Reflective Essay: My Experiences In The Medical Field

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During my experiences working in the medical field, I quickly learned that medicine is not just about the intricacies of the body or prescribing medications to fix the body’s shortcomings. There are many more challenges and difficulties that are involved in healthcare that involve many interpersonal skills. This summer I have volunteered with the medical director at Glenaire Retirement Community in Cary, North Carolina. After a few weeks of shadowing, the medical director asked me to see a patient to discuss her primary complaints before he joined me. I went into the patient’s room, introduced myself, and waited for a response. After multiple attempts and no recognition from the patient, the physician came in to join us. I quickly saw what I had been missing as the physician began to interact with her. He bent down by her chair and introduced himself as loudly as he could. He spoke slowly and calmly. Afterwards we had a discussion of what I could have done to improve and why my methods were not effective. I learned each patient is different, depending on his or her age, disabilities, background, and experiences. These differences require the physician to adapt and recognize how to more effectively communication to ultimately help the patient. It was frustrating to accept that a simple conversation was difficult, but this only …show more content…

Even though the differences between the places I have been and my home are obvious, what I have experienced has also demonstrated a common humanity between the people I have encountered and myself. The humanity of the physician lies in being able to recognize and appreciate the same humanity in the person they are treating, as well as appreciate the diversity. It is this common humanity that I want to embrace, and this common humanity that I want to serve in

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