His Lens
His hands were shaking as they gently peeled open a tattered envelope. I leaned forward, attempting to understand what he was trying to show us, then gasped.
Tag: humanism in medicine
Contributing Writer
McGovern Medical School
Hunter is currently a fourth year medical student at McGovern Medical School in Houston, Texas. In 2018, she graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelors of Science in Kinesiology and minor in Biology. In her free time she enjoys journaling, spending time with her dog, hiking and being outdoors, lifting weights, and listening to podcasts. She plans to pursue a career in Obstetrics and Gynecology guided by her passion of incorporating education, humanities, and interdisciplinary care to optimize women's health.
This is Going to Hurt: The Power of Reflection in Healing
Thinking. We do it all the time, from the most minute choices to the most momentous decisions. Part and parcel of our daily lives, thought is inextricable from how we see, feel and believe. But how often do we take the time to reflect? To ruminate on our experiences and flesh out how dynamically we are molded by them?
The Long Road to Healing
This period of healing set Lori on a long road that was paved with pain. She lived in chronic pain from the fistula. While her physicians delicately weighed her safety with pain relief, she learned to balance both patience and uncertainty.
Scan to Scan
A fog of emotions blankets the waiting room / Stress and anxiety, with some impending doom.
Angel: Choosing to Be Vulnerable
It is morning outside, the sun barely kissing the horizon. The curtains have been drawn in an attempt to force any lick of light from the room. But one slim shard cuts through the drapes, illuminating John’s face.
An Unexpected Apology
Over the next few days, workup revealed she was experiencing paraneoplastic cerebellar degeneration, a manifestation of her occult cancer. In a matter of three days, a patient who had come in for seemingly benign constipation was told she had metastatic lung cancer.
First Day
After our first week on clinical rotations, my third-year medical student colleagues laughed about the silly and awkward things that made their first days hard. Someone was shunned for bumping into the sterile field during their first operation. Someone else couldn’t figure out the scrub machines and was stuck mismatching for the day.
Detectives in Disguise
When I was growing up, I used to love a particular series of video games called Trauma Center. In 2010, they released a version called Trauma Team where you got to play as various medical specialists, one of whom was simply considered a “Diagnostician.” Dr. Gabriel Cunningham’s “cases” were some of the most challenging because you were presented with an array of symptoms, imaging, and lab work and started ruling in or ruling out diagnoses until you got the right answer.
in-Training’s Role in Cultivating the Medical Humanities, by Samuel Rouleau, MD
Simply put, the humanities seek to capture the mosaic of human existence across the chasms of jubilation and despair, life and death, love and fear. The humanities are both disciplines of academic study and modes of expression.
Medical Writing as the Future History of Medicine, by Will Jaffee, DO
In my high school years, I had an English teacher, Mr. Moon, who once remarked that his dream would be to “write a paper” about a certain book we were reading, and publish it somewhere. “Write a paper”? Was he kidding? In his free time, he was going to write?
You
You’ve taken everything / Nothing is left
Humanity in Medicine
During my M3 rotations, I believe I have learned as much about medicine as I have about humanity. I’ve come to appreciate that to perform well in this profession, we must embrace both its scientific and human elements.
Contributing Writer
Eastern Virginia Medical School
Lauren is a fourth year medical student at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, VA Class of 2023. In 2017, she graduated from the University of Virginia with a Bachelors of Science in Education in Communication Disorders. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outside - running, hiking, camping, and skiing. After graduating medical school, Lauren plans to pursue a career in OBGYN.