INTERNAL MEDICINE RESIDENCY PERSONAL STATEMENT #3

My decision to enter medicine is a coalescence of several driving forces. My admiration and respect for doctors and their noble work is one of my primary reasons for wanting to pursue a career in medicine. The other is the simple fact that the vast ocean of knowledge, the continual advances in treatment, and the ability to cure disease fascinate me. In medical school, my open mind and experiences in a wide range of specialties were key factors in my personal growth and career objectives. During my internal medicine rotations, I worked with a variety of patients, from a range of economic, social and cultural backgrounds, and featuring a wide range of conditions. While I mastered the techniques of taking patient histories and conducting thorough physical examinations, each patient taught me something new. I actively involved myself in my ward duties and routine diagnostic procedures to gain hands-on experience, willingly stayed up late discussing cases and monitoring patients with my colleagues, and eagerly spent my free hours sitting in the wards, interacting with and educating patients about their diseases. Long interested in education and community outreach, I also plunged into various community services including HIV counseling, rural school health checkups and health camps organized by my institution. Helping the underprivileged have a positive outlook on life and bringing smiles to their faces, during medical school and my time in India, has been extremely rewarding. After graduating from medical school, I had the opportunity to serve as the medical officer in charge of forty-two villages in rural India, with a population of 33,000. While managing an outpatient clinic, antenatal and post-natal care, deliveries, and patient admissions, I matured as a physician and learned to apply my education in a clinical setting. I also carried out various national health programs including the World Health Organization's Malaria Control, Universal Immunization, Maternal and Child health, and Leprosy Control programs. During a rainy season, a cholera epidemic struck one of the villages and flooded the hospital with patients. My colleague and I went from house to house, educating people about the importance of sanitation and chlorination of water, but despite our efforts, the epidemic spread to the neighboring villages. Although I felt helpless and angry at the lack of technology and resources that bound my hands, my colleagues and I decided to fight as a team. Nursing sick people back to health gave me my first taste of satisfaction as a physician and helped me to appreciate the severity and complexity of healthcare issues today. I intend to take full advantage of a residency program in internal medicine and to use the knowledge I acquire there to heal patients and train others interested in the field. My diverse life experiences have helped me realize that I possess the determination, resilience, mental strength and compassion to succeed as a valuable asset to a medical team. I want to be a resource for my patients and a source of continual medical care. Considering the strong healthcare system, numerous opportunities for research, and advanced technology in America, this is where I see my dream coming true.

I commenced medical school with the aim of becoming an internist. I was drawn to the vastness of the field, the diagnostic process, and the continual advancements in treatment that allows one to improve the lives of others. This decision was also shaped by many of my relatives who are internists, as I was able to witness firsthand the joys of their profession. The first two years of medical school fortified this desire, as I enjoyed learning about multiple disease processes. As I progressed through the third year, making the most of each observation and experience on the wards, I found myself enjoying each of my rotations, but particularly enjoyed taking care of patients core medical problems. Patient interaction, the art of diagnosis, and being able to witness improvement in patients conditions, all came together this year. During my 4th year, my father unexpectedly had a coronary stent placed which put him in a very anxious and depressed state of mind. After careful deliberation with my father, I thought it would

be best if I be close to him during this recovery time; however, there were no medicine positions available in the area. I have been helping my father cope with different issues, as he was quite taken aback by the procedure, given that he never had any symptoms I have been volunteering with different internists and specialists this year, which has been quite beneficial in maintaining my clinical skills and staying apprised of the latest developments in the literature. My continued experiences with patients have reaffirmed the veracity of my original desire to pursue internal medicine. I am thus set on pursuing my goal of a career in internal medicine. I understand it takes more than interest and inclination to be successful in medicine. My experiences during the third year of medical school confirmed my joy of working with people and shed new light on the values of hard work, efficiency, and punctuality. I also believe my close attention to detail is essential in maintaining a high level of patient care. I truly enjoy speaking with patients on a one-to-one basis about their problems, and found that this was valuable time spent not only on the humanistic level, but also in terms of arriving at the proper diagnosis more quickly. One of the great joys of my clinical years was being a part of a team of individuals with a common goal of helping fellow human beings. I hope to further this experience in the role of a resident. I have also always enjoyed teaching other students. As a fourth year student I tutored first and second year medical students in the basic sciences. Likewise, I found it a joy to teach the third year students on my team about various syndromes, which all had the added benefit of reinforcing this information in my mind. I believe my experience as a mentor to students will help me accept the physicians role as a teacher to his patients , which will improve the quality of patient care I also have many interests outside of medicine, such as playing chess, long-distance running, basketball, and tennis. As a resident, my goal, simply stated, is to work hard each day to efficiently provide the best of care to my community. I hope to do this in an environment of guided independence that fosters continued intellectual development and stimulation, with diversity of pathology. I believe I have the necessary talents and interests to be a competent, productive resident. My consistent success through medical school demonstrates my self-motivation and drive. Lastly, one of the important tenets that my medical school experience reinforced was to have perspective, which helped me step back and reaffirm my dedication to medicine many times. I consider this an asset, and believe it will help me be a more productive resident. I believe my experiences have confirmed that internal medicine is the field of my choice.

Medicine encompasses numerous areas that I have always found intriguing. Becoming a physician is a life long dream that will fulfill both my personal and career goals. I feel privileged to have found a career that will allow me to accomplish all my aspirations; learning about the human body, helping people and educating them to take better care of their health. Throughout my clinical rotations, I have found countless professors and physicians who were exceptionally willing to share their knowledge and experiences with me. Ive also come to learn that being a teacher is a very critical part of being a physician. Education goes beyond attendings and their students/residents, it also caries over to patients. Explaining, communicating, and helping individuals understand and cope with their illness is an integral part of practicing medicine. One of my patients, whom we will call Mr. Smith, was diagnosed with a reentrant tachyarrhythmia. During my visit one morning, the cardiologist came to inform Mr. Smith of his findings. In addition, the doctor advised the patient to return so they can discuss the possibility of catheter ablation. I immediately sensed fear in Mr. Smiths eyes. After the cardiologist left the room, I asked him if he had any questions. He was silent for a while, then asked, So what is wrong with my heart? I thoroughly and fundamentally explained what a PVC was and the procedures necessary to assist him. I answered all Mr. Smiths questions until he felt comfortable with the knowledge of his condition. I went back to see Mr. Smith on the day he was to be discharged and reiterated the importance of following up with the cardiologist. Prior to leaving, Mr. Smith looked at me with a smile on his face and said Thank you for everything, you will make a great doctor. Mr. Smiths comment left me speechless and humbled. It was at that point I realized the importance of educating your patients.

Upon completion of my rotations, I felt most complete in Internal Medicine. I found Internal Medicine to be most rewarding at the end of the day. I found great enjoyment in the intellectual stimulation and working with adults. I have many attributes to contribute to internal medicine; Im dedicated and loyal to my cause, I have great listening skills as well as interpersonal skills, Im a critical thinker and problem solver. As a decisive thinker, I plan to use deductive reasoning to reach a diagnosis from the data obtained about a patient. Moreover, Internal medicine has much to offer in return such as the diversity of medical conditions and the comprehensive medical care over long periods of time. Furthermore, I find the challenges of treating a broad range of illness enjoyable and rewarding. On a personal note, I feel that being a physician is a privilege and an honor that should not be taken lightly. The responsibility of caring for ones health is both significant and fulfilling. To treat an ill individual and nurse them back to health is awe-inspiring. Im reminded of a quote that I once read which states that medical education is not completed in medical school: it is only begun. Thus far, my journey has been most gratifying and has reached beyond all my expectations. I look forward to the challenges and endeavors to come. The road to medicine is not about the destiny but the journey itself and I look forward to that journey

BEEP!, BEEP!, BEEP!, cried the annoying pager. I looked around in a half conscious state, blinking and disoriented, not recognizing my surroundings. This wasnt my bedroom? It was my last medicine call of my medicine clerkship. I climbed out of bed, rubbing my head, trying to remember why I wasnt in my own bedroom at this moment. As my feet pulled me towards the intensive care unit, I remembered the purpose for this. It was to assist the ill while being respected as a physician and a person. I remembered entering medical school with the intention of pursuing internal medicine, a specialty that would satisfy my desire to be a strong advocate for adults as well as associate physicians. I remember the enjoyment of seeing patients improve after methodically figuring out how to nurse them back to health. Internal medicine allows one to use their knowledge and the resources provided to them to figure out the problematic nature of diseases. The exercise of treating a challenging array of diseases and working with adults is the reason I am fond of internal medicine. Continuing down the hall, I passed the rooms where I had spent teaching patients about improving their health, and avoiding the long term complications of many diseases. Teaching is a passion I developed in my undergraduate years, which is continued as a medical student through patient instruction. This enthusiasm will carry forward, through residency to include medical student training. I now pushed through the doors. The patient was positioned on his back and his head ready for intubation. I was surprised at the quickness with which I entered the equation and helped start the peripheral intravenous site and monitor the patients vital signs [want to add more than simply an IVwhich is often a nursing task]. It was at this moment I felt confident and ready for a future in internal medicine. My goal is to train at a large academically oriented institution with a rich and challenging environment in which to learn. Furthermore internal medicine allows one to be exposed to a diverse amount of patients and diseases, and to be at the dynamic forefront of new medicines and treatments. I look forward to bringing a true sense of commitment, enthusiasm, integrity, and ability to my residency program. My clerkship in internal medicine has taught me through patient feedback how important it is to have a good relationship with them in order for them to comply and improve their well being. I have proven myself of compassionate, competent care during my clinical years. My eyes now were wide open, from that night, and my mind and body were now one and I was no longer disoriented. A residency in internal medicine will allow me to be an

advocate, a teacher, and especially a competent physician. Now it is not uncertainty with which I move forward, but with the excitement and anticipation for the challenges and rewards of a successful career in internal medicine.