On September 20, 2017 Hurricane Maria, a Category 5 storm, struck Puerto Rico, my home. It destroyed the entire island’s infrastructure and left 3.4 million people without electricity, water, and cell phone service—making internal and external communication, nearly impossible. These are facts. I’d like to get personal. I’d like to share how I was affected by this hurricane. (more…)
The White Coat Ceremony is a rite of passage for beginning medical students that creates a psychological contract for professionalism and empathy in the practice of medicine. Slavena Salve Nissan, MD Candidate 2020, reflects on the ceremony’s impact on her first step towards becoming a doctor. (more…)
Every year, students at the Icahn School of Medicine write Op-Ed articles about topics in health care and advocacy to culminate InFocus 4. Charlotte Austin’s article, “Looking In” was one of the 10 exemplary articles selected to appear in the Physicians as Advocates—InFocus 4, and focuses on marginalized identities. We share her story. (more…)
During my sophomore year of college, I was thinking seriously about applying to medical school, but I was not sure if I would be able to handle working with dying patients. I decided to volunteer at a local hospice over the summer to confront that question as well as my personal fear of death. (more…)
Narrative medicine combines medical practice with humanism and art. One fourth-year medical student has co-founded an online publication that shares medical professionals and students reflections after treating patients who have suffered from opthalmological issues—through creative narratives.
(more…)
