As promised, here is the awaited continuation of my blog! (My significant other actually reminded me, so if she hadn't then I wouldn't be posting again) In any case, I know a lot of you pre-meds are having the same struggles that I am so here is a little bit that will hopefully help you.
I recently attended a keynote for HOSA (previously known as Health Occupations Students of America) when I attended a conference a few days ago, and was posed with this question: What is motivation? Now I know we all have some sense of what motivation is but have we really evaluated our motivation in our own lives, let alone our own career pathways? I'm not going to be like the pre-health advisors that may discourage you from the healthcare field, but if you are thinking about going into medicine for money, power, etc. things that you have seen on medical dramas or TV shows then this field is more than likely not for you. The truth is that the medical field is pretty rigorous and you will really need to find your niche as to why you enjoy it and want to make a career out of it (partially why the advisors ask why you want to go into medicine).
I had previously written that I volunteered at a number of different places and most of them were in the clinical setting. There will be times where you will be bored out of your mind (but find things to do) and times in the clinical setting where you may think there is not enough time in the day to do all the tasks you need. I found that a great deal of my time as a volunteer in the emergency department was spent thinking that there was simply not enough time to do all the tasks that I wanted/needed to do. There were tasks I was required to do (delegated by the volunteer coordinator and ER staff) and others that I simply wanted to do (shadowing, interacting with patients, learning from nursing staff). Doing this week after week, I began to question why I came into volunteer every week; what motivated me to come every week and give some of my time which could be used for something else or even working to make money. This is something to think about. What is your motivation for the healthcare field?
Motivation is only one side to this; you must also show initiative through actions, not only the mindset. Everyone has great ideas and you are all amazing people but to put your thoughts into practice may take a little practice itself. I know for myself, I deal with some confidence issues so I am always trying to better myself and show initiative. The best way to do this is to get yourself out of your comfort-zone. Definitely easier said than done but if you are motivated for change then it will come in time. Medical schools will definitely pose to you the question "How has your past actions shown your motivation towards medicine?" In my previous post, I said that the experiences that you engage in doesn't even need to be related to the clinical setting; some schools prefer that it not be related. This adds to the whole holistic model; by engaging in other activities than your peers, you will contribute different experiences rather than all doing the same activities then there is no change.
My tidbit to all of you is to keep true to your motivation to medicine and show it through action. These actions need not be related to healthcare so pursue different activities and experiences that you are interested in and see how it may fit towards your motivation for the healthcare field. To keep you thinking about this I'll throw some ideas your way (are you interested in service? do you want to look more into research? Are there any injustices you wish to address? Any topics that aren't being addressed or need awareness? What are some issues in today's society that you can promote change?) As you can see, there are many avenues that you can take and there is no "one right answer" when you are thinking about medical school. Be yourself because in reality you are all smart and beautiful people who deserve what you are motivated and willing to work towards.
-Michael Shimoda
Saturday, February 27, 2016
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
A Medical Student's Reason.
Due to my infrequency on this site, I am terribly sorry. I will try my
best to remain up-to-date with the blog to help my fellow premed colleagues.
Congratulations! By reading this blog you have shown some interest to attend medical school but the question frequently is posed to us "why do you want to be a doctor?" I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked myself this question and have trouble coming up with a concrete answer on the fly. There may be some of you who know exactly why you want to go into medical school; described as an “ah-hah” moment, a decision influenced by past experiences or personal challenges that had to be overcome. There are some of you who may not know when you chose this field; you are the folks I want to help as well.
From the beginning of my studies at the undergraduate-level, my pre-medical advisor asked me immediately why I wanted to be a doctor. To be honest, I didn’t have an answer and any answer I provided she refuted with the proposition of different careers in medicine. It seemed as if my pre-medical advisor didn’t want me to go to medical school to become a doctor. Also while at the university, I didn’t have my act together and had bad grades and a mediocre MCAT score; more reasons preventing me from pursuing medical school. Our main idea of medical students and doctors is that they are insanely smart with perfect scores and GPAs to which we constantly judge ourselves and actions. This may be why some are driven from the field; people choose fields in nursing, in healthcare administration, scribes, and so forth. These aren’t bad decisions as long as it is what you want to do. We are bullied throughout our undergraduate career into believing that we need to be in an elite class to attend medical school when in actuality we do not. It is all based on your mindset.
Undergrad is an experience in itself. Have fun in undergrad but remain focused if you want to go into medicine since many schools still embrace the old method of basing students on their GPA and MCAT scores. However, in light of recent events, schools are now embracing the “holistic model” where they do not simply look at your test scores since some of the best doctors aren’t great test takers, so they look at activities you have done, leadership positions, how you affected your community. So just because you have bad grades doesn’t mean that you can’t go to medical school, so don’t get discouraged from applying anyway.
It suddenly dawned on me recently that my advisor had it wrong, at least for my situation. I was so fixated on comparing myself with others to answer the question "why I want to be a doctor" but I should have been asking myself "why shouldn't I be a doctor?" The main thing is that doctors are human and they are definitely not perfect; we are all susceptible to errors and I know I make a ton of mistakes. With this change of perspective I have gained a better understanding of myself and indicated areas of weakness that I can currently explore to see why I love the medical field so much. How can you see yourself as a doctor (what have you done, how can you envision yourself as a physician)? What skills or things do you have that you think can contribute to the ever-growing medical field? How can you help patients? Shadowing and volunteering are great ways to understand why you want to go into medicine, especially seeing what physicians do and if you can imagine yourself doing that for the rest of your career, since this is ultimately what you are choosing to do. Many come into this field thinking it's about money, power, and/or respect and in a sense they are right (as a physician these will come naturally as you help patients over time) but that shouldn't be it; what will keep you in this field, what are you interested in, how can you see yourself as a future physician.
What I want to tell you is that you don't need a concrete answer. Heck, you could be drawn to the field and won't know it until later on. Some will have an answer, such and such affected my decision or this happened to my family member which motivated me to go into medicine, but you don't necessarily need to have one. Some of you may simply be in a rush to get education done so that you can work which is good as long as it is for the right reasons. If you can't honestly tell yourself you are going into the field for the right reasons, maybe it's time to take a baby step back and reevaluate your intentions for the medical field. Never let that thought in the back of your mind prevent you from chasing your dream, even though you may be discouraged along the way because it will be worth it in the end. The main goal is that you want to help other people, and becoming a doctor is a fine way to not only help others but also to give back to the community that has made you all into the person(s) you are today.
-Mike Shimo
Congratulations! By reading this blog you have shown some interest to attend medical school but the question frequently is posed to us "why do you want to be a doctor?" I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked myself this question and have trouble coming up with a concrete answer on the fly. There may be some of you who know exactly why you want to go into medical school; described as an “ah-hah” moment, a decision influenced by past experiences or personal challenges that had to be overcome. There are some of you who may not know when you chose this field; you are the folks I want to help as well.
From the beginning of my studies at the undergraduate-level, my pre-medical advisor asked me immediately why I wanted to be a doctor. To be honest, I didn’t have an answer and any answer I provided she refuted with the proposition of different careers in medicine. It seemed as if my pre-medical advisor didn’t want me to go to medical school to become a doctor. Also while at the university, I didn’t have my act together and had bad grades and a mediocre MCAT score; more reasons preventing me from pursuing medical school. Our main idea of medical students and doctors is that they are insanely smart with perfect scores and GPAs to which we constantly judge ourselves and actions. This may be why some are driven from the field; people choose fields in nursing, in healthcare administration, scribes, and so forth. These aren’t bad decisions as long as it is what you want to do. We are bullied throughout our undergraduate career into believing that we need to be in an elite class to attend medical school when in actuality we do not. It is all based on your mindset.
Undergrad is an experience in itself. Have fun in undergrad but remain focused if you want to go into medicine since many schools still embrace the old method of basing students on their GPA and MCAT scores. However, in light of recent events, schools are now embracing the “holistic model” where they do not simply look at your test scores since some of the best doctors aren’t great test takers, so they look at activities you have done, leadership positions, how you affected your community. So just because you have bad grades doesn’t mean that you can’t go to medical school, so don’t get discouraged from applying anyway.
It suddenly dawned on me recently that my advisor had it wrong, at least for my situation. I was so fixated on comparing myself with others to answer the question "why I want to be a doctor" but I should have been asking myself "why shouldn't I be a doctor?" The main thing is that doctors are human and they are definitely not perfect; we are all susceptible to errors and I know I make a ton of mistakes. With this change of perspective I have gained a better understanding of myself and indicated areas of weakness that I can currently explore to see why I love the medical field so much. How can you see yourself as a doctor (what have you done, how can you envision yourself as a physician)? What skills or things do you have that you think can contribute to the ever-growing medical field? How can you help patients? Shadowing and volunteering are great ways to understand why you want to go into medicine, especially seeing what physicians do and if you can imagine yourself doing that for the rest of your career, since this is ultimately what you are choosing to do. Many come into this field thinking it's about money, power, and/or respect and in a sense they are right (as a physician these will come naturally as you help patients over time) but that shouldn't be it; what will keep you in this field, what are you interested in, how can you see yourself as a future physician.
What I want to tell you is that you don't need a concrete answer. Heck, you could be drawn to the field and won't know it until later on. Some will have an answer, such and such affected my decision or this happened to my family member which motivated me to go into medicine, but you don't necessarily need to have one. Some of you may simply be in a rush to get education done so that you can work which is good as long as it is for the right reasons. If you can't honestly tell yourself you are going into the field for the right reasons, maybe it's time to take a baby step back and reevaluate your intentions for the medical field. Never let that thought in the back of your mind prevent you from chasing your dream, even though you may be discouraged along the way because it will be worth it in the end. The main goal is that you want to help other people, and becoming a doctor is a fine way to not only help others but also to give back to the community that has made you all into the person(s) you are today.
-Mike Shimo
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Immersion.
Hello all!
I have finally finished my education at Seattle University and have graduated with a Bachelor's of Science in Biology! I am officially one step closer in my path towards becoming a medical student. But since I decided on taking a gap year to further gain experiences in the medical field, pursue additional training as an emergency medical technician, and volunteer for my community, I will have a whole year before entering the medical school cycle. That doesn't mean I can be lazy though! I am currently making sure all of my ducks are in order before school starts and that I am caught up with all that needs to be done. Similarly, I have had a website (an actual website) for quite some time that I haven;t been working on so Summer has been a great opportunity to work on it. Coming back to Hawaii has been a relief as well since I missed gardening, which I am able to do here on occasion. That's a brief update and comment if there's anything interesting you want to share or talk to me about! Also don't forget about my other blog!
-Mike
I have finally finished my education at Seattle University and have graduated with a Bachelor's of Science in Biology! I am officially one step closer in my path towards becoming a medical student. But since I decided on taking a gap year to further gain experiences in the medical field, pursue additional training as an emergency medical technician, and volunteer for my community, I will have a whole year before entering the medical school cycle. That doesn't mean I can be lazy though! I am currently making sure all of my ducks are in order before school starts and that I am caught up with all that needs to be done. Similarly, I have had a website (an actual website) for quite some time that I haven;t been working on so Summer has been a great opportunity to work on it. Coming back to Hawaii has been a relief as well since I missed gardening, which I am able to do here on occasion. That's a brief update and comment if there's anything interesting you want to share or talk to me about! Also don't forget about my other blog!
-Mike
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Adulthood.
With everything going on right now, I find minimal time where I can sit down, and simply focus on writing a blog. Let me try give it a shot again :D
Within the next three months, I will have graduated from Seattle University and will be going back home to Hawaii, where I will continue to pursue my education. Right now, I plan on getting into a MA program, but only time will tell. Since I am young, I have many options available, and as such, so should all of you (well, those of you who read this). Thing is, there is much more time than people make it seem; There will always be time to do something, it just depends whether it is a priority for yourself. As of right now, I am not much of in a rush into things, but I am definitely pursuing opportunities as they come up, as well as actively looking into opportunities that may also arise. At this point in life, all you can really do is plan for your future, but soon you will learn that it may not always pan out to what you would like it to be. So what you must do is focus on what is happening right now, as well as leaving behind your past.
My time here at Seattle is limited, and there are many more things that I would like to say on this blog but I just don't have the time (see how I contradicted myself there? haha). I will more than likely have another update coming, and making sure that I keep ontop of all the writing that I am doing!
-JI
Within the next three months, I will have graduated from Seattle University and will be going back home to Hawaii, where I will continue to pursue my education. Right now, I plan on getting into a MA program, but only time will tell. Since I am young, I have many options available, and as such, so should all of you (well, those of you who read this). Thing is, there is much more time than people make it seem; There will always be time to do something, it just depends whether it is a priority for yourself. As of right now, I am not much of in a rush into things, but I am definitely pursuing opportunities as they come up, as well as actively looking into opportunities that may also arise. At this point in life, all you can really do is plan for your future, but soon you will learn that it may not always pan out to what you would like it to be. So what you must do is focus on what is happening right now, as well as leaving behind your past.
My time here at Seattle is limited, and there are many more things that I would like to say on this blog but I just don't have the time (see how I contradicted myself there? haha). I will more than likely have another update coming, and making sure that I keep ontop of all the writing that I am doing!
-JI
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Recharge.
MCAT was finished a week ago, and still recuperating from the exam, while continuing to study in the even that I need to re-take the exam. Other than that, I finally have the time to begin preparations before school starts again in 10 days. Similarly, watching two great K-dramas right now, Two Weeks and the Master's Sun, both being suspenseful, and both turning me into a fanboy. Aside from that, begun to re-learn Japanese so that I can speak again but I project that it will take me a good 5-10 years before I become fluent in Japanese, and during that time I will also begin to learn Korean again, to which I can use both after 10 years of studying. I fear kanji will take me the longest to learn, but I'll be able to associate them between the languages so not too worried about that, aside from the different translations I will need to know. Other languages on my list after that are: Mandarin, and possibly Vietnamese. We'll see how many languages I can learn and retain, to help me in the future if I ever need to use those skills. Right now I just planted various plants at my house, and hopefully they grow into pretty flowering plants; which they are slowly starting to do now ^^
Began to lose weight and see how long this will last, hopefully for a long time but time shall tell. Until my next entry, thank you for reading!!
-JI
Began to lose weight and see how long this will last, hopefully for a long time but time shall tell. Until my next entry, thank you for reading!!
-JI
Monday, August 26, 2013
Warp speed, please.
Hello all! First time updating in quite some time! Two weeks before I need to take the MCAT, and preparations are not looking great. I have been pulling all-nighters for a while now, and am slowly getting through the Physics book (all I would need after that are the verbal and organic books). Aside from that, my vice is actually talking with friends, shadowing doctors, and writing on this and my other blog. For some reason, writing calms me since it allows my brain to freely flow, instead of regurgitating information that I should already know by now through application. But I digress, things are heating up in my other blog since my posts are becoming longer, and longer, which means I am spending more time thinking about those topics ^^ The latest one I just posted is on viruses, and my take on how to approach them. Got tired towards the end so I decided to stop, but if I were given more time I am sure I could have pondered on it a little bit more. But the medical school journey is slowly trudging, and I have all year to work on it, although this will be quite a long year for me :D
All I can say is that I wish all of you other good luck on your quest, especially if you are going into the medical field since it is no simple task; an additional 6 years of training is required past the undergraduate work, given residency is two years and you choose not to specialize (don't get me started on Obamacare, we are going to have fun...). But let me be the first to say thank you to all the medical students out there, since you are hanging in there and striving for the medical field! Even though you may not know it now, we are part of the future of the world. Despite not getting as much praise as we should (doctors, nurses, MA, and a huge list of all those who comprise the term "medical field"), without us, the world actually looks rather bleak. Advances in immunization and medications (natural selection is practically gone for Homo sapiens without the aid of antibiotics, vaccinations, blah blah), procedures we provide, and so forth; we do a ton to contribute towards our race as humans. I know it is a ton of schooling, but you are being entrusted with others' lives, so for all the schooling and training you are willing to undergo as a medical student, I thank you for your commitment! I hope we can all change the world together :D
-Mimo
All I can say is that I wish all of you other good luck on your quest, especially if you are going into the medical field since it is no simple task; an additional 6 years of training is required past the undergraduate work, given residency is two years and you choose not to specialize (don't get me started on Obamacare, we are going to have fun...). But let me be the first to say thank you to all the medical students out there, since you are hanging in there and striving for the medical field! Even though you may not know it now, we are part of the future of the world. Despite not getting as much praise as we should (doctors, nurses, MA, and a huge list of all those who comprise the term "medical field"), without us, the world actually looks rather bleak. Advances in immunization and medications (natural selection is practically gone for Homo sapiens without the aid of antibiotics, vaccinations, blah blah), procedures we provide, and so forth; we do a ton to contribute towards our race as humans. I know it is a ton of schooling, but you are being entrusted with others' lives, so for all the schooling and training you are willing to undergo as a medical student, I thank you for your commitment! I hope we can all change the world together :D
-Mimo
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Traditions.
As we move forward into the future, we must remember that there are some things that should not be forgotten. We label these as traditions and in my perspective, they are important. Whether it be traditional approaches towards medicine, or treatments that were used in the past, there are always things that can be learned from looking into the past as a bookmark. Once things in the past are lost, there is almost no chance of regaining it back, for we remember the past, but we build the future.
-JuzoInspired
-JuzoInspired
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