursuing a doctorate in the hard sciences while simultaneously completing the first-year medical school curriculum. This may seem like a daunting task (and the majority of the time, it is!) and pursuing a career in medicine under any circumstances is very challenging. In addition to the demands of medical coursework, there are always familial and personal relationships, hobbies, …
Last night, I saw a few patients at our student-run free clinic that takes place on Wednesday nights. Every time I get a little bit better at one thing, something else just gets harder. For instance, I’ve figured out how to fill a syringe and deliver an injection at the proper 90-degree angle, but then I realize that I did none of the hard work to coo at and calm down the screaming toddler receiving …
I met a resident who advocated that all medical students should become patients and have the same procedures that they order for their patients performed on them à la the movie “The Doctor.” While I agree that being a patient offers perspective, I don’t agree that I need to have tertiary syphilis to understand how to interact with a patient facing the illness. We act as health care providers and now view the world in …
Columnist Emeritus and in-Training Staff Member
Loma Linda University Medical Center
A Taste Of Your Own Medicine is a column that gives you a taste of medicine. It focuses on important and interesting topics relating to medicine and being a medical student.
Valentina is a general surgery resident at Loma Linda University Medical Center. She graduated from University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.
