July 16, 2008

• Personal Statement Round 1

  Alright so lets take a crack at this, shall we?

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  I am not two dimensional and neither is
  my world. Everything around me is constantly jumping out competing
  for attention, and the first way most people tend to experience their
  world is with their eyes. One of my hobbies is photography, an
  incredibly sight oriented art form. And the first and most important lesson in
  photography is to focus, in order to best direct the attention of the
  audience to where you wish it to be.

  My first view of medicine was panoramic, as I tried to take it all in at once. I transported patients in an ER, I did research with a chiropracter, I worked as a technician performing LASIK, anything that would give me a glimpse into the world of health. While my exposure to each field was limited, the one that ultimately most contributed to my development was the time I spent interning for my ophthalmologist.

  At first, I thought of it as nothing more than a job like any other. Once I zoomed in however, I noticed how happy everyone seemed to be; The patients returning month after month, either for follow ups or to have their sight corrected; The doctors, performing procedures varying from cataract removal to LASIK; and me, getting to assist in surgeries and developing a relationship with people i still see to this day.

  Just before leaving for medical school, I underwent LASIK myself. The procedure left me with a better focus, both literally and metaphorically. As I went through my third year, I enjoyed the majority of my rotations,especially the ones wherein I had more opportunity to interact and follow up with a patient beyond the initialy admission. Despite that, I never seemed to feel that one “ah-ha!” moment, that snapshot that we are all told will come to us when we have found the right field.

  Until, that is, I decided to do an ophthalmology rotation near the end of my third year. All of a sudden, everything seemed to come into focus; no matter how many patients I saw, or how complicated they were, I felt confident and the days just seemed to fly by. Like everything had become picture perfect, just waiting for me to step in and complete the shot

  It is said that hindsight is always 20/20. While I didnt know it at the time, my early experiences in ophthalmology focused my interest enough to try it again in medical school, only to find that both my desire and enjoyment of the field had been magnified a hundredfold. So I am taking my shot-all that remains is to see what develops.

  Well, there you have it. My first attempt at a personal statement for residency, though certainly not my last. I openly invite any and all constructive criticism on this, as it desperately needs to be polished before september rolls around. Feel free to be as harsh as you want, provided it will ultimately lead to something i can improve

  • 2:04 am
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