Silence
“I’m sorry that you have to see me this way,” said Ms. A as we exited the examining room. Twenty minutes earlier, Ms. A had been laughing and cracking jokes while my attending physician and I obtained her medical history and life updates.
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Contributing Writer
Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine at Florida International University
Monica is a third year medical student at Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine at Florida International University (FIU) in Miami, FL class of 2023. In 2018, she graduated from FIU with a Bachelor of Science in biology and interdisciplinary studies. She enjoys photography, ballet dancing, and exercise in her free time.
Q&A with Dr. Jason Ryan, MD, MPH
Most students recognize Dr. Jason Ryan as the creator of the Boards & Beyond (B&B) video series. His modules have been lauded for being concise enough to target board prep, yet comprehensive enough to strengthen a student’s understanding of (often) some very challenging content areas. While he may be well known for his video lectures, we decided to go “beyond” in this Q&A.
DOs and DON’Ts for Career Changers
Many of us had careers in medicine before beginning this arduous journey of medical school. We were nurses, technicians, EMTs, CNAs, researchers and more. We enjoyed a few years of steady pay and real-world lessons before we transitioned back to textbooks, lectures and rotations.
Mask and Vaccine Mandates Secure Personal Liberty
Many in our nation see COVID-driven requirements as anathema to their independence, but what if mandates are actually the best way to secure our personal liberties?
COVID-19 Quarantine: An Emerging Risk Factor for Heart Disease
As COVID-19 continues to rage around the world, extended quarantine measures have been responsible for saving innumerable lives. Now, as we slowly catch glimpses of light at the end of the tunnel, or face the possibility of rising cases returning us to the heights of the pandemic, it is important to examine the long-term side effects of our self-prescribed quarantine treatment.
Story(ies) of Myself
The power and beauty of writing rest in a process of active narrative formation. The act of expression helps us make sense of what happened, integrate this into our sense of self, and clarify our values that will influence our next steps. Conveniently, our expression serves as a record of both identity and narrative formation, giving us a glimpse of ourselves more intimately than we typically take time for.
Letter to Myself
Instead, I was worried that medicine would consume me only to regurgitate me as a mere collection of cells and systems — just like those I would be expected to regurgitate on the test. I was worried that the demands of knowing it all would make me believe that I could know it all, that there is nothing in the spaces between what we know. I was worried that bathing in science would make me stop believing in art.
DNR
20 / still / except / her chest rising, falling
Health, Identity and History: Vaccine Hesitancy Among Minority Groups in the COVID-19 Pandemic
With the development and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine and the arrival of the summer season, people are feeling happier and beginning to come out of their homes. It’s clear that there is a growing sense of hope that the pandemic may be approaching its conclusion. However, standing in the way of our pursuit of normalcy is the refusal among some to partake in the vaccine, despite its proven efficacy and safety by experts.
Letter From Your 2021-2022 Editors-in-Chief
Welcome! As the 2021 academic year begins for medical students across the country, it brings with it the age-old challenges of studying medicine. As you continue your journey through medical school, we hope that in-Training provides you with a community for discussion, reflection and support when you need it most.
Exquisitely Tender
A 5-year-old African-American boy presents to the emergency department with left leg pain. His leg is exquisitely tender to palpation… If I read this vignette in the first year of medical school, I would have navigated to the multiple-choice answers to select anything related to sickle cell disease. The question writers are stating that the patient is Black, young and has a painful limb — this is not a difficult diagnosis.
Can We Still Be Undifferentiated in Medical School?
I was raised by two physicians who did not “differentiate” until well into their rotational year, and they did, as their generation tends to say, “just fine.” But the reality is that what was “just fine” for physicians-in-training even one generation ago is no longer as feasible.
Contributing Writer
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Lilli Schussler is a third-year medical student at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, NY, Class of 2023, and Master's student in the Program of Narrative Medicine at Columbia University. In 2017, she graduated from Columbia University with a Bachelor of Arts in German. She enjoys biking and long walks in her free time. Lilli is interested in pursuing a career in Internal Medicine.
