A Letter to Pipo
It will soon be over seven years since the last time I saw you. It feels like yesterday we were singing along to your favorite song as you drove me to my weekly dance class.
From the Wards
Contributing Writer
Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
Natalie Mesa is a medical student at Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine in Miami, Florida, Class of 2025. In 2019, she graduated from Florida International University with a Bachelor of Science in biology and natural and applied sciences with a minor in psychology. She graduated from the Honors College and Summa cum laude. She enjoys running, traveling and reading in her free time. After graduating medical school, Natalie would like to pursue a career in General Surgery.
A Swim in a Pond on the Wards
I first wrote to author George Saunders in my senior year of high school. Thankful for everything his writing taught me about empathy, I sought advice as I crossed the “seemingly arbitrary line into adulthood.”
Fragrance
I start the day like most of us do: stimulating the needy vessels we call bodies with caffeine. As I open up my coffee jar to dispense ground Turkish coffee beans, I am met with a hint of loving bitterness. It carries a comforting brown sugar warmth that often stirs a sense of weakness given my inherent dependency on this substance but also commands secure boldness through notes of molasses and dark chocolate.
A Sacred Symphony
The once-sterile hospital room had become a sacred space, where the raw emotions of love and loss hung in the air. The young daughter, vibrant in her essence but tethered to life support, teetered on the precipice between existence and the inevitable.
My Own Kitchen
“254?!” I gawk at the glucometer, stunned that Tom’s blood sugar has soared to such heights when it has consistently remained below 125 for the last two weeks. Tom glances up at me with an amused look on his face, clearly entertained by my reaction — “It was probably that pork chop that did it.”
My Top Five Operating Room Mistakes
My first time in the operating room (OR) was when I was a junior in college. I was beaming under my mask, so excited to shadow and observe my first surgery ever, a riveting and exotic procedure: a planned and standard laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A friendly circulating nurse that I had been chatting with asked me, “Sabrina, what’s your glove size?”
Wonder
The first thing I noticed entering Betty’s room was her walls. They were papered, nearly from floor to ceiling, with photographs of celebrities. Taylor Swift, Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran all stared back at me.
Practicing Medicine
After spending nearly a lifetime as a Type A perfectionist who struggled with developing new skills, I had spent the last several years trying to adopt a policy of “practice makes progress.” I have learned to accept the fact that being bad at something is often the first step towards being good at it.
Persona To Person
We are given tools to imitate their behavior, in hopes that we ourselves will one day embody that behavior. Mechanical checkboxes on the standardized exam with standardized patients. Cannot forget a single step. But life is not standardized, is it?
Navigating Cultural Sensitivities and Trust in Health Care: A Personal Encounter in Family Medicine
Skepticism of health care is widespread throughout some of these communities — rightly so due to historical mistreatment, discrimination and lack of representation along with cultural differences. This distrust may be further strengthened by a patient’s own personal experiences. I respected this wariness, but I had yet to witness it firsthand.
“Jook-Yum” Toothpaste
“James” handed me a new tube of toothpaste, the box a familiar green and white. Even without opening it up, I could already smell and taste the “jook-yum” (bamboo salt) I grew up with at my parent’s house.
Notes From The 13th Floor
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, I kept myself sane by writing “Notes from the 13th Floor” — a series of moments I wished I could share with the outside world and the kind I never wanted to forget.
Writers-in-Training Intern and Contributing Writer
Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Allyson Flippo is a medical student at Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Conroe, Texas, Class of 2026. In 2020, she graduated from Texas Woman's University with a Bachelor of Science in biology. She enjoys practicing Byzantine chant, studying Spanish, and spending time with her husband Christopher and son Justin in her free time. After graduating medical school, Allyson would like to pursue a career in pathology.