Relationships in med school pt 18 - so you think you know Tej Dhindsa

An interview with the one and only, Tej.

Ken: Tell me 3 things about you.

Tej: 3 interesting things or just 3 things?

K: Could be anything.

T: Born and raised in Charleston.

An interesting thing is I didn't cut my hair until I was 20 yrs old I'm Sikh just like Balvir, that was probably my biggest life decision to this point.

Third, I have a general thirst for knowledge itself for certain things, which is I guess what I'm passionate about.

K: So tell me more about those things - you said you were born and raised here, what made you want to come back?

T: It was a big decision for me. Going to Emory was the biggest thing that's happened to me in my life. Growing up in South Carolina, and going to my high school I was very privileged, but it was very homogenous. Which is not a bad thing, I was very fortunate, but then I went to Emory and I understood that diversity was not just white, black, rich, poor it was so many other factors. My favorite people to talk to were Philosophy majors. You could ask them some weird question - like what would you do in this situation, and they've already thought about it. They've searched inside, and to me one of the most important things I learned growing up in Charleston is self-reflection. The beauty of Charleston, and driving 30 minutes to school, I had a lot of alone time to reflect and it made me try and understand my actions. 

K: And what did you learn from the hair experience?

T: What I learned from it was how differently people can treat you based on something so superficial. You can kind of understand the connotations the hair has but it's also hard to see how closed off society can be to people like that. The good thing about the turban is that you not only represent yourself but every other person that wears one. You had to be morally conscious as possible, which was good for a boisterous kid like myself growing up. My parents were like thank god you would've been off the walls. 

K: What made you decide to cut it?

T: The most important one, I wanted it not to be for social reasons, so I didn't tell anyone about it. It's funny how something like that just defines you, afterwards, people straight up didn't recognize me. No one really knew me for who I was, they just looked at my head. Can't blame them, I guess. It was also a spiritual thing, having a turban didn't make me any more religious, and to me I shouldn't have to broadcast my religion. Sikhism is a very open religion too. And my parents were very supportive. My dad cut his hair back in the 60's. From what i understand, it was one less thing that made him different as an immigrant in Iowa in the late 60's. Some things you just do to assimilate, which is understandeable. He made lots of sacrifices which I am very thankful for. 

K: the 3rd thing you mentioned is that you have a thirst for knowledge for things you're pasisonate about - what is that? 

T: I love medicine, but my real passion is to alter healthcare in a way either through policy or business to just better the system and to better the quality of life. We always talk about controversial things like terminal health, and I've always, it sounds awful, but when you look at the numbers - what if you could quantify life? Say the age cut off was 70 or something, and you could legally pull the plug. It's hard to make the policies, but it's an interesting. idea that might be necessary soon. The problem with health is that it's the only business tied to moral human beings. It's hard. 

And this is another small idea I'm interested in - healthcare inventory managemenet. Bed pans, syringes, how do we decide where we get it from? is there a certain metric we can use to decide how efficiently we're spending our money? I'm really interested in start ups. I associate them with young kids so they're obviously appealing to me. 

K: Are you thinking about politics? There's a lot of MD's in Congress.

T: Yeah that's true. I think about it a little bit, but something I've been thinking about more this year - my ideal job would be the president of a university as an end part of my career. A ton of them are MD's or PhD's. It'd be cool to be invovled in education, but also athletics, some politics, a little bit of everything.

K: So what are you going to do after MUSC?

T: I love peds cards. I used to love peds cards surgery, but the training is so long, I don't know if it's worth it considering my end goals. 

K: Do you plan to stick around in Charleston, or the southeast? 

T: For the longest time I said I would die here. I had an exemplary upbringing here, and extremely caring parents. I went to the same school for 12 yrs, it was a family. I want to come back here eventually, but first I definitely want to go somewhere that's a little more diverse - more minds. I want to be around creative minds, so I want a larger city. 

K: So if you're interested in policy, what would be one change you would want to make to med school policy?

T: I had a friend's dad that really influenced me, and he taught me that I never cared about grades, I just studied to understand the information. And I've been trying to apply that since college. There are some people who get better grades than me because they know how to game the questions, but that's not truly learning. At the end of the day I want to understand the whole system. Everyone talks about who this teacher only asks quesitons like this or that, but are you learning? We're trying to learn to give people life. 

K: One of the things i've found interesting about you is that you read a lot, what've you read that's been influential?

T: Well, it's funny. I never read for recreation until I left college but I've always been intersted in biographies, and US politics. I love seeing how someone was raised, and seeing their defining moments in life. I've read Steve Jobs, Thomas Jefferson, some others. Those were great. And what I've been getting from these stories is two things: that you have to have a general sense of motivation, and the other is that you have to have self-control. Self-control is such an easy thing to say but it's so hard. It's hard to give up everything for a mission. The reason I started to read- I feel like I've been taught to think certain ways. Like religion. It's all environement. It's what their parents or friends said, but going to Emory I got to meet so many people who thought for themselves. After college I had 3 free months before med school to discover myself, and how I did that was learning how other people did it through reading biographies. 

K: Ok, and any last things you want to say to our class?

T: Understand more than the superficial about each other. The most important thing you can do is understand how people think. We have superficial conversations all the time - hey how's it going, whatever - but you don't really know them. So do your best to get to know as many people as possible. 

K: preach. 

see you on the other side,

from ken

who should I interview next?

Relationships in med school pt 17 - so you think you know Rodman Singleton

An interview with the one and only, Rodman Singleton. 

Ken: Tell me 3 things about you.

Rodman: I was born in Beaufort, SC. I am very non-traditional as far as med students go. I am a veteran. 

K: How was growing up in Beaufort?

R: Although it was rural, what you see now is very different from what I grew up in. Our county was one of the fastest growing - some of the townships grew 1200% in 10 years. It's very different. We always had things to do. It's coastal so it has lots of beach access. It's part of the Gullah Geeche corridor, do you know about the Gullah Geeche corridor?

K: [embarrassed] Just what we learned in class..

R: It's a unique culture. We preserve more of our African heritage than any other African Americans in America. We have a distinct language. 

K: Do you personally retain that culture?

R: Yes definitely the cuisine. My family can speak in the dialect very fluently. Before I knew the beauty of it, I kind of rejected it. I was big on language and perfecting English. A lot of people can't even tell I'm from South Carolina. I had a kind of complex. 

K: And let's go back to the 3 things you told me, what makes you non traditional?

R: I'm old. [laughs]

K: You're not the only one that's old. 

R: There are kids, [laughs], and I say kids. Paras had a 23rd birthday the other day. Are you serious? I had a high school 10 year reunion. Two years ago. 

K: What were you doing at 23?

R: Well, I was on my fifth year in the navy. I was on my second deployment, Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. 

K: Tell me more about that.

R: It was interesting. It was ok for a war. I wasn't on the front line, I was doing nuclear engineering. 

K: And how does that experience help you today?

R: The navy curriculum has a reputation for being difficult, we actually received a lot of college credit for it, which helped me get there. It really prepared me a lot for the stress of med school, that feeling of being overwhelmed. I had responsibility very early. 


K: So to change gears a bit, do you consider yourself a spiritual person?

R: I'm definitely spiritual but I am not religious. Spirituality to me means personal relationship with a higher power. Yahweh, Jesus, God, in general whoever values the personal relationship with the deity. I was raised as a Baptist, but around the age of fifteen when I started to read for myself, and I came into my own identity, I wouldn't say it was necessarily rejection but I strayed from the doctrines of Christianity. Much to the chagrin of my parents. I'm very spiritual, though my views don't fall in line with any mainstream religion I'm familiar with. 

K: Yeah I get that. To change gears again, what's your favorite thing about med school?

R: In a nebulous kind of way it has nothing to do with being in med school, but learning all the part of the body and how it remains healthy, I just realize how much can go wrong. I feel more blessed about my own healthy, even with my children, all these things that could go terribly wrong. And I just gained an immense appreciation for health itself. 

Actually, I have two favorite things. What med school has taught me, it's that I have a tremendous amount of confidence in myself. I had angst coming into med school. Everyone was so smart. But now being here and succeeding, it made me realize how much I was slacking before I came to med school. Had I applied my God given intelligence.. Now I just look back, and the things I thought were difficult, I look back in retrospect and they were not difficult. 

K: What else have you learned about yourself in med school? 

R: I learned that, apparently, I'm argumentative. 

K: [laughs] How did you learn that?

R: People told me. It requires some introspection because people will talk, but if you hear it enough like 5, 6, 7 times, maybe I am that way. I just think I'm misunderstood. I value truth, and knowledge. Maybe that comes off as argumentative, if it brings about truth that's fine with me. 

K: Ok, ok no arguing here. And what's your least favorite part of med school?

R: I wish I had more time for my family, especially my two children. It's hard making peace for yourself, but in the pursuit of something great you have to make sacrifices, like the times you spend with your children. I struggled with that the first six months, I felt like a geographic deadbeat. 

K: And how did you come out of that struggle?

R: My father and I have an interesting relationship, and we sort of became best friends over time. He assured me I wasn't being selfish to pursue medicine. What I'm doing here transcends myself. I had a lot of pressure when I first started med school, and a lot greater than the expectations I had for myself. Where I'm from, there aren't a lot of doctors or lawyer. It felt like a big deal when I got in to MUSC. I had numerous parties thrown for me. Whenever I go back home, everyone's asking me how I'm doing. I represent more than who I am. 

K: Tell me more about what you represent.

R: Our class has 12.5% African Americans. In a class of 170 people, we don't even make up our share of the population. I'm one of what, seven black males that make up the class? 

I remember when I was applying - thinking to myself that I wanted to do something about this, this stigma. And stigma isn't exactly the right word, but there's this perception in the black community that no one serves as an example so that you can't be the example. It's a cycle of stagnation. You don't understand the benefit of example. Everyone knew it was possible because their dads and moms are doctors, but it's not like that where I'm from. In that sense I represent something bigger than myself. 

K: That's really great. Respect. Any last things you want to share with the class?

R: We need to be more social. Literally, yesterday. I saw 6 people yesterday and I didn't even know they were in our class. That's my appeal to the class. We need to get together. 

K: preach.

see you on the other side,

from ken

want to be interviewed? get at me. 

Relationships in med school pt 16 - so you think you know Daniel Baker

An interview with the one and only, Daniel Baker. Featuring co-interviewer Sudeep Das. sidenote - at our house Daniel is referred to as the polite boy. 

Ken: Tell me three things about you. 

Daniel: First, I would say I'm very independent. Second, my life revolves around sports. Third, I always enjoy a nice craft beer.

K: What's your favorite beer?

D: Witkap Pater Abbey Dubelle Ale. It's really light and fun with a sweet raspberry taste.

Sudeep: Does that beer define your character? What does the raspberry explain in your life?

D: I'm really short and don't weigh very much?

K: So what'd you do before MUSC?

S: Well, last year I was working in a peds office in Columbia with a family friend. It was long hours, 6 or 7 days a week, but it was awesome. I got to shadow a lot, he did rounds on his patients in the hospital and I got to follow him around. I really got to learn a lot. I didn't get paid very much, but it was still a blast. Plus, I got to do a lot of hunting, and then I got to go to Alaska, which was even cooler. 

K: Tell me about where you went to college?

bringing slacklining to Charleston

D: I went to Furman University in Greenville, SC. I studied a lot of chemistry and played a lot of club soccer. Those were my two biggest things. My roommate and I had an obsession with going to fast food restaurants after midnight. 

S: Ever go to waffle house after 2 AM? 

D: No, we did a lot of Wendy's though. Some McDonalds. Oh, and especially Bojangles. We used to do tons of food challenges - the best one was 2 cajun fillet biscuits, 2 sets of boberry biscuits, and a 32 oz sweet tea. 

S: Would you say college was a growing experience?

D: Absolutely. I think I became.. let me rephrase. In high school there was a difference between who I wanted to be and who I tried to be. In college I gave up trying to be someone else and just tried to be myself, and that was awesome. 

K: Tell me more about that. 

D: Well, college is the first time most of us are away from our parents. Being away from rules. You have to make up your own set of rules, and that's scare but also a cool feeling. To no longer live by someone else's rules, but to live by what you think is right and wrong. In that way college is a great experience, it gives you 4 years to screw up without any major ramifications. 

S: How did you decide what was right and wrong? 


D: The friends I made in college were huge. I made a lot of friends in the freshman fall, and after that I was able to sort out which friends were good for me and which ones would be bad influences. The way I see it, it's all about the friends you make and who you hang out with. 

S: So you say you used to be someone else - who are you now? Will the real Daniel Baker please stand up?

D: [laughs] If anyone knows, please let me know. He changes on a daily basis, so I don't have a real answer to your question. [pause] If you have new experiences in life, you have a chance to re-evaluate your priorities. You have to decide on your priorities from high school to college, from college to the workforce, and so on. You continually re-evaluate your priorities and the things that stick, that's your core. You have to keep your attention on those things that stay with you. My favorite quote, my dad wrote this to me in church one day when I was like 12: "If you think the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, then get your butt to work and get some fertilizer on your side." 

K: preach.

S: And what prompted that?

D: I was probably complaining a lot about life and he probably just wanted me to be quiet. It's hard to go through life doing that, but you have to live knowing that you have to work for it. 

S: Any last things you want the class to know about you? 

D: One question you should ask people in the future for these is the coolest medical school interview question I ever heard. If you could take 3 people to dinner who would it be? 

K: And what's your answer? 

D: Jesus Christ #1. He's had an undeniable impact. Whether you think he's positive, negative, fictional, whatever. He's that important. Maybe Pele. Maybe my mom's mom and dad's dad. You can tell a lot about someone from their parents. 

see you on the other side,

from ken

want to be interviewed? let me know.

Relationships in med school pt 15 - so you think you know Ken Noguchi

Interview from the other side – Ken Noguchi in the hot seat
a sidenote guest interview by David Cykert

David: Alright. Tell me why medical school and why MUSC?

Ken: One of the reasons I wanted to go to medical school was because of the TV show SCRUBS. I really liked specifically that they would have lots of deep human related conversations and lots of conversations about relationships… conversations that I thought were interesting. The kind of conversations I like having.  And, so, when I tried to think what I wanted to do with the rest of my life back in college, I tried to think about what kind of situation could I put myself in where I could maximize those conversations ‘cause that’s what I like doing. And also I was a science major.  I like doing science.  So, it’s a natural coming together of the two things.

David: And then why specifically here at MUSC?

Ken: Um, I’m not sure why specifically here.  I guess, the MD/PhD program is really competitive, and so I applied to 20 programs and it was down to this one and another one.  But part of it was also that I applied here with the desire to go somewhere warm and somewhere sunny because I’ve lived in Maryland, Massachusetts, Ohio, Wyoming, Oregon – and they’re all pretty cold.  The South is the last place I haven’t lived yet.  So, I was kind of interested in living in the South, and I was definitely interested in living somewhere warm, because I would have to be somewhere for such a long time.  And I was really happy with coming here because it fits those requirements.

David: I wish that I had seen your blog before coming to medical school; it would have made the process seem more personal, humanized, and normal. I was sort of dumping applications off into cyber space, and had I read about these human beings on your blog it would have been nice.  How did you start your blog and why did you start it?
 

Ken: I graduated in May 2010, and I started it in mid-July because after I graduated I realized I had lots of free time, and I was also living in a new place where I did not know anyone, and I was like, ‘I have all this time, what should I do?’  I was trying to come up with something fun to do.  So I tried a series of different things.  I tried doing yoga.  I read a lot of books, and that kind of what was what got me into doing writing for my own.  I read this book by this blogger called the Happiness Project (Gretchen Rubin) and it advocates for blogging and writing.  And, I though, ‘oh that sounds fun – I should do that.’  And I guess I have been doing it ever since.

it takes two to make it out of sight

David: Running and cross-country seem to be important and really formative experiences for you.  Why did you join cross-country in the first place…what drew you to it? Are you a glutton for punishment?

Ken: I think initially I joined because my friends were joining as a way to have something to put on college applications.  I thought ‘that’s a good idea – I should probably do that too.’  The year before that, my freshman year, I tried out for soccer, but I got cut and so I just did not do anything that year.  My sophomore year was when I started running just cause some of my friends were doing it.  As far as the second part of the question, I would definitely say there’s a part of me that’s driven by suffering and pushing yourself.

David: I was kind of thinking about that writing these questions up – that with medical school and cross-country there’s a lot of time, a lot of dedication and sense of a distance to the process… so I guess a lot of us here are gluttons for punishment. So I want to ask you, what is a hero? And who are your heroes?

Ken: I guess to me a hero is someone who inspires other people to do something positive. I guess for me heroes take on a motivational role. I think of political leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. I would definitely say Paul Farmer in medicine– he does a lot of global health type work in Haiti. 

David: What is your first memory of being really excited? 

Ken: I always have trouble with these questions of your first memory.  I feel like I don’t feel like I remember as much about my childhood as other people do. I’d say my first real excited memory – there was a time in second grade – I must have been like 7 maybe – I remember it was the first day I got glasses and one of my friends was talking to me about it on the way from lining up outside school to go to class and my friend’s friend comes over to talk to us and said, “hey if anyone calls you a nerd, I’m going to punch them in the face.”  And, I was like, ‘Oh wow, that’s really nice – I have friends.’

What's on the other side?

David: This is my last question. Your blog sign-off is “see you on the other side”…what is the other side?


Ken: I don’t know. I thought about that a lot. I think I have written about it before. I don’t know. I don’t know. The thing that comes to mind is I feel like a lot of times like an outsider. I think very different than other people think. I have met some other people who are unique in the same way I am that I can’t quite describe. I don’t know if it is good to be on this side, but I think it is more interesting or fun. I would either want to meet more people on this side or other people come over to my side. It is very abstract I guess… 

David: It kind of makes sense. Would you say that way of thinking is more analytical or practical or what kind of word would you put to it? 

Ken: Maybe. Maybe a little of both. Usually if I have to attribute a major quality to myself is usually that I care more about things than other people. I think that is an important aspect of it because to me, to care more is different than to work hard at something. I don’t know. I hope that is a satisfactory answer. 

David: I think that is a very satisfactory answer, and I appreciate you letting me do this.

Thanks David!

Who should I interview next?

Relationships in med school pt 13: So you think you know Marshall Oelsen

with the gf

An interview with the one and only Marshall Oelsen.

Ken: Tell me 3 things about you.

Marshall: I'm from Texas.

Being diagnosed with Diabetes completely changed my life - it made me a control freak on so many levels.

I can say the thing I'm best at in our class is having the most energy. I think a lot of other people would agree, so I'll brag about that.

Ken: Yeah I'd agree to that. So tell me a little about how you got here. What'd you do in college?

Marshall: Well I graduated from Davidson in 2010. I just wasn't focused academically. My college was super tough, and I just didn't take it seriously enough. I knew I wanted to go to med school, but I never understood what sort of grades it took. I was on the honor council there, and my senior year I was an investigator. I hated when people called me a prosecutor because I didn't see myself like that. My job was to present the facts and have the most fair trial. I mean, someone's future is at stake. It's hard to find the truth, it was a tough job. Thankless. It's not like there's any trophies for it, you know?

K: Yeah, it's too easy to go after the trophies to stack up on the AMCAS. So I saw you were elected to the honor council at MUSC, congrats on that. If the job was so tough at Davidson, why keep doing it?

M: Good question. It's the best way I can serve our class. Since I have that experience - I just feel like it's my duty. 

K: Makes sense. And what'd you do after you graduated?

M: I started working for [one of our unnamed professors]. Actually, and I might have told you this story, but the first thing he ever said to me was hilarious. He walks in, sees me, looks at his #2, and says, "Who the fuck is this kid?" It was something else. 

K: [laughs] nice, nice. And how did it grow from there?

M: It was a really good conduit for me to work hard and be challenged. I felt like I had to prove myself. I know I'm not the smartest mind here, but those two years off really helped me harness my inner control freak into a great work ethic. 

K: And what else did you do?

M: I learned to surf. I started running a lot, and worked on my nutrition. I got my A1C down to 5.7. Now it's back up a point. It's hard to eat right in school. 

K: So tell me more about the Diabetes.

M: It really is a sad story of how I got diagnosed. I had been sick for a long time, and when I actually got diagnosed it was with a pediatrician I had never seen before. My regular doctor was out of town. And we had this awkward conversation where I was explaining to him that I had lost 25 lb and I'd been drinking water all the time. 

So he brought in a tech and they tested my blood sugar, just to check. All I remember is that when the result came up it didn't even have a number, it just said HI. They said we'll be right back and fled the room. And it sucked. I was sitting by myself with nothing. I was a confused kid. And I lost my temper. I found the guy's office and I yelled at him to tell me what was going on. He let me into his office, and just gave me this stack of papers. He said, "You have type 1 Diabetes." 


And that's been a lot of my driving force. I suddenly had to care about my health. I was way more laid back before the diagnosis. Now I'm always conscious of what i'm eating, and it makes me a control freak on so many levels. I had to figure it out on my own, how to live with Diabetes. So I've tried my best to make myself available to other kids that get diagnosed. Whether it's just over the phone or email. I still have probably 4 or 5 kids I try to stay in contact with. Just try to check in on them. 

K: And how does this whole experience change your perspective as a student?

M: Other students say this all the time, and of course I do too. But everyone says, "Oh we don't need to know that for boards." And I'm not saying I'm a saint because I do it too. But at the end of all this, we're going to be dealing with people, not tests. These exams aren't the end all be all. We'll be doctors soon. Well, we'll be. Not you. 

K: [laughs] So true. Don't remind me. 

M: When I'm your resident I'll show you some mercy. But yeah, I just remember sitting back in that exam room all by myself. It's a tough thing to reach a patient. I hope I'm good at it. That's why I'm here. To be there for your patients that are alone and confused. 

my future boss

Plus all those Diabetes questions on the test like, do you snack? I got all those. 

K: Any last things you want the class to know about you? 

M: I'm really impressed with how brilliant everyone is, and how interesting everyone is. It just feels like everyone has a cool story, I meet new cool people everyday. We all have the same focus, but at the same time, everyone has had such a different path of how they got there. Just a lot of cool people here. 

K: preach. 

See you on the other side,

from ken

who do you want to see interviewed next? 

Relationships in med school pt 12: So you think you know Ashley Smith

An interview with the one and only, Ashley Smith. 

Ken: So tell me 3 things about you.

Ashley: The first thing I want people to know is that I'm a Christian. I think it's important for future physicians to know what we believe about things like death. Medicine is a serious field. Also that I'm open to talking about it. 

The second is that I'm MUSC's biggest fan. I'm so grateful to be here, and I love the people. 

The third thing is that I love music. I was really excited to see the brass quintet play the other week. My favorite is Canon in D, and Xylophonia. 

K: So you're a Christian, how do you feel like med school has affected your spiritual life?

A: Well I'm pretty grounded. I know what I believe, so not too much. Although, praying for exams has definitely strengthened my prayer life. [laughs]

K: Right, right. And what's been your favorite part of med school? 

A: That's hard, there's so many things. .. Probably the friends I've made. I mean, it's people we didn't even know 7 months ago and it feels like we've known each other for years. I have awesome lab partners. We're forced to hang out for five hours a week. We almost always sing reading rainbow songs. 

K: With Sudeep in your group, that doesn't surprise me. Did you always know you wanted to come to med school?

A: Not exactly. There's a neuromuscular disease called Charcot-Marie-Tooth that runs in my family. It's a demyelinating peripheral neuropathy. It can be associated with hip dysplasia, which is what I have. I randomly started limping around age 11, and eventually I had to have hip surgery. And that didn't really last because with the Charcot your muscles change so fast. 

After that I went to a hospital up in Boston, and it was awesome. It was such a stark contrast. Not that I didn't love my doctor back in Columbia, but it was just such a different experience. I ended up having both my hips reconstructed there. 

Being up there, I just loved learning about the disease. It became my life because I had to stay in bed for 2 months, then get on crutches, then finally start walking, and it was all such a long process. That was really the time I started seeing medicine as my future.

K: [insert token empathetic statement here] And you liked your doctors up there?

A: Definitely, it amazed me to see how skilled the doctors could be. At the time there were only two surgeons that could do my specific hip surgery. One was in San Diego, and the other was up in Boston where I ended up going. Looking back on it, it's incredible the difference one doctor can make in a person's quality of life. Before the surgery there were times when I'd walk into a store and I couldn't even walk out, my dad would have to carry me out. It was bad. 

K: Yeah, stories like that really make surgery sound cool.. Do you have any ideas for the kind of medicine you want to practice? 

A: I don't really know. I like so many things! I know i can't be a surgeon because my hands are weak from the disease. My lab partners know my hands are useless when it gets too cold in the lab. And I can't do loads of walking. So maybe something more like radiology, but at the same time I want to talk to patients. I'll see. I'm just looking forward to rotations.

K: Makes sense. And have you been back up to Boston since that surgery?

CC

A: Yeah, I love Boston. I had to go up there for a checkup this past December, so my family made a whole vacation trip out of it. We got to stay at Cape Cod, and see the big Christmas tree downtown. 

K: Nice, Cape Cod is great. And what do you do at these checkups? 

A: Well, things change so fast with the Charcot so I need to get constant checkups. My labrum is torn, and I just need to keep checking on small things like that. And, oh, I have no psoas function. Which, now I know what that is!

K: How would you say your perspective is different from other students?

A: Having been a patient is different. Knowing what patients deal with at home. And of course, every disease is different but everyone needs to adapt your home life. After my surgery I wasn't allowed to sit up at 90 degrees, which sounds weird, but it was really inconvenient. My mom had to help me put my socks and shoes on. Even once I could start sitting, I could go places, but I couldn't even pick up my pencil if I dropped it, and it was hard. I know how it is for patients to comply, and hopefully I'll be understanding when they don't. 

K: Any last things you'd like to say to the class?

A: I don't know.. I'd just like to give a shoutout to my lab partners. They're awesome and we have a lot of fun!

See you on the other side,

from ken

taking requests for future blog posts. please comment or email.

Relationships in med school pt 11: So you think you know Greg Franklin

An interview with the one and only, Greg Franklin.

Ken: My first question would be: Can you tell me 3 things about you? Can be anything.

Greg: Sure thing. Sorry if it sounds generic and orientation-ish.

1) I'm a 22-year old Black male, a recent Clemson University graduate, and I'm from Blythewood, SC.

2) My hobbies include sports, reading, music, movies, food, traveling, thinking, sleeping, the usual.

3) Similar to your story in a previous post, I too got in trouble in grade school for poor penmanship. In fact, that was the first time I ever earned a "B+" on my report card. SideNote: I wonder if that's a common experience amongst docs.

Ken: Haha, nice. It sounds great. So let's get right into it. I've been interested in this for a while, but never really knew how to approach it. How can non-black people support black history month?

Greg: Very interesting question. 

Black History is American History. Black History is Human History. Black History is World History. Everyone can support Black History Month. I'm glad you asked this. I think the first step to enlightenment is having the curiosity. The next step, more challenging: ask the questions, seek the knowledge, read the literature. Don't be offensive, but at the same time don't be afraid to ask difficult questions. That's what diversity is all about: growing from each other's experiences. 

The goal of Black History Month is to enlighten all people of the contributions of African-Americans throughout history. Black History is special because, it's an underdog story. Many racial backgrounds have had to endure struggle to achieve equality, but slavery was one of the worst injustices in human history. Black people were literally property. And even after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, and after the Civil Rights Acts were passed, many would argue that Black people are still suffering some of the after-effects of slavery today. 

The real thing to take away from Black History Month is to acknowledge the pursuit of excellence, despite the odds. Truth, humanity, and reason prevailed over the injustice, prejudice and adversity. Black people still have a long way to go in the US and all over the world: there are racial disparities in health, life expectancy, education level and income. I can't turn a blind eye to that, but Black History Month for me, is just a reminder to never give up hope, regardless of how harsh the situation may seem. And also to never forget the struggles that Black people have had (still have) to overcome.

K: So the last thing you mention, "the struggles that Black people still have to overcome." Tell me more about that.

G: Racial Profiling is real. Chicago's Death Toll is real. Black on black violence is real (and doesn't get much media attention). The prison system is disproportionately filled with black and brown people. Poverty is disproportionately brown/black. Health(care) disparities are real. I can go on and on....

We're all human, and we judge people. Even in medical school, we're taught not to have preconceived notions about patients, but at the same time, certain assumptions may help you understand a patient's story and eventually help to make an accurate diagnosis. "Stereotypes don't exist if there's no validity to them." I don't 100% agree with that quote but many people subscribe to that ideology. It's just unfortunate that Black people are labeled with negative stereotypes: dangerous, unintelligent, loud, lazy, etc.. 

Most of the racism that we see today is institutionalized. I know that there are still KKKlansmen and people who throw around racial slurs. However, for the most part, people like black people... as long as we stay in our roles: everyone loves Jay-Z and LeBron, but some people are not OK with having a Black boss. White privilege still exists, but many people (of all races) don't realize it. 

Something that most people don't think about is how "hyper-vigilant," being conscious of all of these things can make Black people feel. In an academic/professional setting, a challenge that I personally deal with is proving myself. Of course, everyone's trying to perform at the highest level, but as a Black person sometimes you feel an added incentive to do well: 1) because just 50-60 years ago, it wasn't possible for people that look like me to be here, 2) because other people may assume that I earned a spot because of affirmative action and I want to prove them wrong and 3) because there is a "shortage" of URM's in certain positions and I want to be an inspiration to the next generation so that in the future, there is no shortage.

We all know the statistics. We all know that racism, slavery, and the struggle for civil rights can be the blame for the current situation of "Blacks in America," but those events cannot be undone. We can never forget these tragedies, but in the spirit of Black History Month, we as a human race must press forward for a better tomorrow.

K: Any final thoughts you want your class to know about you?

G: Yes, Black people have problems, but what group of humans doesn't? We're not as bad as people think we are. I'm not gonna say "Don't judge," but I will say "Don't condescend!" 

Thanks again for the opportunity Ken, and to the readers: continue to have this discourse about race, worldviews, sexual orientation, politics, law, socioeconmics, morals, healthcare, whatever. Of course, your closest friends are going to probably have similar views as your own, but continue to diversify yourself. Hate to get all FPC-ish, but having random discussions is important especially since hardly any of us will be regularly attending class next year & 3rd/4th year, we'll be on the wards, so now's a good time to have these conversations with your fellow classmates that you wouldn't normally interact with. It's a vital part of growing to be a better physician and a better human being.

Allow me to end this with with a cookie-cutter, Hallmark card quote: "What unites us is far greater than what divides us" -JFK

Alright, that's pretty much all I've got. Until next time... Shine your light on the world.

K: preach.

See you on the other side,

from ken

taking requests for future blog posts. please comment or email.

Relationships in med school pt 10 - So you think you know Tripp Mostertz

The lovely couple. 
Bryn is a first year peds resident at MUSC.

An interview with the one and only, Tripp Mostertz.

Ken: So let's start with where you've lived.

Tripp: Ok, so I was born here in SC and went to grade school here, but then my parents decided they wanted to move, so we went to Utah. Salt Lake City. 

Ken: How was that?

Tripp: It was ok, I think my parents weren't huge fans of it because they didn't like the mormon feel and it was hard to develop deep relationships because they weren't mormon. They eventually decided to move back, I lived here in Charleston for a year. I went to Wando HS, actually. Then I moved up to Clemson where I met Bryn.

K: Yeah, let's get to that. How did you guys meet?

T: Well, we were both band geeks. Bryn - she was really goot at flute. We met right away, but we didn't date until our senior year. I also loved marching band, and I kept doing that at Clemson. We played for the basketball games and all that. 

K: So what else did you do at Clemson?


T: I was an electrical engineering major. I didn't know what that was, but I really loved music and I think I just figured I'd start a recording studio or some crazy shit like that. 

K: And what happened to that track?

T: Well I had this internship my junior year, in this power plant. And it sucked. I didn't talk to anyone, we just worked on fixing obsolete parts. I was thinking my life is over, and that this was going to be the worst thing ever. I had never thought about an advanced degree, and I'd never even really thought about the future, but after that internship I had to think. 

I started taking some bio classes and ended up in this great bioE class where I studied lower limb fractures, and coming up with a quantitative way to interpret the recovery. I ended up turning that into graduate work at Clemson. 

K: And where was Bryn during all this?

T: We went to Clemson together, but when I stayed at Clemson, she moved to Durham to work in a cancer lab at Duke. 

K: So you dated long distance - how was that?

T: It was a challenge that we needed to know this was right. I'm not one to give advice or anything like that, but I think it's important. Like, maybe if you can't survive it, maybe it's not right. I'm not saying there aren't other marriages that don't work out, but at least for me it was good to see. 

K: And then at what point did you get married?

T: Well let's see. We got engaged the winter before she started school, so that must have been around '07. That was right before I defended my graduate work, then I moved over to Durham to work in a lab up there. Then, she started med school in fall of '08 and we got married on New Year's Eve 2008. 

K: That's fun, why New Year's?

T: No reason really, it was just convenient since Bryn had a break. And no one ever has real plans for New Year's so we figured we'd just give everyone a reason to come together and party. 

Actually there was a funny story with the party - I didn't care about much with the wedding. Except the music. I was a stickler for the music, and I subdivided the night into hours with different themes of music. One night Bryn was looking through it and she accidentally deleted the playlist. And I was like ok, I think I can remember what was in each section. And Bryn saw that as a big reassuring moment of us getting married. She was like - "You didn't get mad after I deleted all that music." It was funny but it was a big moment of commitment. 

K: Probably more funny in retrospect.

T: [laughs] Right, right. 

K: And why'd you decide that was the right time?

T: Well, we dated a long time. Like 2001 to 2007 or something like that. And we knew we'd be in the same place for the first time since college. I guess I proposed because I just knew. It's not like I had a checklist or anything like that, but I kind of had an internal one, and I eventually reached the point where I didn't think there were any more checks until I could be sure this was right. I was sure this was what I wanted. 

It's like from When Harry Met Sally, which is actually our favorite movie, but they say something like, "When you know you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, why not make it now?" Actually, and this is funny, but the pastor that did our wedding actually mentioned that movie, and we hadn't even talked about it, so it was like fate or something. 

throwback

K: And how about coordinating the simultaneous move of you to MUSC med school and her to MUSC peds residency?

T: Yeah, so that was hard. I felt like I could get in somewhere, and I really liked MUSC. My MCAT was in the range, and I was really strong in other things. I had good research experience, I did graduate work in bioE, volunteering, all of that. And she was supportive, but at the same time there's no couples matching at this point, so she had to know what I was going to be doing before she had to set up her match list. 

I remember it was a whole complicated process of figuring out when I had to move to South Carolina so I could get in-state tuition, and have a better chance of getting in. In the end it just ended up working out, I got in here, she set up her match list, and of course she had no trouble getting in. 

K: And here you are now. Any last things you want to say?

T: Man, what I don't enjoy is when people complain about studying. Because I fucking love studying. Yeah, some of the material's a drag, but still. I get up in the morning, make some coffee, and I can't imagine doing anything else that I would love more. I took a long route to get here, it was so hard. And this is just philosophical, but dude, this is not bad. All you do is work hard, and you come out with a cool job. This is not bad. 

K: preach.

See you on the other side,

from ken

taking requests for future blog posts. please comment or email.