My Father Owned A Bakery

I have always had a high admiration for the impact that physicians have on families. At an early age, my younger sister had major heart surgery. Being four, I was too young to fully grasp what this meant for my family, but I quickly learned the grief my parents endured thinking their only daughter would not live past two. Dr. Jane Doe saved my sister, giving me a friend for life. I have set my goal to be like countless doctors who save lives daily and improve the quality

At 16 I experienced rural healthcare at its worst. My older brother and I were home alone when he started having severe stomach pain. I had never seen him cry in pain before and I was terrified. There isn’t a doctor in our hometown, so I drove him to the closest hospital, about 30 minutes away. Neither one of had a cell phone and the hospital staff wouldn’t allow me to use their phone to call my parents because they both had long-distance phone numbers. Hours after we arrived, someone in the waiting room let me use her cell phone to call my mom. When my parents got there, they took my brother to an exam room and then immediately back to surgery—his appendix had burst. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized this experience was not normal. It wasn’t until I was much older that I realized similar experiences often happen in rural communities because of the need for primary care physicians and quality health care facilities.

I was induced to the medical field due to my early exposure to health implications due to one of my family members. My first-born nephew was improperly diagnosed and was discharged from the hospital the day he was born. It was not until eighteen days later that I noticed his abnormal breathing. As soon as I became aware of his condition, my nephew was quickly rushed to the hospital. However, it was too late. The physician in charge notified us that he was in coma and needed to undergo heart surgery. The only problem we were now encountering with was not having access to a bed that my nephew needed to prepare him for surgery. UCLA was the only nearest hospital who had the bed he needed, but all beds were full at the time. As soon as we had the

As a Social Worker, my goal is to improve society 's overall well-being for all populations. In the book, Abraham (1993) gave us a detailed account of the Banes’s, a poor African American family coping with distressing illnesses and living in a poor community. The Bane’s struggled indefinitely trying to access good medical care and insurance. The family experienced instances where the services they received were not sufficient. One instance that made me as a Social Worker uncomfortable was pertaining to Robert’s lack of knowledge on his need of care. When Robert received the first sign that his kidneys were failing, he received a diagnosis of focal glomerulosclerosis. This condition was fatal and Robert had not received any treatment for it neither did he see a doctor again for this issue until four years later. This instance is a problem because it shows a lack of care, follow- up and knowledge on the subject matter given on behalf of his

Almost thirteen years ago, my life changed when my youngest daughter was born with undiagnosed medical problems. The challenge of finding answers consumed my life. My family and I spent a significant amount of time searching for answers in and out of doctor’s offices and hospitals, always by our daughter’s side. Throughout my journey, I was able to learn a lot about the medical profession, including the differences between good and not so good healthcare professionals. We were fortunate to meet a lot of excellent doctor’s, nurses, and support staff, however, we also had our fair share of medical professionals that were not so great. At times our journey was extremely frustrating because we had to depend on medical staff that was uncaring and

I began volunteering at the Hope Line Resource Center to assist those in the community. This way I could assist with helping people become healthier to avoid facing the same situation my mother was in. Furthermore, I volunteer in health fairs to spread awareness of the ways people can put their body in a healthier state with Urban Health Plan. I wanted to do this to increase the community’s knowledge of how they can take control of their health. I eventually became an intern in the clinic with Urban Health Plan to have a chance to get involved in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) department and to collaborate with pediatricians to further understand the healthcare field. What happened to my mother motivated me to get involved, which eventually taught me that we all have the ability to take care of

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.

In addition to my professional experiences, I’ve had personal experiences that further highlight how important it is to be sensitive to other cultures and the human condition. Last year I lost my father after a 4 year battle with cancer. The experience I had as his primary caregiver has made me more appreciative of the human condition.  Throughout the years of doctor’s appointments and procedures, I

academic career. It was a very important event for me because it cemente4d my decision to go to

For the first seventeen years of my life my family was classified as being below the poverty line. We lived in a small farm town and I was homeschooled my entire life. Being socioeconomically challenged gave me a unique perspective on health care. My youngest brother was born with defects that resulted in profound loss of hearing. He needed hearing aids and speech therapy but Medicaid did not cover his hearing aids. The hearing aids were not covered and given that they cost over ten percent of my father's annual salary he was unable to receive them until a private donor stepped forward. Not having hearing aids at a crucial time in his language development, caused him to develop a speech impediment that made it difficult for him to communicate

I became captivated by the opportunity to apply my knowledge of the biological and chemical sciences in a way that one day may save a life. Though my interest stems from my experiences, my passion to pursue this field lies elsewhere. Growing up in a family of low socioeconomic status in an area with few sources of acceptable health care, I saw my parents struggle as they aged to provide my siblings and I with a proper education. There were times they would ignore their own illness in order to save funds for an emergency for us. Observing this, I knew that no matter how difficult of a path I picked, regardless if it was pharmaceutical sciences or the medical field, my parents had concurred greater difficulties. Growing under such conditions, I began to realize the disparities in quality of treatments my parents received compared to those who of a higher socioeconomic status. This motivated me to pursue a career where I would be given the chance to offer care to individuals through unbiased views. Of course, there are a plethora of careers that can fulfill this but medicine has presented itself as very unique to me. It promises a lifestyle devoted to empathetic patient care, direct patient interaction, and a boundless opportunity to learn and experience something new. As the end of my undergraduate experience is forthcoming, I look forward to taking on the next phase of my life, endeavoring to join the ranks of tomorrow’s

That situation with the younger doctor made me think of the reading Narrative Medicine which is about aiming to introduce into everyday medical practice the use of narrative (story telling) as an instrument to gather and understand information about the patient's history and illness. Having knowledge of their psychological and physical state is very helpful. When Dr. Charon spoke with the 36-year-old Dominican man, she didn’t take over the conversation. She listened and it touched him because he says, “No one has ever let me do this before.” This made me really think about my family’s interactions with doctors and nurses since my teen years to present. Her diabetes began to spiral out of control and it never really stabilized. Over the course of the years, she was hospitalized

At an early age, I was introduced to society where people were deprived of healthy living conditions because of a lack of medical care and other factors. My heart has always felt pain for those who have suffered from these menacing conditions. I’ve always heard stories about how compassionate and caring doctors are to their patients. Especially how supportive they can be during times of great distress for a family. They go through years of rigorous training and studying to have the courage and skills to handle these types of situations. While chasing this dream, I’ve come across social structures that aid and deter me from accomplishing this dream.

Shortly after he was brought to our house, my grandfather had more health complications and already needed professional medical help. My mother had been very well trained in the medical, but she couldn’t help him very much.

I realize that the most capable physicians can heal because they have been sick and are able to fix because of their own brokenness. In other words, adversity builds character and changes people for the better. In my case, my disadvantaged upbringing has made me a better person, son, father and potentially a better public servant. After my parents divorced in 2000, my mother and I moved to Little Rock, Arkansas where we struggled to get by. Enduring that hardship with her changed me from an early age. Some nights I stayed at my best friend’s apartment, because we had no electricity. In a sense, this deprivation allowed me to mature and understand that in life you must sacrifice for a larger