McKenzie McConaha

Honors 4013

Dr. Pardue

7 November 2011

Are Current Pre-Medicine Standards Enough Preparation For Our Future Doctors?

            “In nothing do men nearly approach the gods than in giving health to men.”  This is a famous quote from Cicero which describes they way in which every doctor wants to be seen.  What is the first step for doctors to reach this god like state?  By knowing all there is to know about medicine and the human body?  What if I could tell you that doctors are being held back by menial restrictions called the pre-medicine program?  My research question (are curren pre-medicine standards enough preparation for our future doctors) addresses all of these previous stated questions and many more. (Read the rest of this story.)

To Be a Great Doctor
I titled this post what kind of doctor do you want to have, because I have been thinking about what kind of doctor I want to be.  I am in my junior year here at Tech and medical school is just around the corner.  During my medical school years, I will learn a lot about how to be a doctor.  However, I want to make sure that I establish what kind of doctor I want to be personally, ethically and morally now, so that I never loose track of who I want to be.  Like in the scene in Patch Adams I posted, would you rather have a doctor who knows her medical background backwards and forwards but is a prick or one who is nice and may not know as much?  I say why can’t we have both.  Why can’t I be a doctor who treats everyone like they are my best friends and knows medicine very well.  This is what kind of doctor I strive to be and I hope I never loose sight of that.

I know that you may say that most of the doctors you know are nice and know their stuff.  However, I know doctors who seem very nice to their patients, but are horrible to the people who work for them and are around them.  I have heard stories of doctors who treat their nurses like shit.  Doctors who give their nurses meaningless tasks just because they are nurses and work for the doctors.  I have heard stories of doctors who are womanizers and doctors who are hard to get along with all around.  From my experience I have learned people work best as teams, and  teams work best when they work together and feel welcome.  The doctor I have been shadowing gave me some great advice.  She told me, “The secret to being a good doctor is to find a good nurse”.  What I took from that was to be a great doctor you need to surround yourself with people who want to work with you and want to make a great team.  I want to remember that when I become a doctor.  I also don’t want to be a “prick” doctor.  I want to make sure every patient feels welcome to talk to me about anything.  In some ways I want them to feel like I am part of their family and that they know when they need something from me medically I will do my best to help them.  I also want my patients to feel like I will be able and beyond capable to help them.  So, do I think I can be a compassionate doctor who is damn good at what she does?  Hell yes, and I hope to never forget that.