A Doctor for Two Weeks
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” This is a common questions that adults like to ask children. My answer has always been “I am going to be a doctor!” The largest influence on my decision was my parents, as they are both doctors. Growing up I was able to see what an ophthalmologist and a general physician do. However, it was not until the summer before my senior year that I got to actually become a doctor through a program called the National Scholarship Leadership Conference, or NSLC. NSLC is a program that allows high school students to study different fields of employment over the course of two weeks, and there was a medical one being held at UC Berkeley.
There were a number of different activities that was planned during the two weeks, including many lectures about medical school and the medical field. Through the lectures about medical school, I was able to really understand how long it really takes to become a doctor. The lectures from actual doctors were very interesting, we even had one from a zoologist. Each doctor gave an explanation of their undergraduate and graduate work, and what they do on a daily basis for their job. It was really interesting to be exposed to different fields, as I only learned about ophthalmology and internal medicine from my parents.
We also did many different workshops. A couple of them included dissections of a sheep heart, and cow eye. It was really interesting to see all the different parts of the eye, and the different ventricles of the heart. We also learned how to do some basic sutures by using chicken breast. One interesting workshop was we were put into a room and the mentors acted like there had been a huge accident. Some of them were unconscious, some had broken bones and some were going crazy because of what just happened. It was a little stressful because of how much was going on, but it taught us how to triage things and see who needs to be tended to first. This workshop allowed me to experience what it would be like as a first responder.
One of the most memorable part of the two weeks was each group was assigned 3 “patients” and we were supposed to diagnose them based on their symptoms. Our group would ask the patient about their symptoms, get together and try and figure out what they had. This was the most memorable part because it allowed me to see that this is what I want to do as a doctor. It also taught me different traits that are needed as a doctor. Our group of 14 people had to interview one person all at once, and that really taught us to work together as a team, listen to what each other is saying and offer our own opinions. It also taught me a little bit of bedside manner, and how crucial it is. When our group found out that we correctly diagnosed each patient, it was such a great moment not only for our team, but also for me. Hearing we were right really boosted my desire to learn more about medicine.
I was lucky enough to know my answer to “what do you want to be when you grow up”. The insight of being a child of two doctors allowed me to see what I wanted to do. However, it was not until NSLC that I was really able to experience what it is like to be a doctor. Being able to actually cut into an organ, take someone’ blood pressure and diagnose a patient was so much more exciting and informative than watching my parents or a television show. Attending NSLC truly reinforced my dream of becoming a doctor.