Why do you want to be a Doctor?

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•••quote:•••Originally posted by Jamier2:
•My other job as a garbageman just wasn't working out. (They wouldn't let me ride on the back, and that took all the fun out of it). :wink: •••••waste management was my top choice career too; unfortunately they don't look too kindly upon minorities (non-italian) <img border="0" title="" alt="[Frown]" src="frown.gif" />

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•••quote:•••Originally posted by Joe Joe on da Radio:
•to give rectal exams and pap smears for the intellectual challenge of it all.•••••Just saw that. <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" /> Yeah, that is a good one. You know, I can't wait either! <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />
 
This seems to be the single most asked question in an interview...I wonder if the admission people really care what your answer is. I mean, aren't they more interested in accepting those who will do well in medical school?
 
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•••quote:••• I mean, aren't they more interested in accepting those who will do well in medical school ••••I think that by asking this question, that is exactly what they are doing. Medical school is tough, and schools want to accept people who really want to be there. People that haven't thought about "why" are more likely to fail, since they don't even know why they are there in the first place.
 
I dunno, man. I started out my personal statement with: "I haven't always wanted to be a doctor..."
 
...the ability to make a difference in people's lives = personal fulfillment. I said something to that effect in my PS. I DID back it up with some heavy personal and professional health experiences, however. Despite how trite it sounds, I think it's a common theme among most people who choose medicine and healthcare as a career.

If I didn't get into medical school, I was planning on pursuing a career in teaching. Thus, for me, personal interaction is very important. For others, it's the problem-solving aspect, or the technology, etc. I guess that's why medicine is such a wonderful career choice...there are many ways to contribute: clinical, surgical, research, education, etc. I, for one, feel extremely lucky to have been given the opportunity to do what I love! Best of luck to you, Insy!
 
I guess the main reason I want to be a doctor is because the experiences I've had with my dad's multiple health problems. I kid you not, my dad has had bacterial meningitis, a heart attack, cancer, brain damage from an unfortunate accident and as a result 10 years later, epilepsy. I wanted to learn more about what was causing my dad's problems and actually be able to help them overcome their health problems. The only way to do this I thought is through medicine. Yes, many people in the health care field can do this, but as a doctor, you are directing the patient's care and take a larger responsibility for the end result. There's also a ton of other reasons, I love working with people (esp. children), intellectually stimulating work, ability to use my problems solving abilities, get to wear a neat white coat, cool pens, etc ;) just kidding obviously...
 
I agree...we should all become doctors because of the cool white coats. If I don't make it in, I plan on getting my white coat from a psychiatric clinic. :eek: Muahahahaha


~AS1~
 
Originally posted by Samoa
More cognitively oriented work. Patients rather than customers. More variety in the day. Less wheel-spinning, more effective role in patient care. That pretty much sums it up.

i don't know if medicine is quite what the above post may be suggesting..but i think they are good reasons. :)

that is, maybe medicine isn't entirely free of wheel-spinning, or redundant/monotonous work.

also i suspect that many doctors do view patients as customers, and i think this idea is not without some logic. :)
 
Originally posted by Insy
Why do you want to be a Doctor?
I know everyone has been asked this question alot. But, i am interested in knowing everyone's responses. <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />


cuz i want bling-bling and bitchez..

its the american dream, the big fortoona.. coming from a lower-middle class neighborhood and making it as a big shot doctor in holywood.
 
I have to say I have always wanted to be a Doctor but until after I graduated from HS, I thought it was one of those inuntainable things and it was just something I couldn't do and I never thought about it.
But I realize that is what i want to do with my life. Ever since I was a child of 8 with my little pretend doctor bag, and as i look back i realize that is what i always did want to do. I have 3 brothers and 3 sisters so growing up wanting to be a doctor was fun.
At 11 yrs of age, I was already setting up my own little ER, and I had a nurse (my sister)LOL, and I had a Ambulance person(a bro), and even and ambulance(a lifting dolly). Then I had 4 other siblings who somehow either got in pretend car accidents or other things , like they got hit in the head with grass (LOL) and had to be transported. One even needed pretend AIR emergency flight (in reality it was me , flying them like an airplane to my pretend hospital) so I had a very fun childhood.
Even when I was younger I was always fascinated when I had to go see the doctor and even more fascinated by the Hospital cafeteria. The reason for that is because I could eat and see all the doctors, and nurses walking around and sitting , talking about things. Even now I am considered the family Doc, I am the one people in my house come to if they get hurt. House DR. Insy, lol.
Talking about things that I didn't understand but sounded wonderful. I would wish that I could where that white coat and do what they do. It wasn't until after high school when i thought about it and begin reading many of the pre-med books and articles. I knew it would be a hard road to it, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make.

"I can do anything through Christ who strengthens me." Phillipians 4:13:clap:

P.S --> LOL, I still have very young bros and sis' so I still am playing Doc. :laugh:
 
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:) Liked your story. I was really set on being a mailman when I was a 'lil tyke.
 
LOL, I know I wanted to be a banker also when i was younger, but that was based on being a doc. To pay the doc they needed a banker so, i was the banker. Who hired them so they could have money so when they got hurt they could pay the doctor. LOL
Then I would give them money to pay the doc and nurses , then i would take the money and deposit it back in the bank. LOL
:clap:
 
Nice. Always the entrepreneur.
 
I wanted to be a lawyer...:)
 
Originally posted by Insy
Why do you want to be a Doctor?
I know everyone has been asked this question alot. But, i am interested in knowing everyone's responses. <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />

I am a failing engineering student...i figured being a doctor must be easier than this. And one day/night i will be able to achieve my ultimate dream of running and sliding down the halls of an hospital.
 
Originally posted by Ibrahim05


I am a failing engineering student...i figured being a doctor must be easier than this. And one day/night i will be able to achieve my ultimate dream of running and sliding down the halls of an hospital.

Are you kidding? You are failing as an engineer? Being a Doctor will not be easier than that! I doubt when you become a doctor you will be sliding down hospital halls, you are likely to hit a patient. :rolleyes: You should really rethink it.
 
I feel impelled to respond to this question...

My immediate family member has diabetes.
46 y.o. aunt died with complication from diabetes 2 years ago.
Another aunt died with breast cancer.
Another aunt died with diabetes, hypertension, and blind.
My mentor died with pancreatic cancer.

Ok....I'm returning to pursue medicine b/c this is a disturbing trend. There is a HUGE disparity in healthcare for several patients for several reasons (I'll get u stats later). I believe they are scared of doctors for one. You expect a personal relationship with your doc and they don't feel they can establish that connection with him/her for obvious reasons (gender, race, feel alienated, financial, insecure, past lifestyle, present lifestyle)

I want to help shorten the gap and encourage low-income patients to see their doctor regularly. I will be an asset to my community in that I can relate to my patients and have seen the worst of the worst. I won't belittle them for their lifestyle but will encourage one that promotes health and longevity.

I am leaving a career today that pays as much as a doctor in family practice. Stupid, huh? I don't think so. I am missing that human side today and long for the doctor/patient relationship.
I will make a positive impact on healtcare reform for those who normally wouldn't have the opportunity. OH BUT I DO HAVE TO MAKE ENOUGH TO COVER MY STUDENT LOANS!


Thanks for listening.
 
Originally posted by Insy


Are you kidding? You are failing as an engineer? Being a Doctor will not be easier than that! I doubt when you become a doctor you will be sliding down hospital halls, you are likely to hit a patient. :rolleyes: You should really rethink it.

Somebody no get da sarcasm:D :p
 
i fell like it all just hit me one day.. sort of like having a religious experience that changed everything.

at that point i knew what i had to do.

all i had to figure out was how to do it.
 
Originally posted by Insy
Why do you want to be a Doctor?
I know everyone has been asked this question alot. But, i am interested in knowing everyone's responses. <img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" />


Answer: To escape the mundane.
 
so i don't have to be a lawyer
 
I know on this forum, and the premedical world in general, there is a lot of arguing about "why" a person should pursue a career in medicine. Some have even gone as
far as to claim that premeds solely interested in money, prestige, and power should not go into medicine because they would not only fail to meet their high expectations
but would also fail to be the kind of doctor patients deserve. The argument goes something like this: "If you were suffering, would you want a self-centered, arrogant,
power-hungery doctor who had his mind on the 12:00 golf round with the rest of his elitist pals at the yuppie country club attending at your bedside?" I must admit that
even I wouldn't want this. I would rather have a caring doctor who had his mind on me as a person and not some disease he had to usher out of his office so that he
could meet his HMO quota. This is ideal, but in today's world it is not very likely. So I ask you: Take away the prestige, the money, the power, and all the other perks
that come along with being a doctor...take it all away...now how many of us can truly say (without some resignation in back of our mind) that we would still take the
gruelling path to be this kind of doctor. Would we study for 10 exhaustive years after college to make an average salary, with no prestige, and no power? My answer is
no and I guarentee almost all premeds feel the same way I do. You say you want to be a doctor so you can help people...I say that is b.s. because you could just as
easily help people by being a nurse or respiratory therapist. So why are we not applying for these careers? Because we all know that nurses and respiratory therapists
take their orders from doctors, make less money than doctors, and do not have nearly the prestige that a doctor has. When was the last time a nurse got credit for saving
a life? Even if she did, the doctor would most likely get the credit. You as well as I know that to want to become a doctor you must be a little more arrogant and
goal-driven than the average person. Yet, some of us do a very good job at hiding their arrogance and down-play their efforts to pull the best grades they can. Why?
Because they don't want to be known as the typical "premed" student. So do you volunteer at a hospital? Work at a homeless shelter? Donate your time to the food
bank? Of course you do...because you know it will help you get into med school. But oh no you'd never admit that, so you instead say that you do it b/c you "care." Give
me a break. Fact is if it wasn't for med school you wouldn't be found anywhere near a hospital or homeless shelter. And that my friends is the bottom line...argue all you
want but all those arguments are masking the real reasons as to why you want to go into medicne.
 
Originally posted by monster2
I know on this forum, and the premedical world in general, there is a lot of arguing about "why" a person should pursue a career in medicine. Some have even gone as
far as to claim that premeds solely interested in money, prestige, and power should not go into medicine because they would not only fail to meet their high expectations
but would also fail to be the kind of doctor patients deserve. The argument goes something like this: "If you were suffering, would you want a self-centered, arrogant,
power-hungery doctor who had his mind on the 12:00 golf round with the rest of his elitist pals at the yuppie country club attending at your bedside?" I must admit that
even I wouldn't want this. I would rather have a caring doctor who had his mind on me as a person and not some disease he had to usher out of his office so that he
could meet his HMO quota. This is ideal, but in today's world it is not very likely. So I ask you: Take away the prestige, the money, the power, and all the other perks
that come along with being a doctor...take it all away...now how many of us can truly say (without some resignation in back of our mind) that we would still take the
gruelling path to be this kind of doctor. Would we study for 10 exhaustive years after college to make an average salary, with no prestige, and no power? My answer is
no and I guarentee almost all premeds feel the same way I do. You say you want to be a doctor so you can help people...I say that is b.s. because you could just as
easily help people by being a nurse or respiratory therapist. So why are we not applying for these careers? Because we all know that nurses and respiratory therapists
take their orders from doctors, make less money than doctors, and do not have nearly the prestige that a doctor has. When was the last time a nurse got credit for saving
a life? Even if she did, the doctor would most likely get the credit. You as well as I know that to want to become a doctor you must be a little more arrogant and
goal-driven than the average person. Yet, some of us do a very good job at hiding their arrogance and down-play their efforts to pull the best grades they can. Why?
Because they don't want to be known as the typical "premed" student. So do you volunteer at a hospital? Work at a homeless shelter? Donate your time to the food
bank? Of course you do...because you know it will help you get into med school. But oh no you'd never admit that, so you instead say that you do it b/c you "care." Give
me a break. Fact is if it wasn't for med school you wouldn't be found anywhere near a hospital or homeless shelter. And that my friends is the bottom line...argue all you
want but all those arguments are masking the real reasons as to why you want to go into medicne.

You know this kind of post makes people get defensive. Makes them think that you feel like you are better than them.
 
Originally posted by monster2
You as well as I know that to want to become a doctor you must be a little more arrogant and
goal-driven than the average person.

i absolutely agree with your entire post..

but i also want to help ppl :laugh:


oops gotta go.. tee time in 1 hour.
 
Originally posted by monster2
I know on this forum, and the premedical world in general, there is a lot of arguing about "why" a person should pursue a career in medicine. Some have even gone as
far as to claim that premeds solely interested in money, prestige, and power should not go into medicine because they would not only fail to meet their high expectations
but would also fail to be the kind of doctor patients deserve. The argument goes something like this: "If you were suffering, would you want a self-centered, arrogant,
power-hungery doctor who had his mind on the 12:00 golf round with the rest of his elitist pals at the yuppie country club attending at your bedside?" I must admit that
even I wouldn't want this. I would rather have a caring doctor who had his mind on me as a person and not some disease he had to usher out of his office so that he
could meet his HMO quota. This is ideal, but in today's world it is not very likely. So I ask you: Take away the prestige, the money, the power, and all the other perks
that come along with being a doctor...take it all away...now how many of us can truly say (without some resignation in back of our mind) that we would still take the
gruelling path to be this kind of doctor. Would we study for 10 exhaustive years after college to make an average salary, with no prestige, and no power? My answer is
no and I guarentee almost all premeds feel the same way I do. You say you want to be a doctor so you can help people...I say that is b.s. because you could just as
easily help people by being a nurse or respiratory therapist. So why are we not applying for these careers? Because we all know that nurses and respiratory therapists
take their orders from doctors, make less money than doctors, and do not have nearly the prestige that a doctor has. When was the last time a nurse got credit for saving
a life? Even if she did, the doctor would most likely get the credit. You as well as I know that to want to become a doctor you must be a little more arrogant and
goal-driven than the average person. Yet, some of us do a very good job at hiding their arrogance and down-play their efforts to pull the best grades they can. Why?
Because they don't want to be known as the typical "premed" student. So do you volunteer at a hospital? Work at a homeless shelter? Donate your time to the food
bank? Of course you do...because you know it will help you get into med school. But oh no you'd never admit that, so you instead say that you do it b/c you "care." Give
me a break. Fact is if it wasn't for med school you wouldn't be found anywhere near a hospital or homeless shelter. And that my friends is the bottom line...argue all you
want but all those arguments are masking the real reasons as to why you want to go into medicne.
lol:laugh: , this makes me feel--> emotions from :laugh: to+pissed+ , lol
 
Originally posted by monster2
I know on this forum, and the premedical world in general, there is a lot of arguing about "why" a person should pursue a career in medicine.......... So do you volunteer at a hospital? Work at a homeless shelter? Donate your time to the food
bank? Of course you do...because you know it will help you get into med school. But oh no you'd never admit that, so you instead say that you do it b/c you "care." Give
me a break. Fact is if it wasn't for med school you wouldn't be found anywhere near a hospital or homeless shelter. And that my friends is the bottom line...argue all you
want but all those arguments are masking the real reasons as to why you want to go into medicne.

I volunteer at the hospital, work at the homeless shelter, and donate my time to the food bank because I DO care, and because I have been volunteering my time, and working at the homeless shelter and donating my time to the food bank since I was 14 years old, well before I wanted to become a doctor! So it is despite the requirements for medical school that I volunteer at the hospital, work at the homeless shelter, donate my time to the food bank, volunteer as an EMT and a SAR Sgt., help out at a youth advocacy program and still work full time at a crappy job!!!
So you can keep the self righteous bs to yourself thank you very much!
 
Originally posted by silvercholla


So you can keep the self righteous bs to yourself thank you very much!

fore!!! :laugh:
 
It (medicl school) will give me something productive to do while I figure out what to do in life.
 
Originally posted by plickfu
It (medicl school) will give me something productive to do while I figure out what to do in life.

thats an odd thing to say.
 
I'm going to med school because I want to see what all the fuss is about.
 
I want job satisfaction. To be satisfied that I'm actually making a difference in someone's life by being able to help them.

I never wanted to sit in a cubicle behind a +pissed+ computer all day (I hate that) I want to be on my feet, constantly on the go, constantly doing something. Plus it's the most interesting job in the entire world (to me that is, my t.v. is set on The Learning Channel:p )

What better way to do something you like and feel good at plus make good money.

Another plus, I'll be the first Doctor in my family:D
 
Originally posted by Lina_Doctor2B
I want job satisfaction. To be satisfied that I'm actually making a difference in someone's life by being able to help them.

+1

I never wanted to sit in a cubicle behind a computer all day (I hate that) I want to be on my feet, constantly on the go, constantly doing something. Plus it's the most interesting job in the entire world..
+2


What better way to do something you like and feel good at plus make good money.
Another plus, I'll be the first Doctor in my family:D

++3! me too!
 
Originally posted by monster2
I know on this forum, and the premedical world in general, there is a lot of arguing about "why" a person should pursue a career in medicine. Some have even gone as
far as to claim that premeds solely interested in money, prestige, and power should not go into medicine because they would not only fail to meet their high expectations
but would also fail to be the kind of doctor patients deserve. The argument goes something like this: "If you were suffering, would you want a self-centered, arrogant,
power-hungery doctor who had his mind on the 12:00 golf round with the rest of his elitist pals at the yuppie country club attending at your bedside?" I must admit that
even I wouldn't want this. I would rather have a caring doctor who had his mind on me as a person and not some disease he had to usher out of his office so that he
could meet his HMO quota. This is ideal, but in today's world it is not very likely. So I ask you: Take away the prestige, the money, the power, and all the other perks
that come along with being a doctor...take it all away...now how many of us can truly say (without some resignation in back of our mind) that we would still take the
gruelling path to be this kind of doctor. Would we study for 10 exhaustive years after college to make an average salary, with no prestige, and no power? My answer is
no and I guarentee almost all premeds feel the same way I do. You say you want to be a doctor so you can help people...I say that is b.s. because you could just as
easily help people by being a nurse or respiratory therapist. So why are we not applying for these careers? Because we all know that nurses and respiratory therapists
take their orders from doctors, make less money than doctors, and do not have nearly the prestige that a doctor has. When was the last time a nurse got credit for saving
a life? Even if she did, the doctor would most likely get the credit. You as well as I know that to want to become a doctor you must be a little more arrogant and
goal-driven than the average person. Yet, some of us do a very good job at hiding their arrogance and down-play their efforts to pull the best grades they can. Why?
Because they don't want to be known as the typical "premed" student. So do you volunteer at a hospital? Work at a homeless shelter? Donate your time to the food
bank? Of course you do...because you know it will help you get into med school. But oh no you'd never admit that, so you instead say that you do it b/c you "care." Give
me a break. Fact is if it wasn't for med school you wouldn't be found anywhere near a hospital or homeless shelter. And that my friends is the bottom line...argue all you
want but all those arguments are masking the real reasons as to why you want to go into medicne.

I see where you're coming from, but you can't make such sweeping accusations about every single premed's motives for pursuing medicine. Sure, there's gonna be a great deal of a--hole premeds who are only pursuing medicine for the "perks", but I'm sure there are some of us out here who actually want to make profound differences in the lives of others.
 
Originally posted by All-Star14
Sure, there's gonna be a great deal of a--hole premeds who are only pursuing medicine for the "perks", but I'm sure there are some of us out here who actually want to make profound differences in the lives of others.

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

What about those of us that think medicine is an interesting area of academia/science? We don't necessarily care about perks OR about making a difference, yet we are still motivated to study medicine.
 
SOMEONE on here once said, "The answer has to come from within"


Just remember the old adage. Be careful what you wish for BECAUSE IT MAY COME TRUE. In this case, you might be "stuck" in a miserable life as a doctor because your motivation for medicine was ARTIFICIAL.
 
Originally posted by All-Star14


I see where you're coming from, but you can't make such sweeping accusations about every single premed's motives for pursuing medicine. Sure, there's gonna be a great deal of a--hole premeds who are only pursuing medicine for the "perks", but I'm sure there are some of us out here who actually want to make profound differences in the lives of others.

I sincerely doubt that. It is very evident on this forum...most of us are in
love of the idea of being a doctor and not being a doctor itself. This is certainly true for me. The whole idea of being a doctor fascinates me more than actually
becoming one because I really do not care about medicine. I have no interest in physiology, biochem, anatomy, or anything else associated with medicine. All I care
about is being a doctor, as I am sure many other people do. It may seem contradiciting for a doctor to say he doesn't care about medicine, ater all is not medicine
what he is practicing? But you can't argue that this little paradox brings up a point about how many of us are attracted to medicine for extrinsic reasons. Why is it like
this? Simply because medicine is the top profession one can have. There is no reason to explain your job, abilities, education, etc. when you have that M.D. after
your name. That M.D. does all the explaining for you. If you don't believe me, find a friend or associate who is a doctor, take them to a bar or any other social
gathering and either make him reveal his profession or reveal it yourself to a group of women. No doubt they'll be all over him in no time no, questions asked. Try
doing that with any other profession.
 
Originally posted by All-Star14


I see where you're coming from, but you can't make such sweeping accusations about every single premed's motives for pursuing medicine. Sure, there's gonna be a great deal of a--hole premeds who are only pursuing medicine for the "perks", but I'm sure there are some of us out here who actually want to make profound differences in the lives of others.
very true:clap:
 
Originally posted by monster2


I sincerely doubt that. It is very evident on this forum...most of us are in
love of the idea of being a doctor and not being a doctor itself. This is certainly true for me. The whole idea of being a doctor fascinates me more than actually
becoming one because I really do not care about medicine. I have no interest in physiology, biochem, anatomy, or anything else associated with medicine. All I care
about is being a doctor, as I am sure many other people do. It may seem contradiciting for a doctor to say he doesn't care about medicine, ater all is not medicine
what he is practicing? But you can't argue that this little paradox brings up a point about how many of us are attracted to medicine for extrinsic reasons. Why is it like
this? Simply because medicine is the top profession one can have. There is no reason to explain your job, abilities, education, etc. when you have that M.D. after
your name. That M.D. does all the explaining for you. If you don't believe me, find a friend or associate who is a doctor, take them to a bar or any other social
gathering and either make him reveal his profession or reveal it yourself to a group of women. No doubt they'll be all over him in no time no, questions asked. Try
doing that with any other profession.

Let me know when you start practicing. I want you to be my family doctor :laugh:
 
Originally posted by monster2
There is no reason to explain your job, abilities, education, etc. when you have that M.D. after
your name. That M.D. does all the explaining for you. If you don't believe me, find a friend or associate who is a doctor, take them to a bar or any other social
gathering and either make him reveal his profession or reveal it yourself to a group of women. No doubt they'll be all over him in no time no, questions asked. Try
doing that with any other profession.

How about a porn star?
 
It's a profession where you don't have "to explain your job, abilities, education, etc."
 
Originally posted by monster2
I sincerely doubt that. It is very evident on this forum...most of us are in
love of the idea of being a doctor and not being a doctor itself. This is certainly true for me. The whole idea of being a doctor fascinates me more than actually
becoming one because I really do not care about medicine. I have no interest in physiology, biochem, anatomy, or anything else associated with medicine. All I care
about is being a doctor, as I am sure many other people do. It may seem contradiciting for a doctor to say he doesn't care about medicine, ater all is not medicine
what he is practicing? But you can't argue that this little paradox brings up a point about how many of us are attracted to medicine for extrinsic reasons. Why is it like
this? Simply because medicine is the top profession one can have. There is no reason to explain your job, abilities, education, etc. when you have that M.D. after
your name. That M.D. does all the explaining for you. If you don't believe me, find a friend or associate who is a doctor, take them to a bar or any other social
gathering and either make him reveal his profession or reveal it yourself to a group of women. No doubt they'll be all over him in no time no, questions asked. Try
doing that with any other profession.

LOL!!!!! Now I know where those doctors that endorse diet pills for a living come from!!
 
Originally posted by the boy wonder
How about a porn star?

:clap: :clap: :clap:
LOL!!
That's too funny (and true too!)
:)
 
Originally posted by the boy wonder
It's a profession where you don't have "to explain your job, abilities, education, etc."
lol, i know what it is..I was just suprised you put it there..lol
 
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