My Medical Journey @medicaljourney - Tumblr Blog

“Beyond the gates of medicine lies a veritable hornet’s nest of situations that require thoughtful attention to ethics. The life-or-death circumstances so common in medicine – do you or don’t you take someone off of life support, continue recommending a feeding tube, increase the morphine – present difficult ethical dilemmas for every person treating patients. Extraordinary circumstances, commonplace in medicine, call for medical students, as members of treatment teams, to have an ethical mooring well before they become primary decision makers… In building your ethical foundation for medical decision-making, you should include such necessary components as developing open-mindedness to a spectrum of possible solutions to ethical dilemmas, cultivating an understanding of the ethics appropriate in medical situations, and establishing your own views on specific ethical issues.” - Dr. Jeremy Spiegel, The Mindful Medical Student

#book #books #medicine #med school #med student #medblr #quote #quotes #medical student #medical school #premed #pre-med

humansofnewyork

“All doctors have those patients who sit on our shoulder. Their image is always with you. One kid will pop into your head every time you hit a wall– when you encounter a disease that is so unrelenting that you’ve exhausted all therapies and you’re still not even close. One memory will keep you going. It’s a different kid for every doctor. It’s hard to know why they stick with us. I remember one patient that had red hair just like my son. And I remember one five-year-old girl who made me laugh, because when I asked her how she was doing, she told me: ‘I don’t know. You’re the doctor.’ And then there was the boy early in my career who was born without an immune system. He’d already lost two older siblings to the same disease. He lived the first two years of his life in an isolation room with no windows, and his entire exposure to the world was through a black-and-white TV. We gave him a bone marrow transplant, and suddenly his immune system came online. And we took him for a walk in the garden. This boy who had spent his entire life in a windowless room. And a sparrow landed on a bush, and he pointed at it, and said: ‘Bird.’ That moment will always be with me.”

#doctor #doctors #cancer #pediatric cancer #sloan kettering #medicine

humansofnewyork

“Some of my colleagues tell me they can’t imagine working in pediatrics. Millions of years of evolution have conditioned us to respond to the cries of a child. We can’t bear to see a child in pain. And once we have children of our own, it makes the work even more difficult. We all handle it differently, but everyone cries at some point. Not in front of the patient, but everyone cries. Every few months we have a ceremony where we mourn all the children who have passed away. We have a slideshow. We make cards. We talk about them and remember them together. We acknowledge that we all feel the loss. And even though our grief is not as significant as the family’s, it’s not trivial either. And we must take time to acknowledge that. Or all of us will burn out.”

#cancer #pediatrics #medicine #pediatric cancer #sloan kettering

humansofnewyork

“If there’s a chance then it’s worth a try. Even if nobody else wants to try, I will try. A lot of these kids have exhausted all their options. They may have had several surgeries elsewhere and it’s either hospice or one more try. My colleagues are amazing. So I know that if I can get this lump out, the child has a chance. I view each of these kids as my own. My team is amazing but I take 100% responsibility for the outcome and I don’t like to lose a drop of blood. So it’s a lot of stress. I have four grafts in my heart. My neck muscles are always tense. Some of these surgeries have probably taken years off my life. But tumors kill kids in very horrible ways. So if there’s a chance, I will try.” ———————————————————— As we learn these stories, we are trying to raise $1,000,000 to help the team at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in their fight against pediatric cancer. Thanks to the 15,000 people who have contributed so far. We’re almost 60% of the way there. Please consider donating:http://bit.ly/1TpFcdy

#cancer #pediatrics #pediatric cancer #medicine #sloan kettering

I recently visited one of my favorite museums, the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia. The Mütter Museum, which is part of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia, was created for medical research and education. The main goal of the museum is to help the public understand the mysteries and beauty of the human body, while appreciating the history of diagnosis and treatment of disease. The museum contains collections of anatomical and pathological specimens, antique medical instruments, medical oddities, wax models, a medicinal garden and more. My favorite current exhibitions are “Vesalius On The Verge: The Book and The Body”, showcasing the work of Andreas Vesalius, who is considered the “Father of Modern Anatomy” and the “Stitch in Spine Saves Nine: Innovations in Spinal Surgery” exhibit. The Mütter Museum also has an amazing gift shop (check the photo to see what I picked up).

#mutter museum #medicine #anatomy #museum #philadelphia #philly #mutter #premed #pre-med #medblr #medical science

I was pleasantly surprised to receive this book and a handwritten note in the mail from admissions at Mayo Clinic congratulating me on my acceptance. A very touching gesture from a wonderful med school.

#med school #medical school #personal #accepted #premed #pre-med #medblr #med student #medical student

This book, Top Tier Premed by Brandon-Luke L Seagle MD, is immensely informative. It's a great read for anyone who is premed whether you are just thinking about pursuing medicine or if you're already about to apply to med schools. Top Tier Premed is different from a lot of the other pre-med guidance books out there. Dr. Seagle even includes his entire AMCAS application in the book. Dr. Seagle graduated in 2011 from Stanford University School of Medicine. On top of having experience serving on the admissions committee and mentoring premeds, he has the personal experience of recently applying to med school and having a very successful outcome.

#premed #pre-med #books #book #med school #medical school #medblr

The seemingly easiest and most sensible rule for a doctor to follow is: Always Fight. Always look for what more you could do. I am sympathetic to this rule. It gives us our best chance of avoiding the worst error of all – giving up on someone we could have helped …In a way, our task is to 'Always Fight.' But our fight is not always to do more. It is to do right by our patients, even though what is right is not always clear.

Dr. Atul Gawande, Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance

#quote #atul gawande #books #medicine #medblr #health #physicians #healthcare #doctors

Complications: A Surgeon’s Notes on an Imperfect Science by Dr. Atul Gawande is an absolute must read for anyone going into medicine. The book, in Dr. Gawande’s own words, illuminates “the moments in which medicine actually happens”. Dr. Gawande is a surgeon, writer, and public health researcher. He practices general and endocrine surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts and is Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School.

#books #medicine #atul gawande #physicians #healthcare #health #science #surgery #surgeons #premed #pre-med #med school #doctors #med student #medblr #medical school #medical student

The best interest of the patient is the only interest to be considered

William J. Mayo, M.D. (1861-1939), a physician and surgeon and one of the seven founders of the Mayo Clinic.

#quote #quotes #medicine #mayo clinic #doctors #healthcare #patient centered care #medblr #premed #pre-med #med student #medical student #med school #medical school #doctor #physician

I have some great news to share! I'm celebrating something I've dreamed about since I first heard about the Mayo Clinic and their amazing medical school. I remember when I first started my pre-med coursework and was reading about different med schools, I fell in love with Mayo. Years later and my dream has come true - I got into Mayo! It was such a surprise when I got the phone call. I actually didn't have my phone on me when the call came in. When I saw I had a missed call from Rochester, MN, my excitement started to build as that's where the Mayo Clinic is located. I googled the number and found out it was a Mayo Clinic number! The phone started ringing again and it was the doctor who interviewed me calling to give me the good news and congratulate me. It was an incredible moment that I will never forget.

#med school #medical school #accepted #personal #premed #pre-med #medblr #medblog #med student #medical student #medicine

Above all, don't fear difficult moments. The best comes from them.

Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini, M.D.

Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini was an Italian neurologist who, together with colleague Dr. Stanley Cohen, received the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of nerve growth factor (NGF).

After graduating with her M.D. in 1936, Dr. Rita Levi-Montalcini worked at the University of Turin in the anatomy department, but her academic career was cut short by Benito Mussolini's 1938 Manifesto of Race and she lost her job due to the introduction of laws barring Jews from academic and professional careers. During World War II, she set up a laboratory in her bedroom and studied the growth of nerve fibers in chicken embryos, which laid the groundwork for much of her later research. When the Germans invaded Italy in 1943 her family fled south to Florence, where she set up a second laboratory in a corner of their shared living space. During this time she also volunteered her medical expertise for the Allied health service. In September 1946, Dr. Levi-Montalcini was offered a research fellowship in the laboratory of Professor Viktor Hamburger at Washington University in St. Louis. After she duplicated the results of her home laboratory experiments, Professor Hamburger offered her a research associate position, which she held for 30 years.

#quote #science #history #medicine #world war 2 #world war ii #neuroscience #neurology #nobel prize #rita levi montalcini #nerve growth factor

I interviewed at Tulane School of Medicine recently and was very impressed by this Center they have.

The Goldring Center for Culinary Medicine at Tulane University School of Medicine is the first program in the country to combine culinary arts and medicine. The center provides hands on training for medical students through culinary medicine classes in the form of electives and seminars. The center also teaches free community cooking classes that are open to the public and include classes for adults and classes for children. The topics taught in the community classes include a broad range of topics including meal planning, nutrition, shopping and eating healthy on a budget. Medical students volunteer at these classes and teach participants cooking techniques, as well as nutrition and general tips on healthier eating. In addition, Tulane medical students participate in community events including health fairs with such partnering organizations as the American Diabetes Association. During these events, nutrition information is provided, food demonstrations are performed and counseling is offered.