just curious, why do premeds have to read books on medicine for entertainment?

[EBI831]

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just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

Breaks are for dentists.

 

[kingtz]

Certain books pique my interest, but I don't do it because I have to...

 

[kevster2001]

It's not like they're reading Grant's or anything. Premeds are interested in the medical field, hench they like to read stories related to medicine. i dont see why this is so hard to grasp.

 

[baylormed]

We don't have to. The only medically related books I've read have been for my Philosophy of Medicine and Bioethics courses. Other than that, I enjoy reading varied literary genres, and in a couple of different languages.

 

[instigata]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

Because they're full of it

 

[Benna]

I suppose I technically read books about medicine. But they're entertaining at least. An Anthropologist on Mars, Another Day in the Frontal Lobe... I mean, they have medicine in them but they're certainly not heavy reading.

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Unless it's assigned for class, necessary for work, or a reference for an article I'm writing I don't read anything medically related. I have better things to do with my time.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

I need a break from all the psych, physics, and biology that I have to spend my time studying. I'm interested in medicine so I find fiction with a medical theme to be entertaining. I really don't spend a lot of time in clinical settings (especially this year, about zero hours a week), so I don't understand how this wouldn't be taking a break from what I normally do as a premed.

Now when I'm a med student, I won't be reading such books.

 

[maestro1625]

I cant say I really read anything medically related... last book I got thru was Friedman's "the world is flat"

 

[c0in3d]

I honestly don't read enough outside the classroom. The last book I touched was Med School Confidential by Miller and Bissell, which I do recommend.

 

[ms2007plz]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

Okay, I confess, I read medically related books. I'm just sooo excited that I get to start medical school next year, and I can't wait. I feel like my passion for medicine is what helped me to get in. I didn't have the best GPA (due to the fact that I took way to many breaks, and spent way too little time studying subjects that I wasn't interested in, i.e. ochem.). I took time to travel the world for over a year also, so maybe I'm just ready to get back into hardcore studying. I find that people who are condescending of those that read medically related material are just bogged down by their own insecurities of how to find balance in their life.

Someone on SDN just recommended "Final Exam: A Surgeon's Reflections on Mortality"... looking forward to this read in the next month 🙂

 

[SurgeonUFO]

The last book I touched was Med School Confidential by Miller and Bissell, which I do recommend.

That book is incredible.

 

[GujuMD]

People read about things that they are interested in or curious about among many other reasons. Pre med are interested in the health field and so they read about it.
also there are pre meds who read other books for entertainment too...I am one of them.

 

[da8s0859q]

Breaks are for dentists.

 

[Wackie]

I get a little worn out from obsessing about my GPA, classes I'm taking, classes I need to take, when to start MCAT stuff, EC's I might need to do, wondering if I'll get into med school, and all that. By the end of the day, I don't want to read most literature on medicine that a premed can understand.

I'd rather see it anyway than read about it.

The last book I picked up about medicine kept going on and on whining about the healthcare system. I hear and discuss it at work all the time with current practicing physicians. I really don't want to go home and read about it too. I didn't finish it.

 

[sprinkibrio]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

A lot of premeds don't know what there getting into. At least those who read about medicine have a better idea. There should be a balance, however, and I've noticed that premeds who read those books sometimes take themselves too seriously.

 

[microgal]

They don't. 99% of everything I read is purely fiction. I get asked what my last book was at every interview and I never make up lame premed book answers just to please interviewers. So far, everyone seems to be fine my book choices. I think it's more that they want you to READ, not what.

 

[IceMan0824]

The last book I read was The Brothers Karamazov, I think this goes over well when people ask than some medicine book.

Read whatever you like, as long as adcoms like it too.😀
Because that is the real reason any of us read

 

[psipsina]

Well, I'm in medicine (and was a pre-med) because I'm truely intersted in medicine, which we got far too little of in undergrad so I read medical non-fiction in undergrad because I was more interested in that stuff than alot of my classwork (i.e. physics). I also found that fiction/autobiographical medical stuff was really inspirational and would help me refocus on what my goals were, remind me of why I was slaving through the boredom that was ochem lab. I still like watching stuff like grays anatomy and ER, and stuff on discovery health occassionally even tho I do medicine all day every day now.

 

[notdeadyet]

Okay, I confess, I read medically related books. I'm just sooo excited that I get to start medical school next year, and I can't wait.

I think that's totally understandable.

Choosing your undergrad based on which school will have the best shot of landing you cheif resident for a competitive ortho residency? Sad...

Enjoying reading stories from the profession that you are working so hard to enter? Totally normal....

 

[IckeyShuffle]

i play guitar, i dont touch medical books outside of work.👍

 

[smuwillobrien]

i play guitar, i dont touch medical books outside of work.👍

Same here! Except, it's not just medical books I don't touch, it's all books. I hate reading for fun. It's so boring.

 

[chad5871]

Well, I'm in medicine (and was a pre-med) because I'm truely intersted in medicine, which we got far too little of in undergrad so I read medical non-fiction in undergrad because I was more interested in that stuff than alot of my classwork (i.e. physics). I also found that fiction/autobiographical medical stuff was really inspirational and would help me refocus on what my goals were, remind me of why I was slaving through the boredom that was ochem lab. I still like watching stuff like grays anatomy and ER, and stuff on discovery health occassionally even tho I do medicine all day every day now.

I agree wholeheartedly. This is why I read medical non-fiction. And I consider it "research" for my future.

 

[etudiante04]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

Don't worry. In med school, you'll yearn to read and discuss non-medical books, because of all the medical/science literature you have to read. So if you have opportunities to venture into non-med literature by all means do so. As a result I think I am a more well-rounded person who can talk with medical and non-medical colleagues. Once in med school those opportunities may be limited to summer and winter breaks.

Oh wait - we are medical professionals - we don't want to take breaks!!🙄

 

[dannylee718]

Same here! Except, it's not just medical books I don't touch, it's all books. I hate reading for fun. It's so boring.

hahah, awesome! me too. reading is bad for your eyes.
so, i play video games for like 4hrs a day and practice on my newly purchased electric guitar. AW YEAH~

 

[IckeyShuffle]

Same here! Except, it's not just medical books I don't touch, it's all books. I hate reading for fun. It's so boring.

agreed! i find the guitar so much more entertaining and relaxing. I am kind of ADD though. It doesnt hurt that the women love it too 👍 👍

strum a few chords and it's 😍

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

hahah, awesome! me too. reading is bad for your eyes.
so, i play video games for like 4hrs a day and practice on my newly purchased electric guitar. AW YEAH~

I'm not entirely sure why, but that is without question the creepiest avatar I've ever seen.

 

[pyrois]

If you're pre-med you might find Isolation Ward to be a pretty cool book.

With respect to the OP's question well... why is that professional athletes like watching sports and playing sports games, or why computer programmers actually enjoy reading about new programming stuff, or why gymnasts like watching "Stick It" (don't get any weird thoughts, it's a gymnastics movie).

For that matter, why do classical pianists enjoy listening to classical music? Or history majors enjoy reading history (most of them really do like it... for the life of me I don't get it) or why theatre/performing arts majors enjoy going to the theatre?

Shoot, beats me. I guess it's one of those unsolved mysteries.

 

[gujuDoc]

just curious. don't you ever just want to take a break? i personally prefer to.

That's like asking why some engineers I know only read books about physics and physical sciences and concepts such as astronomy.

But not everyone is that way.