Time to Breathe

November was a month that was slower than our very front-heavy semester. We focused on pulmonary as well as hepatic/GI blocks that spanned the entire month (and will continue into December). I found the coursework interesting because I had asthma as a child and had to be hospitalized a few times for its severity. These blocks have enlightened me on the importance of controlling antibiotics. So many of the drugs in use today are to control pathogen-caused diseases.

Part of the reason that I chose this program was to find the balance of necessity and efficacy regarding drugs in a healthcare setting. This month provided a great amount of clarity for me, especially due to the freedom that our schedule allowed. I learned about more intangible aspects of medicine and interdisciplinary approaches to clinical intervention through non-didactic learning that I was able to do during this month.

Over Thanksgiving, I was asked whether this program has been worthwhile and if there was anything that I wished I would have done differently. I thought about that for a good while (after giving a very cliché answer to the relative that asked me). Though there is always something that can go better in hindsight, I could find very little criticism of this program and of my decision thus far. I think it has broadened my view of medicine and has given me an opportunity to prepare myself for what is to come. I'd say I'm in the right place at the right time.