Unique Clinical Experience/Exposure to Medicine

[FuturePharm21]

What types of clinical experience/exposure to medicine have been done besides the usual shadowing and volunteering at a hospital??

Because, I feel like my clinical experience is average and typical to most premed students and although that's fine, I just want to learn something else besides just following around a doctor since it's always great and I learn a lot. However, a new experience means a new lesson about medicine.

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[n3xa]

What did you learn from volunteering/shadowing?

 

[SLC]

What types of clinical experience/exposure to medicine have been done besides the usual shadowing and volunteering at a hospital??

Because, I feel like my clinical experience is average and typical to most premed students and although that's fine, I just want to learn something else besides just following around a doctor since it's always great and I learn a lot. However, a new experience means a new lesson about medicine.

I did a basic, then advanced EMT course. The basic taught me how to take a pretty good history and do a basic physical examination. The advanced taught me how to perform venipuncture, insert IV catheters, Intubate, collect and interpret ECG tracings, and treat cardiac and other emergencies.

I parlayed the EMT-IA certification into some good clinical exposure. At a free clinic that I volunteer at I am allowed to practice my full scope of training. So basically I draw a lot of blood, start and manage a lot of IV's, do 12 lead ECG's, give a lot of injections, among other things. When I shadowed physicians it usually ended up being a situation where I'd go see the patient first and get a history, do a brief exam and report to the doctor, then we'd both go in and I'd observe the rest.

My EMT-IA certification also helped put me in a postition where I got to lead a large scale vaccination campaign. The medical director at my clinic knew me and was familiar with my abilities so she let me plan the whole thing, recruit volunteers, and take them to the streets to give vaccines. I had about 40 undergrad students (some of them paramedics etc.) and we gave about 4,000 H1N1 immunizations to the homeless in the fall of 2009.

After that, I signed up as a volunteer medic with the US Navy and spent a summer aboard a hospital ship in Indonesia and East Timor. Basically doing all the same things I did at the free clinic.

This is why I always laugh when people say getting an EMT certification is a waste of time for pre-meds. I won't argue that it's a waste of time if all you want is the certification. No interview committee will care about the cert., but if you can use it to get some killer experiences, they will care about those. The way I see it, an advanced medical certification can open a lot of doors for patient contact and care.

SLC

 

[FuturePharm21]

okay SLC...you went above and beyond and that's awesome!

How about some realistic things I can do this summer that count as clinical experiences that have some meaningful impact?

 

[FuturePharm21]

I learned the importance of patient interaction, the hospital environment requires teamwork, patience, and effective communication and leadership, also I learned that problem-solving and staying calm are crucial qualities all doctors must learn.

 

[RogueUnicorn]

OP, there is no need to be exceptional in every facet of your application.. the learning experiences you desire will come i'm sure, in med school. in spades.

 

[Lil Mick]

My experiences working in a free inner city clinic were amazing--learned to take vitals, patient histories, write SOAPs, do physical exams, even helped treat a subdural hematoma without an ER... I would highly recommend it, as it has really helped me in the pre-clinical years of medical school.

Also, if you do medical volunteering abroad, you'll probably have some good exposure to these skills, as well as experience another culture and really make a difference to people who may not have seen another doctor in their lives

 

[13132]

I shadowed a chimpanzee vet. thats close enough right?

 

[Osakhomen]

Well, I graduated in Dec 2010... and now I have a full time job working as a resident care counselor at a mental health facility... I work with mentally ill adults, like supervise them, give them meds, talk and listen to them, and take them places. Also, I do this for them most part alone for about 4 residents at a time in a rural area of Texas.

 

[sector9]

What types of clinical experience/exposure to medicine have been done besides the usual shadowing and volunteering at a hospital??

Because, I feel like my clinical experience is average and typical to most premed students and although that's fine, I just want to learn something else besides just following around a doctor since it's always great and I learn a lot. However, a new experience means a new lesson about medicine.

Contract a serious illness and be hospitalized for a month or so

 

[farrago]

I did a basic, then advanced EMT course. The basic taught me how to take a pretty good history and do a basic physical examination. The advanced taught me how to perform venipuncture, insert IV catheters, Intubate, collect and interpret ECG tracings, and treat cardiac and other emergencies.

I parlayed the EMT-IA certification into some good clinical exposure. At a free clinic that I volunteer at I am allowed to practice my full scope of training. So basically I draw a lot of blood, start and manage a lot of IV's, do 12 lead ECG's, give a lot of injections, among other things. When I shadowed physicians it usually ended up being a situation where I'd go see the patient first and get a history, do a brief exam and report to the doctor, then we'd both go in and I'd observe the rest.

My EMT-IA certification also helped put me in a postition where I got to lead a large scale vaccination campaign. The medical director at my clinic knew me and was familiar with my abilities so she let me plan the whole thing, recruit volunteers, and take them to the streets to give vaccines. I had about 40 undergrad students (some of them paramedics etc.) and we gave about 4,000 H1N1 immunizations to the homeless in the fall of 2009.

After that, I signed up as a volunteer medic with the US Navy and spent a summer aboard a hospital ship in Indonesia and East Timor. Basically doing all the same things I did at the free clinic.

This is why I always laugh when people say getting an EMT certification is a waste of time for pre-meds. I won't argue that it's a waste of time if all you want is the certification. No interview committee will care about the cert., but if you can use it to get some killer experiences, they will care about those. The way I see it, an advanced medical certification can open a lot of doors for patient contact and care.

SLC

Wait, are you a civilian or in the reserves or something? Do they let civilians do such a thing? Either way, pretty cool.

 

[SLC]

Wait, are you a civilian or in the reserves or something? Do they let civilians do such a thing? Either way, pretty cool.

They do let civilians do such a thing. Every summer they do a mission called operation "Pacific Partnership", and that's what I signed up for. They are out right now, I believe in Papua New Guinea.

They do one in the Carribean as well, "operation Continuing Promise".

 

[NYRN]

My suggestion would be if any of you know a resident physician, see if you can tag along to any of their conferences. It will help you get familiar with what resident education entails other than the clinical part. Even if a lot of what they are talking about goes way over your head (They always get me at the CT/MRI images) , you will walk away learning something. Many teaching hospitals have guest lecturers, usually physicians from top hospitals, or researchers.

You could write on your application that you have been participating in resident education, going to lectures, whatever. I don't see how it could hurt adding that to EC's.

 

[ha87]

I spent 3 months in Guatemala with an organization that sets up week-long hospital mission trips in various rural towns/cities. Before the missions started I helped move the hospital equipment to the facilities and made sure facilities were ready for when physicians and other volunteers arrived. During the trips I rotated as an interpreter through the various departments (recovery, pre-op, etc) and even got to scrub in for several surgeries (nothing fancy just retractor/suction/helper duty).

After I returned I started working full time as a medical assistant at a community health clinic. Basically I take vitals, run tests (urine, hiv, flu, etc), listen to chief complaints and try to get any information that saves the doctor time and energy (patient with lower back pain or dysuria w/ a history of UTIs -> ask for urine specimen and start running basic urinalysis before the doctor starts to see the patient).

 

[MilitaryMed]

I will be going to Haiti in a couple days with the Hope For Tomorrow Foundation (Buffalo, NY) to help out in the OR, assist with post-op patients, and work in an orphanage. I am very fortunate to have this opportunity.

 

[Biebs]

I got my EMT certification when I was fresh out of high school through a special program at my HS. This has allowed me to work in emergency departments throughout college. This experience has been absolutely phenomenal. It was exciting work, I got paid well, and the hours were perfect for my schedule.

I am currently working the trauma bay at a large academic teaching facility as an ED tech. There, I draw blood, start IVs, do EKGs, and a whole bunch of other things. I get to talk with patients, interact with nurses, residents, attendings, etc. This has been great as I want to go into EM, and a lot of our attendings know this, so they are always willing and love teaching me things. We also have an EM residency, so I get to learn a lot from the interaction from the attendings and the residents too.

Working in the ED has given me not only wonderful clinical experience, but it has also opened many doors. I helped start one of the largest ED scribe programs in our state. This was a pilot "trial" at our hospital and it was adopted at many other facilities within the hospital system. Working as a scribe gave me additional experience taking patient histories, observing physical exams, completing review of symptoms, etc. This also refined my knowledge about the "physician side of medicine." As a tech or nurse, you're primarily carrying out physician's orders (drawing blood so you can run XYZ test). Working with the physician directly enabled me to learn exactly why we should and shouldn't be ordering XYZ, when it's appropriate, when it's not, etc.

Finally, working with the EM residents has given me quite a bit of clinical research. I have started the Department of EM Research at my facility where we have several active studies, many of which we are expecting to publish. This has to be one of the coolest things I have done. Working at the ED for a period of time, I knew the right people to buddy up with (attending wise) and get in on some research with them, their own projects. A couple of studies down, I talked with our ED director and he openly accepted the fact that we should have a research coordinator to facilitate such studies as we're associated with the an EM residency and should be participating in research. As the research coordinator, I am facilitating studies done in our department, two of my own, and helping several of the residents and attending do theirs too.

I have also got some really great LOR's as I have worked with these people for years, they know who I am, how I perform, and can actually attest to my abilities and character with meaning and didn't just write me a generic LOR.

I also second the statement about disagreeing with those who say getting your EMT is a waste of time. If I did not obtain my EMT license, I am sure I wouldn't have such strong clinical experience and exposure. Working as an a ED tech has not only given be some wonderful patient interaction and observation, but has opened the door to other meaningful experiences and opportunities as well.

I would agree though that you shouldn't get your EMT to say you have your EMT. Get your EMT because it is something you want to do and are genuinely interested in the work. I did NOTHING on my application because I was thinking "OMG...THIS IS GOING TO LOOK SO GOOD TO MED SKOOOLZ." I did these things because they were interesting and enjoyed doing them.