Thanks for the response!
1. In regards to sounding entitled, I don't feel that sending one email asking to shadow like I would any doctor screams entitlement. That's typically how people ask... either that or a phone call, so that's not a fair accusation.
2. In regards to being well rounded, I certainly am. I volunteered at a hospital as a patient transporter, and am shadowing many different fields. It's just that I chose to have certain unique activities that make me stand out and all correlate to each other.
3. I think you're mistaken. Across the United States, there are specialty clinics popping up with focus on pediatric endocrinology for transgender children only. These clinic provide psychiatrists, psychologists, doctors etc... it's a major operation that follows the children to adulthood. It also helps the parents through it as well, which is something I think is so important in regards to the mental health of the child. It is a major need in the healthcare world, and while I am happy to serve the undeserved in any capacity, my dream is to be working as a pediatric endocrinologist with transgender kids, so it is a very real and necessary specialty. Right now, people are having to travel across the United States to major children's hospitals to receive that kind of treatment as opposed to having access near their home. Expanding that further, there is a major need for LGBTQ doctors in healthcare, and to say that I need to leave my personal self at the door, would be a detriment to patients in a way. Many LGBTQ people are searching for doctors they can relate to and trust, and I would be doing I disservice to them by not being open with it. I encourage you to do some research on this subject as you're treating it much like someone who only wants to treat car crash victims because they too were once a car crash victim. It's not the same.
4. While I appreciate your opinion, I do not appreciate you suggesting other careers nor questioning my commitment to helping people in general.
I can definitely see where it could be beneficial to expand my personal statement to include all underserved populations, which was essentially what my original question was. I'm not looking for advice on changing careers or editing my focus on long term goals.
In the end, I would argue that the transgender community, youth especially, is the reason I want to become a doctor. I have personally seen insane amounts of injustice brought against them, and they are arguably one of the most underserved populations in medicine. I want to change that
Thanks again!
No problem!
1) I think the issue was the phrasing "I cannot get her to respond to me." Sounds different then, "I haven't gotten a response," "She hasn't responded to me." It's subtle, but there is a difference in meaning that could be taken there. I'm well meaning and hate to be like so many of my peers and nitpicky, but that's the peer group you're signing up for. In any case, no offense meant, and I assume you didn't mean any either. Just something to be aware of, that subtle turns of phrase can get you into trouble.
2) I'm very glad if your experiences have been diverse and some outside the LGBTQ community, that is just what I would hope for, for your success. I'm also glad that your app also demonstrates commitment and passion to a cause. Both are sought after.
3) I am not mistaken. I too have an interest in transgender medicine and have assisted in transitions and treating other medical issues related to the LGBTQ community. I was also heavily involved in this aspect of medical education and developing that curriculum while I was in medical school. I've also been involved in the admissions process for medical school. So while I am aware of the need for providers with very targeted practices, I am also aware of the training path and that while medical schools appreciate individuals with targeted career goals, they also are looking for adaptibility and suitably for more than one field. Many people start medical school stuck on neurosurgery, and most of them find themselves needing to pursue something else. That might not be you. Despite that, it is something adcoms think about.
I was definitely speaking in generalities about most practices. You describe the sort of extreme niche where one might only see the population you describe. Over a decade of your training will be with a broad swath of patients, and need to be successful with them, and adcoms also look at this big picture.
Many physicians I have known, such as general surgeons, urologists, ob/gyns, plastic surgeons, psychiatrists, endocrinologists, and primary care providers, who are considered preeminent in treating transgender patients, also see other patients as well. I will spare you in explaining why often a more diverse patient population can be essential in maintaining skills in one's specialty that allows one to continue to be most effective in a more narrowed area.
In no way do I deny the extreme need for more providers who can address the unique needs of a diverse or minority population. That has also been the goal of much of my career.
I am not trying to advise that it's not possible to see to it that you only ever see an LGBTQ patient ever again in your life as an attending. Just that it isn't terribly common, and as such, isn't wise to hang your hat on, if not in actuality, then in front of an admissions committee or any other physician evaluating you.
Even with a niche population in a niche field, medicine is a very broad field intellectually, and an open mind, adaptibility, flexibility, are key.
Many people for various reasons don't or are unable to practice in their desired field. In fact, this is a common admissions question, how you would handle that, and what else can you see yourself doing in medicine?
4) No where did I suggest that you needed to consider other careers. I suggested that if someone can't see themselves practicing more than one type of medicine, with a diverse set of human beings, then they might consider other careers, because such a view can he extremely problematic. I actually didn't assume that was you, unless, of course, it is. I was also trying to explain why it's important to let the committee know that one has an identity and interest beyond their own experiences.
If this comes off as a lecture, it is. Maybe you don't need one. That's not the point. If you don't, there's no need to get defensive. If some of this is educational, good, that's the spirit in which it's given. Otherwise, I also intend this not only with you as the audience in mind.
The way I see it, I want someone with your experiences to succeed over the next guy, from what I can tell. But I don't think I'll do you any favors just clapping my hands.
I don't mean to attack you, but I mean to challenge you. By sharing with you what I have learned about the field, and how adcoms and physicians think, to my knowledge, and as someone committed to diversity and the underserved.
You won't just get clapping based on what you've said from a lot of doctors. You'll get grilled. I did. I know others who have been. None of this from me is a value judgement of you. Or even from some of the grillers. They just want to know and be assured of certain things. Them's the game.
