Contributing Writer Emeritus
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Lindsay Boyers is a medical student at Georgetown University School of Medicine with an interest in dermatology. She graduated magna cum laude from University of California Santa Barbara in 2009 with a degree in Communications and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She enjoys both clinical medicine and research, having taken a year to conduct research at the University of Colorado in the department of dermatology. She enjoys the arts, especially painting and writing, and spending time with her family in Colorado.
She had not been home in at least three days. She sat motionless, shoulders slumped, arms draped limply over her lap. I couldn’t tell if she had nodded off. The wrinkles of her clothes seemed to blend into the lines of her face, stuck in a soft, yet permanent frown. The red of her blouse appeared faint against her pallid skin, as if exhaustion had sapped everything it could from her being, and had moved …
How can doctors-in-training frame their attitudes about the challenges of medical school to make it a nourishing and enjoyable process? Sonali, a second-year medical student in New York, describes how the teachings she learned from her Hindu Vedanta tradition about selfless service — also known as “karma yoga” — influence her approach to medical school.
When I began to think about becoming a doctor — sixty years ago while in high school — I thought of medicine in terms of being a healer. I imagine each of you have had similar thoughts before and now during medical school. But what does it mean to be a healer and how does one go about becoming one?
How can doctors-in-training navigate uncomfortable encounters with physicians of different generations and genders? Sam, a third-year medical student, shares her experience receiving inappropriate advances from an older male doctor, and reflects on the range of responses she could have made.
When I told people I was going to medical school, the first thing I’d hear was, “Oh, you’ll be a good doctor.” As an idealistic and energetic first-year, I was flattered every time a standardized patient complimented me. But I wasn’t a good doctor — I don’t even have an MD. I was exposed to esoteric subjects like biochemistry and physiology, but I wasn’t much help to any person in distress. I believed, like my …
It’s easy to see how the hospital can be an intimidating place for a patient. Being alone, in an unknown environment, covered only a flimsy cloth gown, and surrounded by strangers can make anyone anxious. Now, imagine not knowing what these strangers are saying to you, about you. Imagine these strangers cannot understand a single word you say. I had just finished up a previous case in the OR with the orthopedics team when the …
How can doctors-in-training cultivate a strong community in order to survive the challenges of the first year of medical school? Mckenna, a rising second-year medical student, reflects on the lessons she learned from her first year in medical school: the importance of working with others, taking care of yourself and being humble. She also shares why she feels hopeful for the future of health care.
Ms. Romero is an otherwise healthy medical student who was transferred to the MICU with acute liver failure; isoniazid toxicity. Crystal had a positive PPD screening, negative chest x-ray and started therapy for potential LTBI. After seven weeks the patient felt fatigued, anorexic, jaundiced, RUQ abdominal pain, and was found to have elevated LFT’s & INR. She was originally admitted to INOVA for observation, but was transferred to Medstar Georgetown University Hospital MICU and worked …
This week on History & Physical, Kevin Wang interviews Dr. Danielle Ofri. Dr. Ofri is the author of The New York Times best-seller “What Doctors Feel,” editor-in-chief of the Bellevue Literary Review, contributor to The New York Times, associate professor of medicine at New York University School of Medicine, and internist at Bellevue Hospital.
How can doctors-in-training stay open to the many possible paths they can pursue without getting overwhelmed? Rebecca, a rising second-year medical student who took time off between undergrad and medical school, reflects on the challenges and opportunities that committing to medical school entails for her.
How can doctors-in-training practice medicine with a social justice approach that acknowledges health is not just about medicine, but about systems? Teresa, a recent medical school graduate from Hawaii going into family medicine, examines how her own privilege informed her mission to serve the communities she cares for as a clinician.
I was recently granted one of those rare, quiet Sunday afternoons we experience in medical school, and decided to spend it reading short stories. The story I picked up was “I Want to Live!” by Thom Jones. The story focuses on a cancer-ridden woman, Mrs. Wilson, reaching a meaningful place in her life amidst the throes of death. As I read the journey of Mrs. Wilson, my eyes flooded as my emotions finally caught up with me. The story …
Contributing Writer Emeritus
Baylor College of Medicine
I am a Class of 2015 medical student at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. My planned future specialty is child and adolescent psychiatry. I enjoy reading literature, photography and traveling.
