Medical Student Contributing Writer
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Aish is a fourth year medical student applying to internal medicine. She is interested in narrative medicine and women's health. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and playing board games.
Because medicine reflects the commonality of human struggles, healthcare workers can see parallels between their patients’ lives and their own. This piece speaks to the impact that witnessing tough patient encounters can have on healthcare workers.
These poem stanzas help to provide further fidelity on the small specialty that is Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R). While many other specialties focus on specific organs, “our organ” is function and this piece hopefully sheds some light on how we preserve it and improve it in all the patients we treat.
Medical student recollects hospitalization with pneumonia as a pivotal childhood experience that shaped his values. The care he received from dedicated clinicians and his family instilled trust and resilience, inspiring his pursuit of medicine. These reflections resurfaced during his white coat ceremony, affirming his commitment to embodying these principles in his future practice.
Lisa Roskes describes the many lessons learned from my close relationship with her grandmother. Despite choosing a career in pediatrics, these pearls guide her interactions with patients and their families.
The poem describes the profound impact of an encounter between Catherin Potin, the narrator, recovering from a motor vehicle accident, and a young patient with a similar experience. Throughout our interaction, the patient’s strength and resilience illuminate a path towards healing, showing the narrator the power of shared vulnerability in overcoming trauma. This encounter serves as a reminder of the reciprocal nature of healing in medicine and the personal growth that can arise from patient interactions.
Taylor Selby wrote this poem while trying to manage her time between studying for boards and her grandmas birthday party. To her, it means prioritizing her relationships and mental health while still working towards the goal to be an intelligent and caring doctor.
Dr. Ervin Anies reflects on the highs and lows of the transitional intern year with a series of poignant cinquains.
Dr. Ervin Anies explores the struggles and emotional turmoil of medical training, ultimately finding acceptance and self-worth.
Third-year medical student Thomas Gagliardi reflects on the socioeconomic barriers to accessing health care, cultural competency and mental health.
Medical student Ta’Nae Harrod reflects on working with a young patient regarding her dietary and mental wellness needs.
The Ward as Medicine is about how one’s fellow patients on the psychiatry ward can act as mirrors, teachers and inspirations to a patient. Specifically, it is about a mom who, hospitalized for suicidality stemming from her guilt and anger over how she has mothered her children, gets reconnected with the identity of motherhood while interacting with others on the unit.
Medical student Saud Rehman has written a collection of poems focusing on the lockdown of March 2020 with artwork to give a visual representation of how he felt. Often times the manifestations of moods unrelated to coursework go overlooked, especially in medicine, and Saud hopes that these provide a representation of the humanity behind students going through difficult times.
Medical Student Contributing Writer
CUNY School of Medicine
Saud is a first generation third year medical student at the CUNY School of medicine from Brooklyn. Saud has interests in interventional radiology, patient centered care, and educational medicine. Saud uses poetry and artistic visuals as a form of expression & catharsis. His other interests include hiking, bike-riding, cooking, and basketball.
