Some funnies to keep you motivated

Anaesthetists Hymn

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuZl9tRqjoQ

I Wear a Coat

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfoR96w41wk

Study Back

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojjUGE2BH_E&feature=related

Scrubin'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8y8G4s1yxi0&feature=related

Business as Usual as a Pre-Med

You know you're a pre-med when:

1. You oscillate 1,832 times a day between being 100% sure this path is right and 100% sure you'll never make it.

2. If you had a dollar for everytime someone tried to talk you out of being a doctor (including family... WTF is that all about?), you could finance med school without any loans

3. Around the time of exams, you start thinking about how much you liked "insert whatever easy-A class here"... and how you could stop all this nonsense and just be a "insert an easy, creative, organic, granola-type job here".

4. You have wasted tons of money signing up for (and then postponing) the MCAT

5. The feeling of actually being near a patient and doctors in scrubs is equivalent to heroin.

6. You squint in the mirror when you get your lab coat for g-chem and pretend your a doctor

7. Your panic attacks before pre-med class exams are like panic attacks on steroids

8. You become an awfulizer. For instance... if I don't get an A on this exam, then there is NO WAY I can get an A in the class, which means my overall GPA won't be at least 3.6 in the sciences, which means I'll have to compensate with a 34 on the MCAT instead of just trying for a 31, which means I won't get to take the summer off this year because I'll have to study, which means I won't get to go to Europe with my boyfriend, which means he might not get a chance to propose to me, which means we might delay getting married until 3rd year of med school, which means I won't get to be pregnant until AFTER I finish residency (because you just CAN'T have a baby intern year), which means MY WHOLE LIFE DEPENDS ON THIS EXAM.

* This one is sort of specific to traditional pre-meds. Most non-trad pre-meds are over this one.

9. For non-trads, your educational debt going into med school is just as bad as the amount you'll accumulated in med school.

10. You are positively sure that you are 1) the dumbest person in class, 2) everyone else knows what's going on is getting perfect grades and 3) you shouldn't approach your professor for anything because he also knows #1 and #2

Caster Semenya

So the story of the South African runner Caster Semenya is getting me really heated up. She's a world champion runner, 18 years old... and may be potentially disqualified because of the results of "gender" test which indicate that she is a hermaphrodite. Mind you, her external phenotype is female (no on penis, yes on vagina)... she identifies as a woman, and was raised as a woman. Her family says she's a woman. So she's certainly not "lying" about anything.

So what is the controversy? Test results have shown that she has no ovaries and that she has testosterone producing glands which have elevated her levels of testosterone to abnormally high levels.... no word yet on if they are going to do an actual chromosome test to she if she is actually XX or XY. Ok, fine. She has an endocrine abnormality. So do millions of people. Every single woman with thinning hair, polycystic ovarian syndrome, metabolic problems, etc. has elevated levels of testosterone. Every woman post-menopause has decreased levels of estrogen (some abnormally low). Many men have physiological problems such as renal dysfunction as a result of too much estrogen production. And millions of people have chromosome abnormalities and other genetic defects which mess with their hormone levels. Do we suddenly cease to classify these people as a man or a woman? Do we tell them they can't participate in world championship races? No. That's called DISCRIMINATION.

Granted I realize this is about male/female races, and about making sure no one has unfair advantage over their opponents due to physiology... but really, folks....this is just wrong.

Ha!

So my parents have jumped on the P=MD bandwagon... and now continuously say.. "It'll be ok, just pass, remember P=MD" I think it makes them feel better than it makes me feel. It's like they're relieved that they don't have to worry about whether I get A's ... because they know I can get 70% and PASS. My mom actually sent me this in an email after I sent her the P=MD video (see post below):

Just PA--ass, you'll b e okay... da-da, d-d... just PA-ass... p=MD, just PA-ass... da-da, d-da...

Pretty darn funny, actually!

Is this Necessary?

Since Block I is over, we get new lab professors for anatomy. Same cadaver, same student group, but the professors rotate so the students get to experience different teaching styles. All the anatomy professors at my school are retired surgeons... so they know a lot. My first professor, Dr. Ross, was awesome. She was pretty chill, but actually helped us and I felt like I learned a lot. So I was sad to see her move elsewhere.

When I saw that my new professor was Dr. Kovec, I was totally stoked. I really liked his lectures in anatomy class, and he seemed so sweet up there. He has an adorable accent from Croatia, and when I googled him I figured out that he is also a famous novelist.

Too bad he turned out to be not as wonderful as I anticipated. I was shocked and disappointed. Here's a quick run-down of how lab went. (Let me preface this with the fact that the day before we'd finished our first set of block exams, and the class had a huge celebratory party the night before. Many people didn't show up to class, and our lab had a few people missing.)

1. He took attendance (which has never been done before) by going through our photos and calling our names. Ok, fine. Four students from our lab (out of 30) didn't show up. So he proceeded to lecture US about how we need to take responsibility for our education, and show up, yada yada. Let me say, I have NEVER understood the logic behind lecturing the people that SHOW UP to class about that. Granted, I get that he may be frustrated... the logic on that is less than sound. Whatever... Minor annoyance #1

2. He called a girl's name Genevieve something or other... but she nicely said "Yes I'm here, but I actually go by Natalie." Whatever, that's her preference for whatever reason. Her looked her straight in the eye, paused, and said "Ok, GENEVIEVE". Then he proceeded to call her Genevieve for the rest of class. Major annoyance #1 (but not directly to me... so I didn't think much of it.)

3. He didn't bother to give us a pre-lab lecture... which to my knowledge every other instructor does. And extensively. Minor annoyance #2.

4. Since I wasn't one of the students who went out the night before, I actually did the reading ... unlike my group who showed up partially hungover and not terribly excited about an early am anatomy lab. It really didn't bother me, because for once I finally felt like I was the person who knew what the heck was going on... and usually my group is pretty on top of things. So I was at my tank, possibly looking perplexed while reading a portion of the dissector, when my professor approached ME and asked if I had a question. Well, I kind of did... but didn't have it formulated in my mind at that precise moment... so I mumbled something to the effect of "I'm just not clear if this part of the dissection should accompany today's dissection or tomorrow's. It was listed with today's material... but it fits with tomorrow." To which he responded "Well, you haven't read the material"... and he walked away. Major annoyance #3... because I WAS the ONLY one who read the material.

5. After finishing the dissection on my cadaver, I walked to a neighboring cadaver and asked if I could feel their cadaver's lung to see the difference. I gave a quick poke and was satisfied. My professor, however looking over my shoulder... exclaimed "What was that? You can't determine anything with 2 fingers. Are you going to get serious about this or what?!" At that point I decided that the whole scenario was ridiculous... and figured maybe I'd salvage the situation by making a joke. I grabbed the cadavers lung and palpated it unmercifully... then turned to him and asked with a smile if that was better. He huffed and walked away. I then looked at the group (who was looking rather perplexed), and mentioned to them that I thought the anatomy of their cadaver was cool. Our cadaver had a very tiny thorax and a lot of embalming fluid in the lungs... so it was difficult to see all the structures that they had. FROM ACROSS THE ROOM, the professor looked at me and yelled "Those are just EXCUSES!!!" Ridiculous event #1

Omigod, give me strength to finish this block with him!

Update:

I'm officially retracting my rantings about Dr. Kovec. I think I misinterpreted his personality... or maybe we just got off on the wrong foot that first day. But I'm actually liking him now. He does seem genuinely interested in us, and I am getting used to his quirky persona. In fact, today he saw me, patted me on the shoulder and actually seemed pleased to see me. Hmm.... miracles can happen.

How to get a BANGING Letter of Recommendation

In order to get a great letter of recommendation, there are a few things that you have to do....

1) Pick the RIGHT person. Someone who REALLY likes you is way better than someone who just sorta knows you and has an MD. Also, pick someone articulate who you know likes to write. Don't pick Mr. Unenthusiastic or Ms. Monotone. Choose someone who is really into you.... and will make you seem like the best thing since sliced bread.

2) Ask the person for a letter with plenty of lead time. I guarantee if you ask a professor or a physician for a letter that is due in a week is just asking for trouble. You should ask for a letter at the least a month in advance, ideally more, and then give nice consistent reminders.

3) Tell the person what you want them to write (see below). In some cases, with people I'm close to, I've even offered to "draft" a letter if it makes things easier for them. 9 times out of 10, they are relieved that you've offered... and bam! you now have the BEST letter of rec you could possibly get.

4) Put together a "LOR Packet" so that they are less likely to forget about your request, you have an official deadline, and they have all the info they need about you. This packet should include several things....

• A Letter of Recommendation "Information" Sheet (see the sample below)
• An updated version of your resume or CV
• A LOR writer specific sheet listing everything connecting you and the writer (see sample below)
• An addressed envelope (if required) with postage for the writer's convenience

Below are 2 sample letters I drafted as a hypothetical re-applicant non-traditional student. Please feel free to use them if you think they will help you!

SAMPLE - Letter of Recommendation Info

Hello Everyone!

First, I’d like to say thank you SO much for agreeing to write a letter for me. I’ve chosen you to write my letters because somewhere along the way you have helped or inspired me in my academic pursuits… and now in my next endeavor of becoming a physician. You all know that I’ve worked FOREVER to get to this point, and I’m thrilled that you are all helping me reach my ultimate goal.

About my career plans

Just so that everyone is on the same page, I’m applying to medical school. I’m only applying to the M.D. programs, no fancy-schmancy joint-degree programs or anything like that… so that is pretty straight-forward.

I’m interested in eventually pursuing medical training in pediatrics… and I’d like to use that to work in rural underserved areas, locally or internationally. Ideally I’d love to work as a physician on the development of childhood vaccines (more on the clinical side vs. research), with malaria being my primary interest.

A little background about me

I’m originally from Charlotte, and I graduated from Vanderbilt with a BA in studio arts in 2004. I decided a little too late that I wanted to become a physician, so I completed my pre-med requirements after I graduated. I finished my Post-bacc pre-med program at Georgetown in 2006, and since then I have been working full time as an EMT. I am a re-applicant to medical school (original application in 2006), and am looking forward to re-applying with my improved application.

What I have done in improve my medical school re-application

1. Full time EMT work for 2 ½ years

2. Improved my MCAT score from a 26 to a 32

3. Worked part time at Georgetown doing Parkinson’s research

4. Volunteer for St. Paul’s Charity Hospital

5. Visiting presentor for elementary school students on healthy behaviors and dental hygiene.

Letter Logistics

• I’m using the Georgetown letter service, so you just need to submit one generic letter that they will distribute electronically to the schools that I am applying to. The waiver sheet states that I have waived the right to see the letter. You will then send the letter and the waiver sheet to Georgetown letter service for processing.

• Please use department letterhead if you have it available.

• The stamped envelope (included) gets returned to Georgetown letter service.

Deadlines

I would like to have all letters at the Georgetown office by the beginning of June. So, as an unofficial deadline, lets say June 1^st. If this is problematic for anyone, please don’t hesitate to tell me if you need more time.

Letter Specifics

Since I am a re-applicant (with previous LOW scores and undergrad gpa), I know medical schools are specifically looking for an evaluation of my ability to survive the rigors of medical school. If possible please comment on the work-load, course content, and my ability to succeed in medical school.

Included is a copy of my resume/cv so that you have more information should you need it.

Just for your information

You don’t have to send any letters to these places, but for those of you who are curious, this is my tentative list of schools that I am contemplating applying to… in no particular order

1. University of Arizona
2. New York Medical College Valhalla
3. SUNY Downstate
4. University of Miami
5. University of Hawaii
6. UCSD
7. UCLA
8. UC Irvine
9. George Washington
10. Georgetown
11. NYU
12. University of Southern California
13. Stanford
14. Cornell
15. Mount Sinai School of Medicine
16. University of Illinois at Chicago

SAMPLE - Writer Specific Letter

Dear Dr. Filmore,

Here is some information for my letter,

Specific Dates, Etc.

Program Post-Bacc Pre- Med Program Graduated summer 2006

Cumm. Gpa at Georgetown: 3.45

Courses I’ve taken with you: Course Name, Date, Grade Received

Immunology, Spring 2006, A-

General Biology I, Fall 2005, A

What I’d like you to include/mention (if possible)… in addition to all the “normal” stuff

• What I’ve done to improve my medical school application
• The paper that I published with you and Dr. Nelson
• My specific interest in malaria and childhood vaccine development
• Rigors of PBPM as preparation for medical school
• Assessment of my ability to handle medical school

Ok, so sorry if the formatting on this post shows up a little strange... but I was cutting and pasting from WORD and you know how that goes. Anyway, everytime I've ever asked anyone for a LOR, I've received really positive feedback for being organized in my request, and for being considerate for asking for a letter long before I actually needed it. Hopefully if you use this same method it will result in what I got... which was a whole slew of fabulous letters.

Block One...done.

Just finished my first "round" of exams.... Block I is officially over. Grades aren't official yet... but from what I can tell I passed everything fine. The biochem exam was surprisingly manageable... or maybe I'm nuts... but it seemed easy to me. The written anatomy exam is what really got me. Yikes! That was rough.

It would have been nice to have a little more guidance this first block so I didn't have to constantly wish I could just throw a toaster into my bathtub and end it all (does that even kill anyone anymore... or are there "protective elements" in modern toasters?). I mean, I really considered dropping out many many times the first few weeks.... and my sole consolation was the upperclassmen and professors constantly telling the class to relax and remember that P=MD. Anyway, it was touch and go for the first few weeks.... but I made it. Still here. Breathing. Sitting on my couch realizing I could actually go out to dinner with my boyfriend tonight. Hmmm, novel idea.

SCORE:

Ella-153

Med School and Random Forces of Stupid-142

UPDATE: I got my official results from my exams, and did much better than I thought originally! Yay!

SCORE:

Ella-215

Med School and Random Forces of Stupid-171

How It All Plays Out (In Case You're Confused)

Seemed like when I was an undergrad I couldn't find 1) a physician that actually gave me the time of day or 2) a pre-med counselor who knew shit from shinola... so I could essentially never get any straight answers from anyone. So if you're thinking about pre-med or a newbie... here's the sequence of events.

PART I - 3-6 years long.... depending on how much work you need to do!

1) You're a pre-med. Yay! Actually this part sucks. All around. You're so excited... yet so far away from anything good. So you'll need a 4 year degree for about 99% of the medical schools (some schools accept 3 years or a credit cut-off). You should DEFINITELY get your degree if at all humanly possibly. It shows follow through, you are more competitive, and you have something useful if the med school idea tanks... (which at this point we're assuming you're golden... and are going to be the next Sanjay Gupta). Your 4 year degree doesn't have to be science related... but you MUST incorporate the "pre-med" curriculum somewhere. This means 2 semesters of General Bio with lab (8 credits), 2 semesters of General Chem with lab (8 credits), 2 semesters of General Physics with lab (8 credits) and 2 semesters of Organic Chemistry with lab (8 more credits). O-chem is a special treat! Just you wait! Now, please note... these can't be pansy versions of these classes... they gotta be the real deal... classes for pre-meds. You'll know. It wont say "Concepts in biology" or "Physics of baseball". If it looks harder than hell and says "for majors".. that's the one. Ok, now I'm only half kidding about this. It's going to be a tough transition for a little while... but it is totally manageable if you do what you're supposed to do. Ok... on to the next....

2. There's only one thing worse than being a pre-med... that's taking the MCAT. I've listed all my MCAT advice below... you can read that in one of my first posts. Basically, after the MCAT, things just get better!!! That's the good news!

3. Then you apply (through the AMCAS for MD or AACOMAS for DO service) for med school, interview, and get accepted.

PART II - 4 years

4. Yay! You're a med student! Now people will mistakenly call you doctor... which is much cooler than it sounds. Med school is 4 years total. The first 2 years are "basic science"...meaning your head is in a book or your butt is in a classroom a minimum of 10 hours a day. 12 hours is reasonable. Class from 8-2, then study from 2-8. You'll get at least an hour a day to eat and shower the barnacles from all your "wobbly bits".

During these 2 years you'll get more science than you can shake a stick at. Anatomy, Histology, Genetics, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Physiology, Virology, Protozoology, yada, yada, yada. You'll also get sneak previews of your 3rd and 4th year... they'll give you a few days when you can do something clinical... The point of this is basically to throw you a bone once in a while before you throw yourself into traffic. It's well known by all med students that clinical work is like the golden apple from the Garden of Eden. When you hold it in your hand, all else seems very far away... and you're motivated to keep going. But all in all (from what I can tell thus far) med school rocks! At the end of your 2nd year (usually) you'll take STEP I. STEP I is the first exam of your "medical boards".

The second 2 years (years 3 and 4 of med school) are the "clinical years". This is where you do "rotations" or "clerkships". You basically get a 2 year schedule where you rotate around to every possible field of medicine for a learning experience and a taste of the field. You'll do OB, internal medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery, etc. Your school will require you to do your "core rotations" at places they've approved... usually a set of local hospitals affiliated with your med school. However, you'll also have electives (maybe 4 depending on the school), in which you can rotate out to totally other places. If you have your heart set on doing your ER rotation in New York, do it! Geriatrics in Spain? Knock yourself out! There are tons of opportunities in the US and abroad. Somewhere in these 2 years (usually after 3rd year) you'll take STEP II of your boards.

Your 4th year you will also have a lot of free time, as this is the time when you are required to apply for residency and participate in the MATCH. This will require you to fly all around the US for interviews... usually a minimum of 15... often up to 30 or more interviews. This goes from October until Match day which is in March.

5. MATCH DAY. In March of your 4th year... you and the schools you've interviewed at will mutually rank each other. You rank the schools, they rank you, it gets all matched up in the big residency database in the sky... and every 4th year US medical student finds out where they are going to do residency at on the same day. Happy for most, others not so much. If you don't match, you "scramble" 2 days later during a 12 hour window for any positions that didn't get filled. It isn't pretty folks.

PART III - 3-6 years

6. Yay! You graduated from med school and you're going to be a resident. You'll get a measly paycheck... but you have those all important letters after your name and finally your going to kick some ass! Residency is a training they make you do before you are "hire-able". Sure you have an MD at this point... but no real experience in your field....so you gotta do a residency. Depending on your specialty, your residency will be somewhere between 3-6 years. And there's really no hard and fast rule to which is which. In some places OB is 3 years... someplaces 4. IM is generally 3 years, ER is usually 3 or 4 years. You'll get decent benefits, and make somewhere in the vicinity of $45,000 your first year. This will increase about $2000 per year that you are in residency.

Your first year of residency is called your "intern" year. You're low man on the totem poll, and you get abused pretty bad in some places. Meaning long hours, lots of responsibility, and you still really don't know crap about medicine. Subsequent years get better... cause you'll have interns to abuse... and they'll do your work for you.

You'll also have to pass STEP III sometime early on in residency.... which is what is required to be any physician in the US. In order to be "board certified" in your specialty, you'll also have to pass the "boards" for your specialty (a specific exam just on OB, ER, Peds, or whatever you do).

PART IV - 2-6 years or more!

7. Now you're a real doctor, but you have Stockholm Syndrome now, and don't want to leave your captures. So you do a fellowship if you so desire. A fellowship is a SUB-specialty of whatever specialty you did in residency. For example, Cardiology, Gastroenterology, Critical Care, Endocrinology, Oncology... those are all sub-specialties of Internal Medicine. So if you want to be a Cardiologist, you'll be doing a fellowship. Don't worry, you'll get paid... but only about $55,000. That part sucks. And of course you'll have to pass the "board" exam for whatever your sub-specialty is as well.

PART V - the rest of your life...

8. So now you are 187 years old and you're a doctor. You can now afford to pay off your student loans in about a year, you can buy that Audi you want, and you suddenly realize you don't have to eat top ramen and pop-tarts anymore. Life is good...

Moral of the story?

This is a long long long road. If you aren't enjoying the JOURNEY, you're going to waste a lot of your life. Don't do this for money, because by the time you get it you won't care anymore. This is a great path if you accept each step for what it is, make the best of it, and don't let yourself get caught up in "waiting" to be a doctor. Keep your real self very present in all that you do... so that you don't wake up in 20 years wondering why you waited so long to be happy.

Good Luck!