- Joined
- Mar 18, 2005
- Messages
- 40
- Reaction score
- 0
I really need some advice. Here's the situation: I have been gratefully accepted to many fine medical schools and was in the final decision process of where to attend. Medical school and caring for the sick, or other helpless people has been my aspiration for as long as I can remember.
I am also in the process of receiving medical treatment for Hepatitis C which I unfortunately contracted from a blood transfusion when I was a baby. The treatments are debilitating enough without trying to finish up my last semester of undergrad, interview and make final decisions about med school. I should finish treatments at the very end of July, just in time to start med school. My VL may be clear at that point, hopefully, but the true test is if I am clear six months later. Once one has attained a SVR, it rarely comes back after two years. There is also a chance that i will not even clear the virus this first round and have to go for retreatment but I will not know that before having to make a decison about med school.
Recently I have read that med schools test students routinely to ascertain if they have HCV and those testing positive are not allowed to participate in certain procedures. I do not want to be stigmitized or victimized and for this to go on my record. I do not want it to follow me forever.
I am well aware of standard precautions and know I can protect patients from any extremely minimal chance of them contracting the virus from me.
The question is what should I do? Wait until I know for sure the virus is cleared from my system? Go to med school and hope to test negatively and for no one to ever know? Do I have to tell the schools I have been undergoing treatment? Are there any schools that do not test?
I really need some advice as this is tearing me apart.
I am also in the process of receiving medical treatment for Hepatitis C which I unfortunately contracted from a blood transfusion when I was a baby. The treatments are debilitating enough without trying to finish up my last semester of undergrad, interview and make final decisions about med school. I should finish treatments at the very end of July, just in time to start med school. My VL may be clear at that point, hopefully, but the true test is if I am clear six months later. Once one has attained a SVR, it rarely comes back after two years. There is also a chance that i will not even clear the virus this first round and have to go for retreatment but I will not know that before having to make a decison about med school.
Recently I have read that med schools test students routinely to ascertain if they have HCV and those testing positive are not allowed to participate in certain procedures. I do not want to be stigmitized or victimized and for this to go on my record. I do not want it to follow me forever.
I am well aware of standard precautions and know I can protect patients from any extremely minimal chance of them contracting the virus from me.
The question is what should I do? Wait until I know for sure the virus is cleared from my system? Go to med school and hope to test negatively and for no one to ever know? Do I have to tell the schools I have been undergoing treatment? Are there any schools that do not test?
I really need some advice as this is tearing me apart.