As of about 10:30 this morning I finished my second year of medical school. Woo! Though I still have to take boards (I hear they're kind of a big deal), next month I start clinical rotations. That means I'll be trading the library for a hospital and my sweat pants for scrubs. At this point, it seems almost too good to be true. If I had to spend another year confined to a library, I am 92% confident I would lose my mind.
Truthfully, it's difficult for me to believe that these didactic years are coming to a close. During the first week of school, one of our professors reminded us that the next two years were hellacious, but finite. And in twenty-two short months, they would be over. But somewhere between reading pathology and figuring out how exactly to do an H&P, it's easy to forget that this season of life is just that -- a season. So here I am now, weeks away from taking boards and wondering what life next year will look like. During the past two years I have learned a lot - about medicine and myself. And while I know there is still so much more to learn, I wanted to reflect on what I know to be true. So, this post does consist of a list (my favorite!) -- though it is a very short one. The two most important things I have learned this far in medical school are:
1. We must build each other up
2. Work hard and be kind
Now, before you freak out and wonder what kind of crazy medical school I go to, rest assured. I am plagued by pharmacology and pathology, the idiosyncrasies of renal physiology, and the never ending confusion of immunology just like every other under-slept and over caffeinated punk in a short white coat. And, yes, knowing your stuff and being able to answer questions correctly on exams (and ultimately figure out what is going on with your patients) is imperative. But I can learn all of that from a book. And what I don't fully understand on paper will eventually make sense on rotations once I see the pathology manifested in a living (hopefully) breathing human.
But those two things are what I have truly struggled with for the past twenty-two months. Reaching out to a classmate when it's obvious they're frustrated and stress. Refraining from class gossip about who failed what or messed up during a practical. Trying to finish that last chapter when its 1am and the words about renal pathology are swirling together so much that they are actually starting to look like glomeruli. Stopping by my favorite administrator's office to ask about her sick cat, when all I want to do is go home and study. These are the things that are really important. These are the things that aren't written on a syllabus.
There is a joke I once heard about a commencement speaker at some medical school graduation. During his speech he states that because of the ever-changing nature of medicine and advances in science, "unfortunately half of everything we taught you here is wrong. We just don't know which half." So while its guaranteed that some of what I have learned from a book will change twenty years from now, I am confident that those two life learning objectives will always be appropriate.
These past two years have been a crazy, awesome, stressful ride. And I am sure the next two will be no different. I hope that two years from now I'll have mastered both of my truths a little better. (I'll also be crazy freaking excited to graduate!!!)
So here's to being half way done with this ridiculous journey! And to anyone else who is mere days/weeks away from taking boards -- trust your preparation and believe that we got this!
