Spirituality By the Bedside: Training Physicians Beyond Medicine
The illness experience is chiseled by the search for meaning, for purpose, for greater understanding of existential suffering. This search is at the center of the spiritual journey.
Tag: patient care
Contributing Writer
UNC School of Medicine
Mili is a second-year medical student at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill, NC class of 2026. In 2022, she graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts in biology and chemistry. She enjoys reading thriller novels, exploring local coffee shops, and biking in her free time. After graduating medical school, Mili would like to pursue critical care medicine and engage in narrative medicine/medical humanities education.
Pulses of Connection
Pulses of Connection is an attempt at delving into mind-body connections in medicine. This column will strive to emphasize how mobilizing the deep connections between our mind and physical bodies can enhance our sense of oneness, health, and well-being. Through narrative and exposition, I will explore how practicing physicians, medical students in training, and premedical students can integrate mindfulness in their lifestyles, as well as how such approaches can be crafted to bring healing to our patients.
Scenes of A Medical Student
Endless alarms, coffee to-go, Adidas tennis shoes toe to toe./Password guesses, ID scans, room by room – endless lands.
Care
To be seen, / as you are, / For who you are, / Absent judgment, / Equals patient care.
My First Call
As a 17-year-old fresh out of emergency medical technician (EMT) training, I was eager to complete my first ambulance call. The thought of rushing to someone’s rescue excited me. In fact, providing immediate, lifesaving care is what drew me to become an EMT in the first place.
Lessons from the OBGYN Waiting Room: A Reflection on Clinical Research Recruitment
One young woman sits and waits patiently, scrolling on her phone to pass the time. A couple sits across the room talking softly to each other. The air feels light in the quiet room. A woman arrives, checks in, walks with heavy steps to a chair and sits down with a sigh.
The Most Important Thing: First Day on Wards
Most of all though, I tried to calm my racing mind and remind myself to just learn. And with that, I wondered, “What is the most important thing I can do today?”
Less Likely to Get a Kidney if You’re a Minority—Even if You’re a Kid!
During my three weeks working in the pediatric dialysis unit and the post-kidney transplant unit, I noticed a troublesome trend. The whiter and younger pediatric patients were resting comfortably in the post-transplant unit with their new surgically placed kidney being meticulously taken care of. The darker and older pediatric patients spent countless, mindless hours attached to a dialysis machine with little hope for a new kidney after years of being on the waitlist.
Midnight Hour
The moon has risen and our shift has begun. / We night owls hold vigil in the resident room.
With Love, Your PA Classmate
As my fellow PA students and I compared notes after our first cadaver dissection session with our medical student colleagues here at Stanford University, we discovered that more than a few of us had fielded slightly abashed questions from our MD student counterparts along the lines of, “So, what exactly is a PA?”
When “Can I” becomes “May I?”: The Struggle for Functionality and Treatment in the Era of Insurance Corporations
Her agitation was clearly apparent, plastered to her face like the smile she had worn moments ago. The phone was still clenched tightly in her hand as she paced the narrow hallway, muttering under her breath how travesties like this would not occur back in her native Ghana.
Pre-Medical Guest Writer
Louisiana State University
Abishek Stanley is a third year Biological Engineering major on the pre-medical path at Louisiana State University. Abishek is the captain of the debate team, a undergraduate researcher in the field of nano particles, the Director of Diversity for executive government, a member of chess team, and a STAMPS scholar. When not at these activities, you can usually find Abishek volunteering at Hospice, playing soccer with friends, or cheering on the LSU football team to victory. Geaux Tigers!