Dr. K is the smartest person I know
a few words from a super wise (and super cool) almost-not-pre-tenure-anymore professor of medicine. she was nominated by her students for a teaching award this year. that’s how much she rocks.
and damn. some days i really wish i had this woman teaching me. she could tell our class a thing or two about getting over our sense of entitlement and being freaking ecstatic about the chance to study medicine. which is for most of us (or maybe should be), the stuff Wildest Dreams are made of. every day in those ridiculous little uncomfortable desks should be so super exciting and thrilling that we can’t help but get goosebumps at any mention of pallidofugal efferent connections to the ansa lenticularis or Histoplasma capsulatum bat feces pneumonia or structural analogues of para-aminobenzoic acid.
1. How do you, a first-year medical student, know what is relevant? Please stop whining in your pre-clinical years that you can’t see the relevance. Granted, we will teach you some things that aren’t directly relevant but … Because you are supposed to be the cream of the crop then perhaps you may start to appreciate that we are teaching you learning for the sake of learning. Believe me, it will serve you well in the future.
2. I am amazed that a Professor can stand in front of you and teach you something about the human body and you respond by wondering how it will apply to your as-yet-undetermined specialty. Aren’t you, as a junior medical student, simply fascinated by the human body? As in, every aspect of it? You aren’t? Really? Then why, may I ask, are you studying the human body in preparation for your future career?
3. Yes, I know that your generation lives life through YouTube and the like. That doesn’t mean that you have any special privileges in disrespecting the people who have donated their bodies to your education. It is WRONG for you to record their remains in any manner at all. Full stop.
4. You are a medical student. If you are a medical student for the right reasons then you will be learning (not memorizing(!)) for the benefit of your future patients. Stop asking me if “this will be on the exam”. It will be “on the exam” for the rest of your professional career. Grow up and understand this simple fact.
from “Think” by That Mirror Belongs to Frank. see? told you she is brilliant.
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June 18th, 2008 at 8:27 am
It’s difficult to believe those points needed to be said … especially #3.
June 18th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
hmm..that sounds a lot like my comment in your previous post. Obviously this means I am also the smartest person you know, and quite possibly the smartest person in the world.
June 18th, 2008 at 9:57 pm
Too cool.
It also bothers me when med students want to go home when they’re on call with me and say “Call me if something interesting comes in”. Uh, you’re a med student. At this point, everything should be interesting to you.
June 19th, 2008 at 4:30 am
“Stop asking me if “this will be on the exam”. It will be “on the exam” for the rest of your professional career. Grow up and understand this simple fact.”
“Then why, may I ask, are you studying the human body in preparation for your future career?”
She is something!
June 19th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
I’m not a med student but I still love #4!! It used to irk me pretty bad when people constantly asked that in uni classes. Life is the real exam people!!
June 20th, 2008 at 5:42 am
“Stop asking me if “this will be on the exam”. It will be “on the exam” for the rest of your professional career. Grow up and understand this simple fact.” – is brilliant and perfect
I was talking to other junior doctors the other week and they were moaning about how they didn’t get to do much at med school (clinical years) and it didn’t prepare them for work… Myself, a few of the other SHOs and a Reg commented that we learnt plenty… from being there 9-5 and beyond and bothering to prepare ourselves for our job to come.
I think it’s far too easy for certain people to get into medical school (in the UK anyway). It’s a default option teachers offer when a pupil is academically much above average, they don’t care to think whether someone would make a good doctor… or if they even know if it’s what they want to (and will) dedicate the rest of their life to.
If I’d done what my teachers said I would’ve ended up in art school….
Still that would’ve been pretty cool…