Continuity of Care
Medical student Madeleine reflects on challenges in medical adherence stemming from gaps in education about the disease as well as a lack of social and psychological support.
Patient Advocacy
This category contains a collection of moments students have had with their patients that helped renew their purpose in the field.
Medical Student Contributing Writer
University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville
Madeleine Mendelow is a third-year medical student at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville. She received her BA in Romance Languages and Literatures and International Studies from the University of Michigan and practiced as a licensed esthetician prior to medical school. She hopes to pursue OBGYN and incorporate her love of psychiatry into her practice.
This Shouldn’t Be Happening
Medical student Rebekah Russell reflects on her experience with the healthcare system during a miscarriage.
The Unwanted Visitor
Medical student Kayla Schmittau reflects on her experience with a patient with substance use disorder and the importance of patient advocacy.
Volcanoes and Illegal Immigration: One Guatemalan’s Perilous Journey
Medical student Leonard Wang presents his views on patient advocacy by exploring the role of patient stories, in particular an anecdote from a recent trip to Guatemala during his winter break.
Mrs. D’s Breathing
Medical student Micky Akinrodoye reflects on the importance of advocating for patients by taking into consideration of a myriad of factors influencing their care.
Prayer in Practice
Medical student Jackson Dean challenges readers to think critically about the variety of forms that prayers come in and the roles they pray at work and in our every day lives.
Mountaintop Medicine
Four years ago, as I clung to my seat on a bus teetering back and forth on a one lane rocky road up the Jamaican hillside, I thought I knew what it meant to be a part of the medical community. I grew up in a family of doctors and nurses and, while none pressured me into the field, I felt drawn to it.
A Journey to Obstetrics & Gynecology Through Structural Racism in Maternal Outcomes
Medical student Sara Phillips writes a personal reflection, grounded in scholarly literature, that details her exploration of racism as a mechanism for perpetuating disparities in maternal health outcomes. The piece traces discriminatory policies and actions undertaken by physicians and leaders in the field of obstetrics and gynecology to portray a historical origin for contemporary health inequities. Interacting with these grim stories and statistics, she reflects on what it means for her to seek out a career in OB/GYN to confront this prejudicial history and create a more just path forward.
The Ring On My Hand
This creative piece explores the internal dialogue that a gay patient has with himself when his provider fails to use inclusive language and offers a question that probes disclosure.
Smoke
Medical student Jake Bardell poetically epitomizes the art of medicine: navigating the nuances that lie beyond the logical and algorithmic thinking expected of doctors.
The Difficult Patient
Medical student Allen Betts explores the often underrated effect of psychosocial determinants and the integral part they play in the influencing health and well-being. Read more to find out how he has come to appreciate the soft skills a physician gleans through patient encounters rather than through books.
One Day
Alicia Pugh writes a poem that reflects on how our backgrounds impact the way we view our patients.
Medical Student Contributing Writer
University of Illinois at Chicago
Alicia Pugh is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In her free time, she enjoys creative writing, gardening, and volunteering.