A Great Guidepost: Systems-Based Practice

One of the most fortunate experiences in my medical school career in my opinion, was becoming the mentee of Dr. Bahner. More than the guidance in research and expertise that he provided me as a research mentor, I knew immediately that the way that he approached both patients and peers was stylistically the way that I should aspire to later in my career.

Perhaps one of most striking things in terms of what set him apart from other mentors beyond his bedside manner and clinical acumen, was that upon meeting him, he immediately saw me as a peer. Making a point of this fact, when conducting research with him, he always encouraged equal discussion and honest feedback. He made it clear early on that the status of a medical student did not make an opinion or observation any less valid than from an individual with higher stature. This created an environment where it was easy to pitch new ideas and even concepts that would require more refinement from the group to bring to full potential. This led to some of the greatest growth that I had on an individual level because it encouraged me to push my own limits in terms of thinking both critically and out of the box when problem solving.

The other thing that I looked up to him for was his willingness to help others. Even after confiding that I was thinking of switching specialties in terms of career paths, Dr. Bahner has been continually supportive throughout my own journey. The way that he carries himself in a room of students and constantly checks in to make sure they understand and to always push the limits of their understanding just ever so slightly more has always been a source of inspiration to me.

Integrated Diagram of the reach of Ultrasound Research in many Specialties (Slide from our Horizontal/Vertical Integration Presentation from AIUM 2019).

In many ways, this made it easy to transition into the role of proctor for his Ultrasound Interest Group. Under his guidance, we have created materials that have made it easier to both teach ultrasound knowledge, but also to help medical students interested in EM and ultrasound to get connected with us, both in terms of faculty connections but also research opportunities.

Helping proctor students through Ultrasound Guided Needle Aspiration

From this, we created the Ultrasound Research Interest Group (USRIG), another interest group aimed at helping students both experienced and new to the world of research in getting the opportunity to conduct Ultrasound research and also equipping them with templates and tools to best streamline the process.

Data from our Retrospective Analysis of USRIG’s Impact at OSU

From my own research to the experiences I’ve had been a part of his peer mentor groups and working groups for the clinical simulators we have on campus, it has been an amazing journey in both learning how to better communicate concepts to new learners as well as remaining compassionate to others, always viewing them as equals and being attentive to their feedback. Looking to the future, I aspire to keep these points in mind, hoping to become a physician that is as compassionate and as welling to share his wisdom as Dr. Bahner.

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