Choreiform Tango
The intruder slithers in at midnight, / slinking his way to the boy fast asleep, / the tangled mess of hospital wires his field of untrimmed grass,
Off the Shelf
Off the Shelf is our section for creative works by medical students.
Contributing Writer
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine
Zachary is a psychiatry resident at the Medical University of South Carolina. He graduated from University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in Oklahoma City in 2023.
Operating Room
As I step carefully into the sterile field / past the rows of scalpels, forceps and clamps, / I sense a gentle fluttering in my chest.
Caduceus
Should the symbol of medicine bear one snake or two? / If you answered two, then the joke is on you! / Or, at least, that’s the current popular view.
Trauma Shift
I imagine her mother / Squeezing daughter’s limp hand / Silent tears
Anatomy: A Cadaveric Poem
Anatomy is more than flesh and bone and blood. / It’s more than the donor and the scalpel teaching the student.
HPI
good morning, i’m the medical student / i must ask how you are feeling / even though my eyes already sting
Borborygmi
Borborygmi: Rumbling or gurgling noises made by the movement of fluid and gas in the intestines.
Scan to Scan
A fog of emotions blankets the waiting room / Stress and anxiety, with some impending doom.
Divinity
There is a straight line from / ordering an ultrasound to obtaining / clear cylinders of red blood cells.
Everytown
Every town — / We’ll say it could be any town, / until it has affected every town
Growth
It’s amazing how in three years / How much you grow / As a person
A Lifetime Student of Medicine
Where do I begin? / Skimming her list of diagnoses, my eyes are drawn to her pancreatic cancer. / Confused, I glanced back at her age / I was not mistaken, she just turned 49.
Contributing Writer
Florida State University College of Medicine
Lyndsey is a fourth-year medical student at Florida State University College of Medicine in Tallahassee, FL Class of 2023. In 2017, she graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science in biological science with a minor in chemistry. She enjoys traveling, cooking, hiking, and working out in her free time. After graduating from medical school, Lyndsey plans to pursue a career in radiology.