The Line
I have stood on both sides of the line– / The line between mother and medic; / The line between parent and practitioner.
Poetry Thursdays
Poetry Thursdays is our initiative to highlight poetry and prose by medical students, with a new post every Thursday. If you are interested in contributing or would like to learn more, please contact our editors.
Writer-in-Training
Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine
Alison Toback is a third year medical student at Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine. Prior to that, she graduated from Drexel University with a BS in Biological Sciences and an MPH with a concentration in Epidemiologiy and Biostatistics. When she isn't studying or running around a hospital, she enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter, knitting, and eating dessert. She has a blog entitled Simply A, where she writes about medicine, motherhood, mental health, and other things that don't start with the letter M.
your heart has four chambers, is there room for me?
time, / its lifespan ceases to exist / as the gold warmth of your hazel eyes surround me
Last and First Days
Was it a fall? Did I miss the last step? These things I cannot recall / Hidden from sight, the blood crept from one lone vessel and began to compress / Nice to meet you, one medical student said, as he unzipped my sheath
two slides
after three years go by / you appear on two slides / in a lecture / on motor neuron disease
Under
Little girl / in the pink hospital gown / sits in a windowless room.
A Privilege to Chore
The many tables corral him, / All the people surround him, / A trained doctor he is not, / Giving up, he hasn’t thought.
Nascent Hands
First, do no harm, but to harm not I must first see / With swift breath, I begin. / You, silent teacher, my new textbook
One Step At A Time
My mind wakes up in the morning / Sweating with facts / Preparing / For the archeological dig.
Medical School
Felt like war, those early years, / We fought a fight for all those years.
Are We All Impostors?
Is it just me? / Or does it seem / that my pride / will not let me be
No Emergency Contacts
I found them for you. / Your blonde little girls who grew into women / Then grew apart from you. / I found them.
Dreams Versus Reality
My balance beam within the clouds / Seems lost amongst the starry night / As dreams and thoughts blur vision to / The reality of my true plight.
Writer-in-Training
University of Central Florida College of Medicine
Alayna is a first year medical student at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine in Orlando, Florida. She also has a Molecular Biology and Microbiology degree from the University of Central Florida and is a proud Orlando native who knows that Orlando is much more than just theme parks and tourists. Her medical interests include community health, global health, and bioethics. When not studying, she enjoys reading fiction novels, rollerblading at local parks, and planning her next travel adventure.