Medicine Is Not A Profession

I love hospitals and the controlled chaos that is found in them. I believe in medicine. I understand it, I find comfort in it even. I’m drawn to all things medical. “Wherever the art of medicine

My interest in medicine first stemmed from my freshman Biology class and my Nutrition class. I was intrigued by our studies of cells, genetics, and disease. Both courses incited a sense of awe and curiosity within me. Dissecting a frog, was the stepping-stone for my interest in medicine. Seeing the frog's heart made me wonder how the human heart worked. My research into the human heart inspired me to learn more about the medical field. I sought out volunteer opportunities that would give me insight into a doctor’s typical day. During my volunteer experience, I learned that as a doctor you experience many obstacles, including patient compliance and insurance approval issues. In my journey to pursue medicine, I learned that becoming a doctor means more than helping people, it means being the team leader, being compassionate, and most importantly being committed to the patient’s well being.

My A-Level choices have equipped me with the adequate skills and basic knowledge that I feel are necessary to study a degree in Biomedical Science. In Psychology, I found Biopsychology most fascinating because we learnt about how the Nervous System works alongside the Endocrine System. Equally, I enjoyed Psychopathology as we learnt about the causes and symptoms of diseases such as OCD, and the drug-based biological treatments for them that target hormones such as serotonin. Studying Mathematics has enabled me to achieve a greater understanding of how to apply statistical tests such as the Spearman’s Rank Correlation, in Biology.

The medical field is a career path that brings about many options and opportunities of great value. The noble idea of being a doctor tends to cloud the diligent studying and precise training that is actually required for this career. I have wanted to become a doctor since a very young age, and now that the opportunity is here for the taking, I have fully researched what it takes to succeed in this profession and various specialties of the practice. The road to a medical degree is one filled with thousands of notes, years of schooling, and many stressful nights, but the reward is one incomparable to any other. Saving people’s lives on a day-to-day basis has been one of my dreams for as long as I can remember, so the rigorous curriculum

At the beginning of my freshman year, my least favorite class was Honors Biology. I initially treated the class like any other class; biology seemed like a multitude of body parts simply keeping us alive. However, my slightest interest in biology molded into an undeterred passion after taking a difficult test on neurology. My teacher had given us a problem regarding neuroinhibitors and their application in daily life, and wanted to see how we approached the problem. After wrapping my head around the problem, I was able to determine how dopamine affects the body and what it did in the synapse of the neuron. That was the day that marked my interest in biology - specifically neurobiology. I witnessed the various applications that neurology had in real life, gaining confidence in researching different problems in this field of study.

Once I was able to study psychology at A-Level, my interest in the subject only grew, whilst the other subjects that I chose to take were also closely linked, enabling a greater depth of development to my skills. Sociology, for example, was influential to strengthen my essay writing skills, particularly the ability to analyse using theoretical perspectives. Studying the statistics unit in maths assisted in my comprehension of the various methods of research used in psychology now and throughout my education. Taking biology has granted me another perspective onto the subject of the brain and its actions, allowing me to create links between the psychological and the biological aspects of the brain and how they work in conjunction with one another. Currently, I am working on my EPQ

Courses I have taken that are relevant to my career interests are biology, chemistry, Principles of Biomedical Science, Human Body Systems, Medical Interventions, advanced genetics and applied biotechnology, and physiology. Biology and chemistry have provided me with a basic science background that is essential to understanding more advanced science courses. Human Body Systems and physiology have helped me to learn basic anatomy and physiology through hands-on activities like constructing organ systems out of clay and dissecting a cat. In addition, I learned how basic biomedical science knowledge and research methods in Principles of Biomedical Science and continued this

My passion for medicine is something deeper than a mere interest in learning the extraordinary functions of the human body. I am completely fascinated to learn gross anatomy, histology, pathology, and the complete medical school curriculum. However, I am more captivated by how the knowledge I will gain in medical school will allow me to perform the lifesaving procedures that physicians are able execute. Although, medicine is not always ideally as I have written, I believe that as a physician I would use my knowledge and my experiences to provide the best holistic care to my patients. My culture, my experiences, and my education will bring a different perspective to the medical field. I aspire to have the ability and knowledge to save a child that might not live, to save a woman that suffers a heart stroke, and to even provide the necessary treatment for a child with a mere cold. Additionally, participating in the Loma Linda Gateway to the Health

For as long as I could remember, I have seen my father rushing to the hospital in a white coat, answering pagers in the middle of important family conversations and attending night calls even in the most terrible weather. I had always wondered; what could be so important that it belittles every other responsibility in his life. It was only after many years of anguish and protests that it finally made sense to me. This defining moment of realization occurred when I first met a patient in his office. I saw how the gratitude in the patient’s eyes can provide a sense of fulfillment that triumphs all other feelings in the universe. It was human life that was most important. Being a doctor does not make you a mere healer but also gives you the responsibility of a caregiver. I had never felt more proud of my father and that was the day I felt the urge to relive this feeling many times over. It was there in that moment that I decided to pursue a career in medicine.

My interest in neuroscience is displayed through my A-level choices. I have chosen physics because I am a very rational thinker, also because I find that physics challenges everyday concepts such as how the world around us works and how everything has a pattern or link between each other (much like the brain itself) which, in turn, helps to grasp an understanding of the more complicated parts of life. Likewise, I have taken chemistry at A-level too. What I enjoy about

And that we will remember the words of the poet, Maya Angelou that people will forget what you did but people will not forget how you made them feel. I hope that all these years of training will help us to think not only like physicians but also like human beings because the practice of Medicine is a challenging but deeply rewarding art with which we can make positive differences in the lives of our patients and their loved

I have always had a strong passion for the sciences. They were always my favorite classes and I enjoyed putting in the hard work to master them. I did well in math and business courses too, however I never felt excited about the material I was studying. My favorite areas in science have been biology, anatomy, and physiology of the human body. Each time I learn something new, I continue to be amazed by the complexity and precision of the human body.

It was dark and there were so many noises around me as I slowly woke up and recalled I was in a hospital with abdominal pain. I then heard a familiar voice say “Sweetie, wake up! Wake up!” I opened my eyes to a blurry image of my mother. “Shhh… don't make any noises. We're leaving now. Just act like you are fine. We'll try to sneak out before anyone notices”, my mother said. She explained later that she could not afford to pay hospital bills, so we had to leave before any physician checked over. Living in Vietnam, I was filled with resentment towards their healthcare system, as people were rejected treatment and left to perish in the streets. As a child, I therefore never considered medicine as a career. My spark for medicine was unforeseen until I went on a high school field trip at INOVA Fairfax Hospital in Virginia. Hovering over the glass ceiling of the operating theater, I watched doctors performing coronary bypass surgery while witnessing the heart beat stronger and stronger. At this magical moment, I was overwhelmed by the power of medicine to save people’s lives.

medical field. Biology, my science of choice, always piqued my curiosity time after time. I was enamored with the

I’ve learnt that being a doctor is about so much more than administering drugs. At its peak, being a doctor is about communication and compassion. I love working with people and I love science, and the more exposure I get to medicine the more confident I feel that despite its hurdles and sacrifices, there is no other career that would grant me as much fulfilment as