I had the wonderful opportunity to spend this past weekend in Durham,
NC at Duke University School of Medicine for the National Leadership
Institute (organized by the Student National Medical Association). This
conference was a mini AMEC (American Medical Education Conference). AMEC is
held every year in different cities. Students, physicians, and other healthcare
professionals come from all over the nation to convene, discuss health issues
affecting our communities, and to connect with each other.This year, AMEC 2015 was in New Orleans, LA. Last year, it was in Washington DC, and the year before that, it was in Louisville, KY. I’m blessed to have been able to attend all three through the generous support of funding programs. This upcoming spring (2016), it will be in Austin, TX.
The National Leadership Institute (NLI) is a smaller AMEC also held within different regions and hosted by different schools. It takes place a few times throughout the year. I was fortunate to be able to attend the one hosted by Duke this past weekend.
I left from DC early on Friday to arrive by the early afternoon. We stopped in Richmond, VA before my final destination in Durham. The ride was about 4 and a half hours.
On Friday evening, we had dinner and listened to a talk given by Dr. Brenda Armstrong, the Associate Dean for Admissions at the Duke School of Medicine. The following day, we attended more talks and workshops. In the morning, we listened to a fourth year student engage us in discussion about race, the policing riots, and the Black Lives Matter Movement. She emphasized the critical importance of racial harmony in the compassionate, respectful care of a patient by practitioners. Our workshops allowed us a glimpse into the life of a medical student (specifically a student at Duke, as their curriculum structure is and has been different from most other schools since 1965), a mastery (sort of) of suturing, an opportunity to network with Duke alumni, and an understanding of how to deliver a pristine oral presentation of research and our personal stories (to large and small audiences, such as in an interview).
Duke is different from most medical schools in their curriculum design
(which only a few others have adopted, including Vanderbilt). Typically,
medical students learn the basic sciences in the first two years. At Duke,
however, these two years are condensed into one. Clinical rotations begin
second year, and during the third year, students are given the opportunity to do with it as they wish, such as research, pursuing a second degree, etc. Fourth year is the same as
most schools: clinical electives. Another unique and wonderful thing I learned
about Duke this weekend is that, along with the historically black medical
schools (Howard, Meharry, and Morehouse), Duke Medical School is one the
institutions most dedicated to retaining, educating, and graduating disadvantaged,
underrepresented young medical students in this nation.The pre-medical and medical students present at the conference came from all over the country, including Hampton, VA, Radford, VA, Pittsburgh, California, Iowa, Alaska, etc. The diversity was wonderful! Following this conference, I’ve realized even more so that one of my greatest passions in life is meeting others from a multitude of backgrounds, cultures, geographic locations, and universities.
I’m very much looking forward to continuing this passion throughout my experience as a post-bac fellow at the NIH, where the door is wide open to meeting other post-bacs, post-docs, staff scientists, PIs, clinicians, support staff who are from all across the globe.
~*~
I have completed my secondary applications to medical school, and am now in the waiting stage for interview invites. I’m praying and hoping for the best this cycle. I also wish the best to everyone else who is in the same boat.
