Helping the underserved-- Iowa or Rochester?

[greggth]

I want to make a career of helping the underserved, like Paul Farmer or Albert Schweitzer.

I am looking for a medical school environment that would be supportive of these goals. I want to be where lots of students value service to the poor and humanitarian work. Also social change/political action to improve conditions for the underserved as well as everybody else.

I want to ask the following questions about Iowa vs. Rochester:
Do the students care about making money, publishing papers, or helping others? Are they focused narrowly on their careers or do they see the big picture? Are they willing to make sacrifices for their ideals? Do they do a lot of volunteer work? Are they active in Physicians for Social Responsibility and other organizations focused on humanitarian/human rights/social issues? When there is a lecture on a topic of social or humanitarian concern, do a lot of people go to it? Are the students politically active or apathetic? How many of the students are interested in making a career of serving the underserved? And are the faculty sympathetic to those ideals?

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[Lochmoor]

Hey greggth. Did you get in to Rochester recently?

I absolutely loved Rochester. They seemed to have a very nuturing enviornment. However, I don't think I could justify the tuition difference and moving to Rochester.

As I've may have told you before, Iowa is very primary care oriented. While Rochester is the same, I think they have more push towards research and more integration of patient care. I know that Rochester has some community project thing they have to do as a class. I think it's during 4th year.

Good luck,
Lochmoor

 

[greggth]

Lochmoor, I just got in to Rochester.
What do you mean when you say you think Rochester has more "integration of patient care"? You mean the students have more patient contact than at Iowa?

 

[Lochmoor]

Congratulations on Rochester!

Maybe consideration for patient care would be a more accurate statement. Their biopsychosocial? model seemed to really take patient care into consideration.

I think they start to see real patients, just doing the basic stuff first year.