In my journey through medical school, I have realized that pursuing a career in family medicine will allow me to address several of my special interests while also allowing me to serve me community effectively. I came to medical school after having taught eighth grade, and I knew that I wanted to be able to provide health services to adolescents. Additionally, my interests include a commitment to medically underserved populations and preventive medicine and a love of teaching. By incorporating these interests into a full-service practice, including obstetrics and hospital medicine, I believe that I can truly meet the needs of my community as well as my own personal career goals.
My interest in adolescent populations is one of the main reasons I am opting for a career in family medicine. Teenagers fall through the cracks so easily, and often end up without a primary health care provider. Since the attitudes and behaviors of a lifetime are often cemented during the teen years, I believe it is vitally important that young people have a physician with whom they are comfortable discussing their physical and emotional needs and concerns. As patients, teenagers tend to respond more readily to a compassionate atmosphere involving someone who wants to help them learn to help themselves. By integrating the various aspects of family medicine ‘’ including pediatrics, general medicine, psychiatry, and OB-GYN ‘’ the whole adolescent can be treated.
I also hope to address the needs of the special populations. For a number of years, I watched my sister suffer with the physical disabilities that accompanied her mental retardation. I was often frustrated by the lack of understanding of her needs demonstrated by the medical community. I began to recognize a similar pattern among her friends who were disabled - their medical needs were also not often being met. Having volunteered with the Special Olympics on both state and international levels, I have been exposed even more to the needs that the special populations present, and the ways that I can most effectively contribute to their healthy lifestyles. I look forward to incorporating this population into my practice.
I have learned that people with substance abuse issues present a special set of challenges, and I plan to use what I have learned in a prevention effort in my community. My mother began a non-profit halfway house program when I was in high school, and I have had the opportunity to watch it grow into a multi-facility program which now includes over 80 beds for men, women, and veterans in recovery. The exposure has been phenomenal, and I genuinely see the importance of recognizing addiction issues and working to address them in every way possible.
Family medicine offers me the opportunity to commit myself to serving my patients who have needs in all areas of medicine. By integrating my own special interests including underserved populations, prevention, and teaching into the delivery of health care to the whole family, I believe I can realize the goals I have set for myself as a physician.
I had some academic difficulties in the basic sciences as a result of my difficulties with test taking. I was able to address these difficulties in a decelerated curriculum that allowed me to spread out the traditional preclinical courses and focus on each course in more depth. The curriculum also allowed me to further develop my interests, both inside and outside of medicine. I was able to complete more electives and participate in extracurricular activities including research in domestic violence, and a number of teaching and outreach prevention programs. Returning to the full-time curriculum for my clinical clerkships, I have been able to bring to my clinical work the skills and insight I developed from my extracurricular activities. Though it was personally difficult for me to accept a change in the course I had planned, I am grateful for the additional enriching opportunities. I am greatly looking forward to having the opportunity to enhance my residency and career with the interests and abilities that I have fostered during medical school.
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