My Interest Towards Family Medicine

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

Wide reaching, nurses significantly outnumbered physicians as providers of health care often having utmost vast reach remoteness to underserved communities. Having personally lived in one of the underserved communities in my hometown Western Africa before moving to the United States of America and my life calling to be a nurse from a young age with the deep desire to make a difference. I plan to contribute and continue to contribute immensely to the underserved communities by delivering quality health care to remote regions around the world. I do volunteer service at several clinics in the Atlanta area with many well-known Emory physicians that care for homeless and underserved populations, these volunteer experiences provide me with opportunities and fulfillment to develop added headship skill and experience to meet my daily patients, needs.

I came to America from Vietnam when I was just three years old. I spent a majority of my life with my grandma, who has always taught me the importance of helping others. She always told me to have; you must give, and if you have nothing to give, you can always give your time. This phase has been a huge guide in my life, and it has truly shaped me into who I am. At a young age, I always felt that my purpose in life was to help people. After attending many doctor visits with my grandma for her health check-ups, I was confident my future occupation would be in the medical field. During these frequent doctor visits, I had the chance to watch the interactions and cooperation among different healthcare professionals in different settings. Being in this inspiring environment, I hoped one day I could mirror them and make a difference in people’s lives and the community. Although I have always wanted to help those in need, I was uncertain of what specific career role would allow me to fulfill my passion for helping others.

As a recent graduate of the Johns Hopkins University and a new Research Technician at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, becoming more familiar with different healthcare settings and helping others in doing so have always been of my interest. From my experience of volunteering as a piano teacher for inner-city children in Baltimore, I have learnt that even a small commitment and emotional support can make a big difference in the daily lives and the happiness of those in need. I have briefly familiarized myself to the hospital environment by shadowing physicians and conducting biomedical research but have yet to translate my volunteering experiences and the lessons learnt from them to the healthcare setting. I am a friendly, optimistic,

I am drawn to family medicine by this same appreciation for humanism that is evident to me among practitioners in this field. I am similarly motivated and excited by the intellectual challenges, scope, and meaningfulness offered by a career in family medicine. I strive to join a residency program that will provide rigorous clinical training among a diverse patient population while offering extensive resident responsibility for patient care. I believe that a family medicine residency program will inspire me to excel and arm me with the tools I need to achieve my future goals. Upon completion of residency, I aim to devote myself to serving the underserved while dedicating time to conducting research and participating in community and medical

I first realized my passion for health promotion and disease prevention the summer following my first year of college. I had the privilege of attending the Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP), which introduced me to numerous healthcare professionals. During the program, many of the professionals shared their stories about why they choose the profession, and with each story, I began to reflect deeply on my own background and what drew me to medicine. It was not until an emergency medicine physician spoke about his experiences, that allowed me to fully understand connecting my background to my future. The physician mentioned growing up in D.C., which brought to mind my family in D.C. It had been almost a year since my grandmother

Through the many trips that my family has taken to the hospital due to various reasons, I have become fond of the hospital and its many wonders. After all the things that the medical field has done for me and my family, I decided to contribute to my local hospital to volunteer and help out those who pay visits to the hospital. Through my exposure to various clinical populations, I want to improve my ability to serve others in this capacity that can guide me towards the medical profession in the future.

My decision to pursue a career as a physician was not a blinding revelation, being the daughter of two immigrant parents the thought of becoming a physician seemed distant. In high school I pursued to obtain what for me was then the highest education I perceived I would be able to achieve which was going to college and obtaining a bachelor’s degree. As the quote by Ralph Ellison highlights, “When I discover who I am, I’ll be free”. This quote resonates with the start of my second year in college, as I have been able to find my passion for medicine. More specifically, I explored my values and how I wanted to shape my future. I reflected upon the encounters and dramatic effects that physicians have had with my own family. The most impactful

Family medicine is a specialty that provides healthcare for both families and individuals. Physicians in family medicine provide medical diagnosis, treatment, and care to people of all ages, both sexes, every organ system, and all diseases. The patient-doctor relationship is generally in the framework of the family. Family medicine practitioners promote good health, stress disease prevention, and coordinate referrals when necessary. Graduates in family medicine have completed a broad range of study, which includes:

My career goals have led me to Cedars-Sinai, to a residency program that provides both the academic opportunities and continuity and intimacy of care I desire. Through the program’s academic partnership, I aspire to chase lifelong learning via research and inspire other’s to better the world through education; through its ambulatory experience, I aim to be a voice for the marginalized and to practice within a diverse clinical setting. Most importantly, I wish to train at Cedars-Sinai because I have seen the internists approach care of my family with an empathetic and holistic approach I hope to emulate.

Adversity has only improved my tenacity, focus, endurance, and problem solving abilities. Various circumstances have affected my academic performance negatively, but I use that as motivation to continually improve myself. I want to be a part of the solution to the family physician shortage and serve the community in the most effective way. My drive to improve the lives of others will help propel me through the difficulties of medical school and beyond. The personal experience I have with my immersion in the field of primary care gives me unique characteristics that will translate into creating a successful physician that focuses on building meaningful relationships with patients. I continually witness how my grandfather is positively impacting the community through medicine and it is my goal to be granted an opportunity to do the same. My belief in lifelong learning and continual self-improvement consistently drives me towards the study of medicine. Because of my life experiences, I now have the balance, endurance, clarity, and tenacity needed to be a successful medical

As a future alumna, I will advance the mission of Mercy College by delivering health care services as a PA to under-served urban populations with compassion and sensitivity. Being raised in an under-served community and being a premed student in Harlem, NY, I understand the challenges of being a healthcare professional in the United States. In addition, being in a diverse environment have augmented my studies in public health, and have provided me with concrete examples of how individuals can benefit from caring, sensitive providers, and how communities suffer when adequate health care services are not available or affordable. I believe as a future student at Mercy College, I will be fortunate enough to learn about the social responsibility

I have been volunteering at the University of Maryland Medical Center since the summer of my freshman year. As a volunteer at the Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit at the hospital, I am committed to provide excellence in service, work independently and efficiently, and exhibit patient interaction skills. Ever since I have started volunteering at the hospital, I have learned to become more patient and understanding toward the people who I interact with, and consequently, I have become a more sympathetic and compassionate person.

Deciding to pursue a career in Family Medicine was not a choice that I made easily. Before entering medical school, I assumed Pediatrics was the field for me. Taking on a leadership role as a volunteer peer tutor for students with disabilities in high school had stimulated my interest in working with adolescents. However, after completing rotations in various specialties, I recognized that I enjoyed caring for patients of all ages and wanted to be in a profession where I can treat not only the disease but the person as a whole.

During my time there, I shadowed a pediatric doctor. While I was asking him questions, he was called into an emergency surgery, and I was unfortunately not old enough to watch according to the hospital restrictions. So as I was waiting around, a PA swooped me up and let me shadow her instead. I was embarrassed to admit to her that I was not aware of a PA’s responsibilities to the hospital. Throughout the rest of the day, I followed the PA into patient rooms and recovery rooms. I was able to observe how the PA interacted with patients with such a reassuring and caring attitude that I had not seen with the previous physician I had met. I not only respected her compassionate personality, but I related to it.