So you’ve scheduled an interview at your dream school and bought your plane ticket, but where will you stay the night before the interview?

Interviewees have several options available to them when choosing lodging.  Oftentimes, the obvious choice is a hotel room located close to the school, but this option can be expensive.  Staying with a student host can be a great alternative.

If you have browsed the Student Doctor Network Forums, you are probably aware that student hosting exists, but you might not understand exactly how it works or why it’s a good option.

Many schools offer student hosting programs to help applicants better bear interview costs.  While it might seem a bit daunting at first to stay with a stranger, students were once in your shoes and understand the challenges of the interview trail.  As a result, these kind souls have volunteered to help by offering a free night’s stay.

Also, student hosts are not admissions committee spies, as you might fear.  No need to worry that your Sponge Bob jammies will be the topic of the hour at the next committee meeting or that your failure to put the toilet seat down will lead to an immediate rejection.

In addition to free lodging, there are several other benefits of staying with a student host that might not be readily apparent.  An interview is not only a chance for the school to decide if you fit with their vision, but also for you to decide if a school meets your needs.  Who better to provide valuable information about life at a particular school than the students that attend on a daily basis?

Students can give you insight that you might not otherwise get during the formal tour or question and answer sessions.  You will see how the student lives and have a captive audience for questions that you might feel uncomfortable asking in front of a large group or other interviewees.  The feedback you receive about the school might be more candid.

Having an insider to contact may help to answer questions about the interview day itself.  How will you get to the school?  Where exactly is the admissions office?  How long does it take to get there?  What can I expect at my interviews?  Your host will be able to answer these questions.  Furthermore, since interview days often begin at the same time as class, you might be able to catch a ride to school with your host or take public transportation together.  Travelling with someone else is a great way to reduce the chances of a catastrophe on the way to your interview.

By now, you are probably thinking that staying with a host may be an even better option than a staying in a hotel.  There are, however, a few drawbacks to consider as well.

Since you are staying in someone else’s home, you will need to respect their space and be considerate.  While hosts do offer to help, it’s important to remember that they are busy students and might not be able to spend all of their time with you.  Also, you might be sleeping on a futon or couch as opposed to the comfortable bed you would likely encounter in a hotel.  Accordingly, you may need to bring sheets or towels with you.  Conditions vary from host to host so be sure to ask about your concerns before you travel.

Now that you’ve decided you would like to stay with a student host, how do you go about setting it up?  Lists of students willing to host applicants are frequently sent out along with interview information or posted on schools’ status pages or websites.  If not readily accessible, a call or e-mail to the admissions office could clear up whether or not this option is available to you. Schools may be able to provide you with the appropriate contact information if you ask.  If it is up to you to make arrangements from a list of available students, make sure to pick someone near the middle or bottom of the list as those at the top are most often called.

For students interviewing at MD schools, if you cannot find a student host through the school itself, try the “Pre-allo interview lodging thread” located at the top of the Pre-Allopathic discussion board in the Student Doctor Network Forums.

Once you’ve found a host, it’s a good idea to keep in touch with them and let them know of your travel plans and itinerary.  This way you can be sure that he or she will be home when you arrive.  Also, if you are not familiar with the city you are travelling to, your host might be able to offer some advice about the best way to get into town from the airport, bus, or train station.  Who knows, you could even get lucky and score a ride from the airport with your host!

At the end of your interview day, you’ll be glad that you stayed with a student host.   So wouldn’t it be nice to give your host a small token of appreciation?  After all, he or she helped you out immensely and, if nothing else, saved you some cash.  A $10-15 gift card to a local store, restaurant, or coffeeshop would suffice.  At the very least, when you do become a medical student, consider returning the favor by becoming a student host yourself.

by Brandon Luk
SDN Staff Writer

“This could be just as devastating if not more devastating than Katrina …”

These were the first words I heard when I flipped on WDSU. An anchorman was describing the unyielding path of Hurricane Gustav towards the Big Easy. The first thought that ran through my mind was, ‘wow, guess the third time’s a charm’- Gustav was going to strike the Gulf coast almost 3 years to the date that Katrina hit.

I was a little dumbfounded at the surreal nature of having to evacuate. While I only recently began to call New Orleans my home, the incomplete levees could very well also make it the graveyard of my livelihood.

Instantly, questions started to swirl through my head. What would I need to bring? What will happen to my education? What kind of preparations do I need to make so that my house isn’t flattened? When should I leave and where should I go?

Though Mother Nature has its way of reminding us how helpless we really are in the face of her fury, I will provide a list of tips and pointers that you can do to weather it. No pun intended.

• Determine where/how/when you want to evacuate- If you decide that you want to fly, book your flight ASAP. All flights out of the area will quickly fill up, and the prices will substantially rise with each passing minute. Should you fly, look for locations you can park your car. Ideally, you can find a parking garage where you can park your car in the middle floors- away from the flood waters and from the wind and rain at the top. As always leave early. If you fly, get there at least 3-4 hours in advance. If you drive, leave a few days before the storm hits. You will hit traffic regardless of when you leave (particularly around the airports), but it’s better to leave before contraflow starts, around the time a mandatory evacuation is ordered (which is usually a day or two before hurricane is predicted to land). I prefer to drive at night as there is less traffic, but for safety reasons it’s probably safer to drive during the day. Try not to overheat your car by blasting the AC in bumper to bumper traffic. Have food and water with you in the car so that you don’t have to make too many stops.
• Figure out where you will stay/Reserve a hotel a couple days in advance- BOOK ASAP. If you do not have any relatives/friends in the area you can safely stay with, book a hotel or a motel in advance. You can always cancel the reservation, but hotels fill up fast and prices go up; some people to have to drive a couple of hours out of their way because there are no available hotel rooms. Also, if you have pets, make sure you account for those- do not board your pets, at least within any area near the hurricane. If hotels do not allow pets, find another one, or board your pet in a nearby shelter.
• Fill your gas tank as soon as you can- It’s much easier to do it now than when you’re on the way out of the city and have to wait in line at the gas station with all of the other procrastinators. Gas is cheaper towards the end of the summer, but expect it to go up when oil rigs get smacked with hurricane winds. You may also want to consider buying a spare gas canister to fill up and safely store in your trunk when you leave in case some gas stations run out of fuel on your evacuation route (it has happened before).
• Withdraw some cash ahead of time- That way you don’t have to worry about the next time you’re going to see an ATM or that you won’t be out of luck if credit card machines go down if electricity goes out.
• Figure out contraflow maps/purchase a state map- many gas stations have them for free, but here’s a good link from google: http://www.contraflowmaps.com/ . Also, driving contraflow sucks. Think about how much time it normally takes to get there and add about 10 hours. So, just be prepared. Plan out your routes, and be prepared to take alternate routes. It would be handy to also have a state map of the states you are going to travel through. City government websites should be able to provide estimated travel times with evacuation traffic, and local/national radio stations. The one for New Orleans is here: http://www.cityofno.com/Portals/Portal46/portal.aspx?portal=46&tabid=18
• Keep an eye on weather web sites such as Weather Underground and the NOAA All Hazard Monitor.
• Clean out the Fridge- Some people wrap their food in plastic/tight seal bags (but be weary, anaerobes like botulism thrive in these types of environments, and no plastic wrap is sealproof). Some people bring all their perishable food with them in a cooler. I just throw it all out. Meat and milk are the worst. Liquor/beer and other beverages are generally ok to stay in fridge. You may also want to leave open a box of baking soda to absorb any fumes/odors if the power does go out.
• Get an idea of what you want to bring with you- Sentimental items, essential financial/government/insurance papers, ID, passport, proof of current address, medication, memorabilia, phone chargers, books, etc. You may also want to download what you need to download from your school’s servers (for me it was lectures…sad, I know), since they may very well likely go offline. If you have kids or animals or relatives you like, you may want to bring them too. For the animals, make sure the hotel will take them or board them nearby your stay.
• Take things off the floor in your home/unplug electronics- Especially electronics and roll up rugs. For a major flood, this may not make much of a difference, but if were to flood just an inch for a day, things won’t get ruined and you won’t have to deal with all of that mildew. This is especially crucial for individuals who live on the first floor. Unplug your electronics in case of a surge or in case water gets in your house near your wires. Turn off all lights and AC/heating units.
• Board your windows and move furniture- For those who do not have hurricane quality windows, you may want to consider boarding your windows. This is time consuming and requires that you have the right tools to do so, so do this only if you have the time to. Measure your windows, make sure you have a ladder, and some helping hands. Head to the nearest hardware/Home Depot type businesses to get your supplies. Look into contractors who may be able to prepare your home. Move all important/nice furniture into the interior of the house away from windows and doors. Push your heavier/nonessential/crappy furniture to the patio doors. You may also want to prop it up against windows for an extra added layer of protection against the winds should the windows bust. If you live in lower lying elevations, you may want to head to the nearest Home Depot/Lowes/Fire Department/Red Cross and inquire about sandbags to hold back floodwaters.
• Take pictures of your belongings and apt. for insurance purposes- Much easier to claim on your insurance if you have pictures! Make sure your pictures are dated too.
• Keep in contact- Most schools will be very good about keeping in contact with its students. If you have a laptop, bring it. All your communication will be primarily through email and text messages. Try to stay off phone lines if you can, since police officials want to keep those lines clear for emergencies only. Text messages are a lifesaver. Make sure someone knows where you are staying. Again, schools are good about organizing all this. Also, keep handy the websites of the local news stations, as they are reliable in terms of their knowledge of the city.
• Stay Cool- For many, this is a “hurrication”, for others this is a life/death situation. Stay cool and calm, and always be wary of your surroundings. Remember, if you are pressed for time. GET OUT OR FIND SHELTER. Your life is more important than anything you own.

Luckily, New Orleans was spared, but there are still many places that got hit hard. If you’ve ever been through a hurricane, you’ll understand the type of camaraderie that exists since everyone will have gone through the same experience.

Donate your time and help out those around you who weren’t as fortunate. Community responses down in the south are an excellent example of the good that could be found in the face of disaster.

• Register to volunteer at VolunteerLouisiana.gov
• Register to volunteer with Red Cross of Dallas or Chisholm Trail
• Donate to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund

Be safe!

Amanda (not her real name) is a second year health professional student at a major state-funded research institution. Like most students admitted to medical, dental or pharmacy school, Amanda was a top student at her undergraduate institution, used to earning high marks with minimal study time. In professional school, Amanda finds her old study habits put to the test. The material is not difficult, she reports, but the volume of information she’s required to process, coupled with the fast-paced schedule and demands of clinical activities, makes achieving at the level she’s accustomed to a major challenge.

Several of Amanda’s classmates have told her about a “study drug” that allows them to stay awake for days at a time and study for extended periods without rest. The drug, they said, improved their focus and concentration and makes it easier to plow through the mountains of information presented in their classes. One of them offered Amanda a little peach colored tablet, and she accepted but didn’t take it. Worried about the side effects, she placed the tablet on her bookcase and looked at it with curiosity from time to time. Finally, faced with an exam and a paper due and not enough hours in the day, Amanda decided to try the study drug. Immediately she noticed a difference. “I felt great,” she told us. “I was able to stay up all night and finish my work and I didn’t even need to sleep before the exam. It WAS a miracle drug.”

Smart Study Aid or Unfair Advantage?
Like steroids in baseball or track, the use of medication to enhance students’ ability to study is controversial. The most commonly abused stimulant medications among college students are amphetamines and related compounds like methylphenidate. Students obtain these medications by legal prescription through a diagnosis of ADHD, from classmates or by buying them illegally. The ethics of using these medications in this manner are controversial. Students who lack a valid medical diagnosis often use stimulant medications to put in extended study hours and reduce their need to sleep, to facilitate preparing for exams or writing papers. Many students consider this just a part of “getting ahead,” while others liken it to any other form of cheating and point to the perceived unfair advantage drug-taking students may have over peers who lack access to or are unwilling to take medication to help them study.

Stimulant Use and Abuse
The first drug used to treat ADHD was methylphenidate (Ritalin), patented in the 1950s for depression, narcolepsy and fatigue. It then began to be used as a treatment for ‘minimal brain dysfunction,’ as ADHD was known at the time. Ritalin’s popularity exploded with the acceptance of ADHD as a clinical entity, and it is now the most commonly prescribed drug for ADHD in the USA. Methylphenidate is available in numerous preparations, including a transdermal patch and extended release formulations such as Concerta. Ritalin is a CNS stimulant, thought to activate the frontal lobes of the brain by binding to dopamine and norepinephrine receptors.

Other, similar drugs used to treat ADHD include mixed amphetamine salts (Adderall) and dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine), which is one of the components of Adderall. Like Ritalin, these medications all have typical amphetamine side effects like decreased appetite, insomnia, and dry mouth. Dexedrine, the oldest patented amphetamine drug, has been used for its weight loss properties in extreme cases of resistant obesity. All are Schedule II, the most restricted classification for a drug considered to have a legitimate medical use, due to the potential for abuse and addiction. They are close relatives of methamphetamine, an illegal substance that has spawned an epidemic of ‘meth labs’ across the country in recent years.

ADHD: A Difficult Diagnosis
There are several challenging and controversial aspects about the diagnosis of ADHD. The Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the gold standard for psychiatric diagnoses, identifies 22 diagnostic criteria for ADHD, with characteristics broken into three areas: inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. According to the DSM, a diagnosis of ADHD may be rendered if the patient has six characteristics in either the inattention category or the combined categories of hyperactivity and impulsivity. These criteria must have been present for six months or more and be “disruptive or inappropriate for [the patient's] developmental level.” Critics of the process for diagnosing ADHD claim that the determination of whether a patient’s behavior is “disruptive or inappropriate” is too subjective and vague. The diagnostic and ethical challenge,then, lies in the determination of what constitutes “significant impairment.”

One obvious quandary is the diagnosis of ADHD in the pre-professional or professional health care student population. This demographic is already typically comprised of high achievers and perfectionists. Such individuals often feel pressure to use stimulants to keep up with their peers, whether or not they would be able to achieve a ‘normal’ level of function without the stimulants. For these individuals, the issue is a Machiavellian ethical dilemma — do the ends of successfully pursuing and/or practicing a career in health care justify the means that may be required to achieve them? In debates on the SDN Forums, many decry this type of use of stimulants, which seems to be rampant, and compare it to the use of steroids by professional athletes. Even more disapprove of illegal use of stimulants without a prescription.

Stimulating the Ethical Debate
Widespread abuse of drugs like Adderall and Ritalin on college campuses, however, is well-documented in the literature. One annual government study on the use of Ritalin by college students in 2003 concluded that 5% had used Ritalin without a prescription in the previous year, and broader studies have shown up to 35% prevalence of stimulant abuse, misuse, or illicit sales on undergraduate campuses. Anecdotally, the use of stimulants as “academic steroids” amongst health professions students appears to be similarly frequent.
As the number of patients taking stimulant medications continues to grow, so will the number and complexity of the ethical questions surrounding their use. Such publications as the British Medical Association’s 2007 discussion paper, on the ethical merits and challenges of “cognitive enhancement,” suggest the medical community has begun turning its attention to the matter. In the meantime, the use of stimulants by health students remains a matter of significant controversy.

References
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_265518.html
http://www.higheredcenter.org/pubs/factsheets/ritalin.html
http://www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/attachmentsbytitle/pdfcognitiveenhancement2007/$file/boosting_brainpower.pdf

Credit cards are a part of most students daily lives but they can be as much a curse as a blessing. Properly managing your credit cards is essential to a healthy financial future.

Building your credit history

It is good to have at least one national card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover) on hand to help you build a positive credit history and to provide security in emergencies. When you decide to apply for a card, compare annual fees, interest rates, and introductory offers. And to keep yourself out of debt, try to do the following:

• Pay your balance each month to avoid interest charges
• Pay your bill on time to avoid late charges
• Avoid cash advances, which come with large finance charges and interest that begins accruing immediately.
• Use your credit card once a month to build a good payment history.
• Avoid cards that attempt to charge you an annual fee.

What if you can’t get a credit card? If you have no credit or bad credit, your first card may be a bit more difficult to obtain.

If bad credit is the culprit, do what you can to clean up your history. If it’s something you can pay off, do so and talk to your creditors. Some of them will remove bad marks if you make repayment arrangements. Some companies offer cards specifically to people with bad credit. If you have to start there, keep in mind that they will probably have higher rates and stricter regulations. As soon as you have made enough on-time payments to get a regular card, transfer the balance away from the starter card.

If you just don’t have any credit, there are a couple easy ways to start it. Once you have that first card and make on-time payments for a few months, more opportunities will open up.

• Ask someone to cosign on a card for you to help build credit history.
• Obtain a secure credit card. This is a card that you would deposit funds into and use based on the amount of funds you have available. This is a great way to build credit. Most banks will offer you an unsecured credit card within 6-12 months after opening a secure credit card.

Credit card benefits: shopping for the right card

All credit cards offer some kind of benefits, but often they aren’t as good as they sound. Restrictions can eliminate or lower your benefits and raise your rates, so make sure you read all the fine print before you sign anything. One late payment can also change your entire agreement, even if that specific card payment is not late. Many companies will routinely run your credit report and if you have paid anything late they can penalize you on their card. Some common card benefits and their pitfalls include:

• Low balance transfer rate –- If you transfer the balance from another credit card, they will give you a lowered rate. There are a couple things to watch out for. First, how long is the low rate good for? For many cards, your balance transfer goes up to the regular rate after as little as 3 months. Look for one that offers the lower rate for the life of the loan. There may also be a one-time fee, usually a percentage of the balance transfer. There is one major potential drawback – if you charge anything else to this card besides the balance transfer, your payments will likely go towards your lower interest balance first. Depending on the company, they may allow you to specify that any additional payment above the monthly minimum be applied solely to the higher-balance new charges.
• Lower introductory rate — Again, how long is it good for? 12 months is average but there may be restrictions and the length is often based on your credit report. Make sure you find out how long your specific period is. Also, is interest charged retroactively on any balance not paid when the introductory period ends? This is common with store credit cards. What will the post-introductory rate be? Often companies use a low teaser to cover up a high regular rate.
• No annual fee — This is often for the first year only. There are so many options available it is rarely to your benefit to take a card with an annual fee.
• “Points” systems — Some cards offer points as a benefit. Find out what specifically you can get with your points. If there’s nothing you need they won’t do you much good.
• Fraud protection — The law limits your liability anyway, so protection shouldn’t be a big part of your decision. If it’s free, it certainly doesn’t hurt. But it’s not really something worth paying for.
• Membership rewards — Many companies give you a percentage of your charges back at the end of the year, but not always for all charges. There are usually some types of charges excluded, such as utilities, or it may only apply to purchases at specific retailers.

This leads us to a question many students have asked: “Can I pay for my tuition with my cash-back credit card and then pay off the balance with my student loans?” The answer is: quite possibly. But it’s up to you to consider the possible benefits and drawbacks of doing so.

Credit cards can be a lifesaver during your college years. They can help you build a credit history and provide a safety net for emergencies. They can also cost you a fortune if not handled properly. Use care with your credit and graduate with a clean report.

The first time I was hospitalized for symptoms matching the DSM IV criteria for Bipolar II, a kindly gray haired psychiatrist interviewed me extensively, asking me what had brought me to the hospital, if I felt suicidal, and whether I viewed myself as sick. In the background, three medical students scribbled furiously, brows furrowed as they watched the interview unfold. I picked at the bandages on my arm, noting their short white coats.

Shortly after, the kindly gray haired psychiatrist saw fit to release me into the world. I returned to work, and my scars eventually faded. I wanted desperately to become a doctor and I’d felt envious of the white-coated students at the hospital. Sometimes I allowed myself to think about applying to medical school. I was afraid to mention the thought to my private psychiatrist, who I believed would look at me sympathetically, make notes on her pad, and gently suggest other careers.

Three years, an eight-hour bout with the MCAT, and five interviews later, I entered medical school as a first year student and launched myself into my studies. I made friends, shyly conversing about some of the stressors of first year, while carefully hiding my medications in a drawer under my sweaters. I got to practice my interview skills with a psychiatry patient, her manic words galloping over my gentle attempts at re-directing the dialogue, and I realized that empathy didn’t necessarily translate to a successful patient consultation.

I listened, feeling like a spy, to what my classmates thought of the mentally ill, noting that while most people did not want to pursue psychiatry, there was an overall kind-hearted tolerance toward psychiatric patients. Certainly there was some laughter with mixed feelings of confusion and disbelief as psychiatric patients volunteering to serve as subjects in a class dedicated to interview techniques described and exhibited bizarre thoughts and behaviors. I told myself I couldn’t identify with these behaviors, and that I had never tried to hurt myself.

I managed to convince myself that I wasn’t “one of them,” that the prescription bottles hidden in my drawers weren’t necessary, and that I was exactly like the rest of my classmates. I’d like to say I stopped seeing my psychiatrist, that I saved hundreds of dollars a month on prescriptions, and that I could finally stop hiding. However, as much as I tried to convince myself that I wasn’t ill anymore, I still was.

Once I went on a backpacking trip through the canyons of Utah. On the canyon floors, I was a captive of rocky walls that stretched upwards so that only the dusty path mattered as I plodded along in the desert heat. During the summer between my first and second years of medical school, as I descended into depression, I once again felt the sensation of being deep within a canyon, the walls too steep for escape.

I became engulfed in a gray type of depression that makes life feel like a piece of gum that’s been chewed an hour too long. One night, the depression overwhelmed me. I remember my femoral artery pulsing belligerently in the crease between my groin and thigh, exactly where I’d dissected it from my cadaver. I had noted its importance in blood supply to the leg, and the high proportion of total cardiac output. I thought about the blood coursing through my vessels now: too much Ambien, saturating my GABA receptors, too much Lexapro, too much alcohol… I called my doctor.

The human body is an amazing machine. My liver, kept in condition from a constant influx of drugs, took care of the excess, enabling me to stagger into the emergency room at one of the local hospitals. Security guards appeared and escorted me to the psychiatric section of the emergency room, like bouncers dragging me out of a bar. I stumbled into the mandatory blue hospital outfit and collapsed onto the bed, peering at the resident on call through one eye as she assessed my condition.

A nurse pulled a blanket over me, somebody stuck my arm, I took pills washed down with water from a tiny paper cup…

My sleep was eventually interrupted by a breakfast tray placed precariously on my feet at the foot of the bed. Over the next few days, I took lots of pills washed down with water from tiny paper cups. I promised my private psychiatrist, my assigned resident, and my assigned medical student that I’d take my medication, that I wouldn’t drink.

After my discharge, I spent the rest of the summer reacquainting my body with the various medications prescribed to me… quetiapine, lamotrigine, bupropion…

Although I often feel alone with my condition and the financial burden of treatment, studies show that a substantial number of medical students meet criteria for depression, while only a fraction seeks treatment. Some of the fears cited include the stigma, lack of confidentiality, and cost. Many medical students are concerned that mental illness makes them unfit to be doctors, and therefore do not want their condition known by those who might affect their careers in medicine.

Cost is one issue for which I was unprepared. Fortunately, my school provides an insurance policy that includes prescription coverage and reimburses for mental health related expenditures. However, my doctor is not covered under the school insurance plan, and the benefit I receive is minimal. Also, my monthly prescription drug costs exceed $100.

My mental health treatment is not on my academic record, and aside from an insurance trail of visits to a psychiatrist and the purchase of medications from the psychiatry section of First Aid, there is no easily accessible record of my condition. My treatment has involved a teaching hospital within the same county as my medical school, and I’ve come into contact with medical students, a humiliating, albeit inevitable, situation. If I pursue psychiatry, I wouldn’t even consider the residency program associated with that hospital as an option.

Those unfortunate realities have faded into the background as I plough ahead through third year. I’ve stopped worrying about any potential rendezvous with medical students who might recognize me. My pill bottles, once so carefully hidden, are scattered across my rug among books, flashcards, and scrubs.

Managing my illness is a full-time job. Sometimes, despite my best efforts, the medications don’t work as they should. When I think my thoughts are too fast, my ideas too expansive, I increase my dose of atypical anti-psychotics, bringing a wet curtain down on my mood, sometimes causing it to dip too low. Sometimes I want to fall asleep during rounds, other times I’m awake all night suppressing the urge to wake my roommates and tell them my great ideas.

Even when my medication does work, the side effects I experience are things most students’ eyes slide carelessly over in Epocrates: dry mouth, excessive sweating, dilated pupils. So I drink water, use deodorant, and I’m a great subject for ophthalmic exam practice. I try to look on the bright side — even when depression strikes. Attaining success in medical school while living with mental illness is possible, and I know I am not alone in that success. If you saw me walking through the halls of the hospital this year, you’d never know that deep in my pocket, under the reflex hammer and the otoscope, is a collection of pills you’d recognize from your psychiatry rotation.

With over 80,000 professional degrees bestowed in 2006 alone, it can be tempting for new students to focus solely on their goal of achieving a health career.

After all, months of testing, applications, and interviewing require such determined effort that keeping an eye on the prize becomes in itself a kind of occupation. There is a danger that such a limited focus can cause students to overlook the important preparation which makes a career possible.

Transitioning from undergraduate work to full-scale professional training can undoubtedly be jarring. The pitfalls of poor decisions and wasted effort lurk around countless corners. By relying upon the experience of those who have gone before and the advice they offer, a student can make the first year less stressful and more productive.

Before You Arrive

There are plenty of important things that need to be considered before arriving for the first day of class. Setting up a household, getting finances in order, arranging transportation—these are all important details that if taken care of before school begins, eliminate many possible stresses later.

Value can be found in simply knowing the campus and city, especially if traveling a long way for school. Current medical student MadameLULU recommends that newcomers arrive as soon as possible to get things in order and “scope out the local scene: coffee shops, restaurants, bars, grocery stores, etc. Use the time to set up and decorate your apartment to make it as comfortable as possible.”

A little investment of time early on will pay dividends later by preventing the dreaded scramble of parking passes, bus schedules, or keeping the cupboards stocked with something more than Ramen noodles and that blue box of “mac and cheese.”

For students wondering about how to prepare academically during the summer prior to entering, the most common refrain is a simple one: don’t bother. Owing to the nature of first year, most students will find that studying during the summer tends to be a waste of time.

Unless assigned summer reading is a required part of a program, getting away from the coming frenzy is a popular option. As medical student scpod discovered, there are better ways to spend your last summer of freedom than studying: “You’ll be expected to learn more in one week of Gross Anatomy in med school than you could ever learn in a month on your own. The best thing to do: take a break and enjoy yourself—it may be a long while before you get time for yourself again.”

There are exceptions to the notion that students should ignore academic preparation altogether. If a school offers a pre-matriculation program, attending may be beneficial. As current medical student EvoDevo offers: “An already overwhelming situation is made less so because you can now concentrate on learning just the material. You won’t have to find your best study spot, where the labs are, or even what Gross Lab is like.”

In addition to providing familiarity with the campus and expectations of the school, students can help cushion themselves from the dreaded “shock of battle” that comes with the beginning of professional education.

Once You Begin

A common theme among current and formers students, keeping up with coursework usually ranks at the top of proven advice. But what kind of strategies are the most effective?

Most veteran students agree that having a detailed plan provides newcomers with a successful approach. Current optometry student prettygreeneyes advises first-year students “to treat school like you would a job. Set up a schedule with blocks of study time and try to be consistent.”

A willingness to make changes in study habits can bring important payoffs as well. Not only might a new student need to re-examine study habits used as an undergraduate, they may also want to look at their current methods. If something does not work or if falling behind becomes a recurring theme, students should make changes and seek out assistance immediately.

Sarah, a second-year pharmacy student, recommends consulting course syllabi to plan entire semesters in advance when possible. At the same time, she advises that students get friendly with their classmates: “They will become a huge source of support, missed notes, as well as helpful hints and advice through your professional school years.”

Experienced students often recommend the use of supplemental study materials to give newcomers an advantage. Mandy, a current medical student, suggests computer programs or PDAs which allow you to organize vast amounts of information and have it more quickly accessible than a normal notebook would allow.

Medical students EvoDevo and Amy B, recommend using board preparation books that help bullet out information to supplement normal course textbooks. Consulting such guides when first learning the material has the added bonus of helping students plan ahead for testing in the years to come.

Too overwhelming? For some first-year students, maybe the best idea is to keep it simple. Familiar with the pressures of absorbing so much information in so short a time, EvoDevo himself offers a helpful reassurance: “If learning the material means that you have to make up silly stories, talk out loud to an imaginary colleague, or that you have to teach your dog the Krebs Cycle—go for it! Just because your friends have a different method doesn’t mean that their way is best for you.”

The (Few) Don’ts of the First-Year Experience

While looking to make all the right moves, new students should also consider some of the clear wrongs that can easily be avoided.

When asked about the most common mistake made during their own first year, veteran students return with invariably the same answer: textbooks. Familiar with the expense as undergraduates, many first years are so eager to be fully prepared they purchase textbooks that are ultimately used little, if at all.

Second-year veterinary student Deanna mentions that “a lot of textbooks are unnecessary and not terribly useful. Wait until school starts to find out what you really need.”

But once a person knows what the requirements are, should their decision end there? As it happens, publishers will often try to take advantage of professional school students’ compulsiveness by reissuing textbook editions every few years, even when there are few significant changes.

On a budget? Take the helpful advice of EvoDevo and “go to Half Price Books, online, or find upperclassmen and get those suckers cheap. Since most texts change minimally from edition to edition, you can copy any changes from your friends.”

Besides saving you money, the hindsight of more experienced students can save newcomers a lot of stress headaches as well. While perfectionism and excellence can get a person into professional school, first-year students need to accept that having realistic standards is important if they want to survive.

Current medical student Amanda sums up the new reality that first-year students ought to come to terms with: “You were used to being the top of your class: you probably won’t be anymore. You were used to getting A’s: you’ll probably be extremely happy just to pass some of your classes. It’s okay. You’ll see people fail exams (and you may be one of them). Pick yourself up, learn the material, and take the exam again.”

If nothing else, new students need to find a balance between the urgency of learning and the importance of finding a way to relax so as not to burn out. Choosing a stress-reliever can be important: walking, yoga, kick-boxing, making sarcastic comments at the movies—it is essential to have an outlet for the frustration and angst of being a professional student.

Equally important, first-year students need to allow themselves a chance to discover their own path. Because one experience can vary so differently from another, new students should know that no one has all the answers. Instead, they ought to rely upon their own individual methods or practice to help navigate through those tough early days.

As jonwill, a resident in Podiatric Surgery, states plainly: “Be willing to do what it takes. A fact of life is that some people will have to work harder than others to get the same results. Be willing to do what it takes to succeed, and don’t worry about what those around you are doing.”

When all the other advice is set aside, a professional student has only their own determination to drive them through to the end of the day. Trust those instincts, and success will come.

First-Year Essentials Checklist

Do’s:

• Do enjoy your last summer of freedom (for a while)
• Do complete financial, transportation, and household decisions before school begins
• Do manage your time (consult syllabi, schedule study time outside of regular coursework every week, organize study groups)
• Do talk to your professors (use office hours, ask for additional recommended texts)
• Do talk to your advisor (important to a successful academic career—change them if the first one does not work for you)
• Do talk to your fellow classmates (the quiet one in the corner just may have the answer)
• Do use supplementary study aids (board guides, computer programs, unassigned textbooks)
• Do go to professional conferences when possible (network, network, network!)
• Do try to relax! (Hit the gym, go for a drink, host a barbeque, etc.)

Don’ts:

• Don’t panic! (feeling overwhelmed at first is normal)
• Don’t spend the summer prior studying (school will take care of that)
• Don’t waste money (budget early on while learning how to live on financial aid)
• Don’t immediately purchase textbooks (if older, cheaper editions work—great!)
• Don’t expect straight A’s (realistic expectations will make life easier)
• Don’t be afraid to be wrong or feel stupid (learning is a process)
• Don’t spend all your time studying (rest and relaxation helps the body process new experience more effectively)
• Don’t obsess about details beyond your first year (acclimating to the information and pace is what beginning is all about)
• Don’t forget to use resources like SDN (mentoring, advice, camaraderie)

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, http://nces.ed.gov

To discuss this article in the forums follow this link:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=5499382#post5499382

By SDN Staff, in collaboration with IFMSA

Almost one thousand of medical students from over 90 different countries will gather in Canterbury this August to address critical inequities in healthcare provision across the globe. The 56th August Meeting of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations will return to the UK with the theme “Access to Essential Medicines”.

The International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFSMA) is the largest student body in the world and the official voice of medical students across the globe. Its biannual General Assemblies aim to educate and inspire its members to take action on Global Health issues through a combination of projects, training and campaigns. The UK team beat off fierce international competition for the opportunity to host the 2007 Assembly, which will be held August 4-10 at the University of Kent, Canterbury.

The decision to theme the event as “Access to Essential Medicines” was taken in recognition of its relevance to both the developing and developed worlds. More than 10 million deaths per year can be attributed to lack of access to life-giving medications, in direct contravention of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, entitling every citizen the right to “health and well-being of himself and his family, including … medical care and necessary social services”. However, as pharmaceutical companies and health services defend their own rights and obligations, the issue has gained both increasing notoriety and key relevance to all those intent on practising within the medical community.

Professor Richard Horton, editor of the Lancet, who will give the opening address to the Assembly, has said of the issue: “Access to medicines has become the test above all others by which the rich world will be judged in its dealings with the poor” (Lancet 2002 vol 359:1605).

On Wednesday 8th August, the Assembly will host “Access Denied: the Big Debate” in which Jon Sowero (Univerisities Allied to Essential Medicines), Tom Ellman (Medecins Sans Frontieres), Catherine Royce (Drugs for Neglected Disease Initiative) and Richard Barker (Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry) will be expressing their views on the role of “Big Pharma” in securing Access to Essential Medicines, and defending them both to one another and the student audience.

Other speakers throughout the week will include Hans Hogerzeil (Director of Department of Medicines Policy and Standards), Michael Wilks (Chairman of United Body of the British Medical Association) and Richard Smith (CEO of United Health Europe and former Editor of the British Medical Journal).

Informal seminars will encourage students to explore, among other things, the mechanics of Public-Private partnerships, the flooding of the third world with counterfeit medications and access denied to minority groups in the “developed” world, such as asylum seekers and the elderly.

The Assembly also aims to motivate and train its delegates to take positive action on Global Health issues themselves through a wide variety of campaigns and community-based projects. An extensive Training and Resource Development component has been integrated in the program, providing the participants with new skills needed in their work, but seldom found in the traditional University curricula. Such skills include Project Management, Media Skills, Strategic Planning, and Campaigning.

The UK was one of the 6 member nations involved in founding the IFMSA in 1952 and its UK member, Medsin, remains highly active with branch in over 28 medical schools. It has not, however, hosted an Assembly since 1964 and it was therefore with huge excitement the UK team secured the bid in August of last year. The team set out with the aim of hosting an ethical, environmentally sustainable and accessible Assembly in the UK. Fundraising has been exclusively from companies compatible with Medsin’s ethical policy, rejecting sponsorship from tobacco, pharmaceutical and private health insurance firms.

Procurement of all resources has been organized, along with the Assembly gathering itself, to minimize adverse impact on the environment.

Recent efforts have been aimed at increasing access to the Assembly to students across the globe. An international publicity campaign was launched at Christmas and, in coordination with embassies abroad, since then has secured visas for delegates. In addition to the traditional travel bursaries, a new scheme of sponsorship by UK medical schools of foreign students, has further widened access to students from economically developing countries.

More information can be found at www.ukam2007.org and www.ifmsa.org

To discuss this article visit the discussion thread located here:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=5387965#post5387965

Yes, they take it that seriously. And for good reason.

According to Lee Burnett, executive director and co-founder of the Student Doctor Network, the SDN Forums have grown to become the largest pre-health and health professional student forums on the Internet.

SDN is operated by the Coastal Research Group, a non-profit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization (which means any monies donated are also a write off for the donor). Entirely run by volunteers, SDN provides numerous Student Doctor Forums, where camaraderie, friendships, and even, rumor has it, marriages, have been formed. In short, there would be no SDN were it not for the many moderators, administrators and advisors that volunteer their time to keep SDN running on task.

Originally, SDN was founded in 1999 as a conglomerate of other well-known medical student websites, including the Interactive Medical Student Lounge, Osteopathic.Com, The Big Guide To Med School, The Dental Students Network, and Medschooldiary.com.

Today, discussion in SDN forums ranges from how to handle test anxiety, to what to do about an incompatible roommate, to feelings of loneliness and confessions of insecurity, to pop culture and dream vacations.

Brandon says he’s met and talked with students all around the country and networked with hundreds of like-minded students. “Most of my colleagues were not pre-med in college, and having been the first to graduate high school and attend college in my family, it was a bit difficult to travel and pave the road through to medical school alone,” he recalls. “After suffering some poor grades at college from working three jobs, I finally stumbled upon SDN in my senior year, and as a result, I scored well on my MCAT, enrolled in an Specialty Masters Program, and have subsequently been accepted to medical school with another interview coming up.”

“The fact that it draws students from all over the world to share their thoughts and to be able to pick the brains of every type of medically-related individual out there is an aspect that no others have probably come close to mirroring…There is no better resource. I’d go as far as saying that this may even do a better job of advising than any school’s premed advising committee. I consider SDN the altruistic, opportunistic, optimistic, pessimistic, realistic and individualistic fraternity of medicine,” adds Brandon.

Tim, another forum poster, echoes the sentiment, stating, “Though SDN seems just like a web forum, it provides much more than just information; it is a place where professionals (and soon to be professionals) can come together to learn about career options, share their trails and triumphs throughout the training, and then disseminate their knowledge with others who are starting the journey.”

And for those skeptical about information found on the Internet, SDN forum user Anush has these words, “SDN has effectively filled a significant part of the information gap. It has eliminated geographic barriers to information gathering. It has a built-in system of checks and balances, whereby most inaccuracies are flushed out, and biases and prejudices are exposed, as information flows from all sources.”

Brandon in Alabama adds, “The unique capability of SDN… is that it allows you to connect to a much larger group of people than those in your immediate geographic area. I bring this up because I go to a relatively small school, with very few medical school applicants each year. I have lots of friends, but almost no one who can empathize with the plight of a pre-med…I think SDN succeeds because it doesn’t just provide answers that any pre-med advisor could, it provides a built-in support system.”

And as far as lifelines go, Anush adds, “About a year ago, as I was face-to-face with someone working in the admissions office of a certain medical school, I was told (in a scathing, abrasive tone of utter contempt), ‘Your undergraduate GPA is so awful, I don’t understand why you are even bothering thinking about medical school. You are deluded if you think you will ever get in.’ That was the day I found SDN. I realized that I am in an awfully deep hole, but I do not have to remain buried alive for the rest of my life. I read about others who had made it out of similar holes and I am inspired by their stories every day.”

“SDN has helped me to feel ahead of the game: to know what’s coming up and be prepared for it,” says David, summing up SDN’s goals in a nutshell.