Tag: transitions

Yichi Zhang Yichi Zhang (8 Posts)

Contributing Writer and Social Media Manager

Tulane University School of Medicine

Yichi Zhang is a third-year MD/MBA student at Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans, Louisiana. He graduated from Tulane University with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology and a minor in Psychology. In his free time, Yichi enjoys playing tennis, teaching Chinese, and practicing Kendo. After he graduates medical school, Yichi wishes to pursue a career in Internal Medicine, with a focus on personalized medicine, all the while building more connections between the American and Chinese medical communities.




How “It’s” Made — Doctor’s Edition: Comparing American and Chinese Medical Education

Published by Yichi Zhang

Gather a group of American and Chinese first year medical students in one lecture hall, and you will notice some obvious differences right away. The Americans will likely be older with more work experience under their belt already. There will be more women on the Chinese side, and most have been full-time students all their lives. Dig beyond appearances and ask them what their daily curriculum consists of, and you will find even more interesting differences.

Starting from Scratch: Building MS1 Teamwork During the Pandemic

Published by Jennifer Geller

None of us pictured beginning medical school in a pandemic. Most of us are still in shock we were admitted to medical school owing to severe imposter syndrome. Despite the exceedingly virtual nature of the fall semester — as of now, our only in-person activities are optional anatomy labs — we have hitherto made the most of this experience. Undeterred by the inability to partake in many in-person activities as a class, we are fostering meaningful relationships with our peers online and in person.

Leading the Rounds: The Medical Leadership Podcast — “Hamza Khan on Addressing Burnout from the Inside Out”

Published by Caleb Sokolowski

In this episode, we interview Hamza Khan. Hamza is a multi-award winning marketer, best-selling author and global keynote speaker whose TEDx talk “Stop Managing, Start Leading” has been viewed over a million times. He is a top-ranked university educator, serial entrepreneur and respected thought leader whose insights have been featured by notable media outlets such as VICE, Business Insider and The Globe and Mail.

The Vulnerability of Our Patients and Ourselves: A Parallel Chart Reflection

Published by Rachel Fields

I actually don’t remember his name; he wasn’t my patient. I just saw him during rounds every day during my internal medicine clerkship. He was in his late-80s, and he was very ill. He had a long history of COPD, most likely attributed to his even longer history of smoking. He had been admitted to our service for a severe respiratory infection a few days prior to me starting the rotation. This was my last rotation of my 3rd year, and I walked in thinking I had seen enough COPD patients to know exactly what to expect.

Call It What It Is

Published by Sara Wierbowski

Anxiety defined me more when I denied its existence than it does now that I’ve faced it head-on. Maybe the anxiety helped me get to where I was, but it was a burden I didn’t have to bear — especially not alone. Even knowing how important mental health is as a future physician, it embarrassed me to admit that I might need a prescription to help me cope with my fears and anxieties.

Navigating Trauma in Your Personal Statement for Medical School

Published by Britt D.K. Gratreak

I applied to medical school twice. In retrospect, I was unsuccessful the first time for a few reasons: my timing was terrible, I had too much humility about my achievements and I didn’t ask for enough opinions about my application from people who were rooting for me. My trauma was also too raw and recent to write in a way for strangers to understand.

Tanner Smith’s Path to Medical School

Published by Coco Thomas

Tanner always planned on becoming a physician, but found himself with a gap year before medical school. During this time, he began teaching different levels of students and soon realized how much he enjoyed tailoring concepts to fit the needs of his varied audience. He told me about his first failed lesson in anatomy, when he learned the hard way that kindergartners can get rowdy and don’t quite know their colors yet.

Medical Students Do Not Owe You Their Trauma

Published by Tabitha Moses

Interviewers who ask these questions in a professional setting typically consider these issues to be academic — purely topics for discussion that might provide useful insight into the way the applicant views the world. But for applicants who have been affected, these issues are not merely academic and their discussion can invoke significant emotional turmoil. So before we continue to tacitly accept this shift in interviewing, it is important to consider its purpose and impact on those being interviewed.

Tabitha Moses Tabitha Moses (2 Posts)

Contributing Writer

Wayne State University School of Medicine

Tabitha Moses is a fifth-year MD/PhD Candidate at Wayne State University School of Medicine. She grew up in England and moved to Baltimore to complete her B.A in Cognitive Science and Philosophy and M.S. in Biotechnology at Johns Hopkins University. She is passionate about policy and advocating for her patients. She is currently working on her PhD in Translational Neuroscience focusing on the effects of stress on people with opioid use disorder as well as working to improve addiction medicine education. After graduating medical school, she would like to pursue a career as a physician-scientist in addiction psychiatry.