| | Where to start … I think I may have difficulty in selecting the proper words to describe this experience. Let me just start with that it was probably one of the best I’ve ever had. I was just enthralled with how everyone bonded, meshed together and eventually ended up leaving with some kind of feeling of content in their heart, content that they had touch someone’s life, content that they had actually stopped to make time for someone else other than themselves.
I had originally signed up for this activity with the idea of spending time with children and camping out to levels of tents and outhouses with various outdoor activities scheduled for us such as fishing, rafting, and further on. What I gained in return was much more than that.
As a family pal, I continued to put others before me, regardless of how it made me look, of my own image that presented in the face of others. It was the essence of the activity to be silly, to just totally let go of your pride and show your love for others. Though in the beginning few hours of our arrival it was a little awkward to act in such a manner, in the end, you just don’t care anymore, all you feel and see is how awesome it is to have people around you and you yourself love everyone.
It is quite common in the physician profession to forget about these aspects of interacting with people. Sometimes everyone gets so wrapped up in their own issues that they forget to think of others, how they might feel, and that we’re there to relieve them of their pain. Sometimes, it gets to the point where you’re so exhausted of yourself, you need time for yourself in order to revamp for the next session of sacrifice.
However, interaction with children and their pristine personages seems to constantly succeed in bringing us back to why we wanted to get involved in this profession from the start. I definitely felt that aspect of my medical career during this trip at CBC. The interaction I had with the family I was assigned to gave me an idea how much they must have undergone in order to treat whatever disorder their daughters had. Though the origin of the diseases may be questionable, as doctors, we are not here to judge. We are here to treat people for whatever disease they come in for. Nonetheless, at times, society’s continuous changes may make us feel jaded in that aspect.
During childhood, I had difficulty in interacting with children. I feel my primary reason behind that was because I had trouble putting myself in the other person’s shoes. There are those who are better about it than others. As a doctor, I agree it’s crucial to be a good listener and to understand how the other person may feel rather than hoping for gratification of your own story. After all, the patient is here to see YOU, and you as the doctor need to have a good thorough history of this patient’s life, no?
I feel with each day of medical school, with each day of my interaction of my friends, this development of tact continues to sit in the back of my mind. One of my objectives in becoming a great physician is also becoming a better listener and striving to understand how others may feel. This CBC activity gave me the opportunity to continue to develop that aspect of myself. I always put the campers before me, asked them what they wanted to do despite how tired I may be or weary of the day. In the end, the campers also showed their love in return, reminding me again how important it is to think of others before myself.
I just don’t want to be a physician who repairs patients physically. I also want to be a physician my patients are willing to see and look forward to receiving treatment from, one whom they can trust.
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| | Posted 3/31/2008 5:04 AM - 0 comments
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