Contributing Writer
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Olivia (Livy) Low is a medical student who is interested in issues of social justice, global health, and health equity. She graduated from Barnard College with a degree in Political Science and currently attends Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Livy is a book lover, photographer, and Bay Area native.
Photography taught me how to see. It taught me to listen using my eyes, rather than my ears alone. This is something that I have carried with me throughout the beginning of medical school. Though some people assume that the arts and the sciences do not mix, photography has actually informed how I envision my work as a physician.
“If I begin to repeat myself, just tell me. I have Alzheimer’s. At least, I think I do,” the elderly gentleman said with a smile. This elderly patient of mine was a jovial gentleman and in fantastic shape with unremarkable vitals on physical examination. If it was not for his diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, the physical and emotional state of this patient given his age is nothing less than enviable.
Video games, which have been linked to childhood obesity, aggression and poor school performance, are currently being used in the training of surgical residents. Most of the reported effects of video games in the media appear to center upon the alleged negative consequences: video game addiction, increased aggressiveness and various medical and psychosocial effects.
The position of an M0.5 is a very paradoxical one. We’ve gone through five months of class, amazed that our brains can fit in so much material and even more amazed that we have to make room for more. We’ve gotten our white coats and try to ask patients smart questions while having no idea what solution we can provide for the ailments being enumerated. Our goal at this point is not to diagnose — it’s to learn as much information as we can so that somewhere down the long, long line, we’ll be able to utilize what we know and make something of it.
“One of the major problems of rural health is the chronic shortage of health care practitioners in rural, remote and northern areas,” said Dr. Raymond Pong, founder of the Centre for Rural and Northern Health Research in Canada.
In the recent White Coat Die-In demonstrations orchestrated by medical students across the nation, aspiring physicians displayed solidarity with the message that racial injustice is a public health concern that merits the attention and efforts of health care professionals. It is clear from the mobilization and investment of our medical community that there is a desire to engage in clearer articulation and understanding of the health disparities landscape.
It was not at a specific moment in time nor the result of an inciting event, but soon after medical school began, I started to forget who I was. I don’t mean early-onset Alzheimer’s or a drug-induced psychosis type of forgetting; I mean lost all sight of what made me me type of forgetting.
Medicine. It is a word that many individuals are passionate about. It is a word that has endured many changes throughout the years of its existence. For the two of us, the word medicine holds a special meaning as it has been shaped and colored by our time as medical students overseas in the Caribbean.
Columnist Emeritus
American University of Integrative Sciences, St Maarten School of Medicine
My name is Sri Kakulavarapu and I am currently fourth year medical student at the American University of Integrative Sciences St. Maarten School of Medicine. I'm a Michigander, Spartan (GO GREEN!), and love to cook, read, and dance in my spare time!
Traveling Medicine
Traveling Medicine is a personal outlook on the experiences of two medical students attending medical school outside the United States. It will showcase different aspects of the journey as international medical school graduates with a little hint of Caribbean flavor!
