Using names in personal statement and in essays app?

[helpsomeoneout2018]

Should I be using neutral pronouns instead of real names in my personal statement?

they are only last names or first names, never both, but I wonder about whether it is frowned upon to be using personal information like this even though you cant find the person i dont think using that info.

on the flip side everything seems more ambiguous (for a reason) just using pronouns or terms like the patient i saw over and over again

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[dmprasad]

I personally didn't include names, but if you'd like to, check this video out:

 

[helpsomeoneout2018]

hey man thanks for the video that was awesome! haha

 

[Goro]

Do this:

"Victor" was a 61 year old mentally ill man...

"Barbara was dying from ..."

 

[mdphdNYC]

You can identify professors and preceptors, though it is considered courteous to ask them if they would like to be anonymized before writing the PS. You should change patient names. Improper disclosure of patient data is considered a HIPAA violation and a red flag in the admissions process as patient confidentiality is a pillar of medicine up there with "do no harm". To be safe, I would also avoid disclosing exact ages, places of residence, and any other information that might make it possible for someone to identify a person

Bad: James is an 81-year-old who served in the 61st infantry in Vietnam, now living at Happy Meadows Retirement Home in Tucson, AZ.

Better: "Mike" is a decorated war veteran in his 80s whom I worked with while volunteering at a retirement home in Tucson, AZ.

 

[smukke]

Better: "Mike" is a decorated war veteran in his 80s whom I worked with while volunteering at a retirement home in Tucson, AZ.

I wouldn't even use the city/state unless there's something else that makes it important to the story; it's immaterial, potentially identifying and wastes character space.