Contributing Writer
Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine
I'm a third year medical student at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine. I love learning about medicine, but when I need a break I enjoy hiking, working out, snowboarding, and Netflix.
My mind kept returning to the patient I had encountered earlier that day. I experienced this subtle feeling that something important had happened. I became curious about the man and his story, but above all, I wondered what the most important part of that appointment had been.
The practice of humanism must be at the core of medicine, and this different model, entitled the biopsychosocial (BPS) model, permits and exemplifies this practice.
Ayahuasca and DMT may help us find the uncover cures to medical issues. Because DMT is produced by the human brain and released during the sleep cycle, exogenous administration of ayahuasca could lead to new approaches to studying normal and abnormal brain functions.
During and after this spooky holiday, let us, as current and future health care providers, make a joint effort to prevent our youth from becoming nicotine-addicted zombies by warning them of the tobacco industry’s marketing tricks and encouraging them to stay in e-cigarette-free environments.
We, as future health care providers, must recognize that patients affected by mental illnesses will need our support and advocacy. We must also understand that some patients might not have the time or financial stability to seek treatment or therapy. Regardless, we should explore other long-term treatment options and strive to make mental health care easily accessible nationally.
We as medical students and doctors see suffering, moaning and pain on a daily basis. We need to recall that life contains more than joy and the vague term of happiness. Unpleasant emotions are natural parts of life. In order to live a good life, we need not enjoy every moment.
Thomas Jefferson has said his piece and this time I won’t attempt to say anything back. This time I won’t stay silent either. This time, I’ll write.
FQHCs serve complex patients, many with multiple comorbidities that have worsened due to lack of health care, health insurance or distrust of the health care system.
The best mentor-mentee relationships I am a part of have allowed me to make mistakes while encouraging me and giving me targeted ways of doing better the next time around. They have also consisted of developing realistic goals and expectations. But, above all, they have taken what I bring to the table and helped elevate what is already there, not change it.
I can only hope that you, my future physician colleagues, and I can understand the greater meaning of the white coat and fulfill its truest potential. That white coat is now our life, and we must not take it for granted.
Previously, the only health care provider who possessed a doctorate degree was the physician. However, with the rise in educational standards across the United States, many health care professionals now must earn doctorates in their field before even beginning their careers.
We can all make a difference in the quality of health care provided to deaf patients and that difference starts with you.
Contributing Writer
University of California, Riverside
My name is Michelle and I am a second year medical student at the University of California, Riverside. I hope to become a pediatrician in the Riverside area and to use sign language to communicate with deaf patients I encounter. Outside of medicine, I enjoy spending time with family & friends, rock climbing, & hiking.
