Reflection from 10/18/2013: I recently had the opportunity to volunteer at the Columbus Free Clinic. This was a very rewarding experience that helped reaffirm my commitment to medicine and my decision to become a doctor. As a first year medical student, it is easy to get caught up in studying and the stress of memorizing the material and having all the correct answers; so, this was a very refreshing experience. I was especially struck by how grateful the patients were to be receiving healthcare. Being able to provide this service to people in need was very rewarding and kept me energized all night.
I especially enjoyed having the chance to work with the residents to help diagnose each patient. These doctors made me proud to be a physician-in-training because I was impressed by not only how well they worked with the patients but also how good they were at teaching me and the other medical students who were working with them. I know residents work extremely long hours, so I was humbled at the fact that they were volunteering their time to work at the free clinic and also to help us learn while they did their jobs. I admired their patience and hope to continue to work at free clinics as a future physician.
In order to be seen at the free clinic, patients must arrive at the site by 4:30pm and then can wait to be seen until as late as 8pm. However, I did not encounter one angry patient during my time volunteering. They were all extremely patient and thankful to be receiving care. The experience helped put the importance of medicine into perspective for me and reminded me why I want to become a physician.
Later that year I applied to become a steering committee member of the Columbus Free Clinic. I loved volunteering that the clinic and wanted to become as involved as possible. Below is my application for this position.
cfc-steering-committee-application-2013-2
Now a few years later, I am happy to say that I was accepted to fill the role of steering committee member of the Columbus Free Clinic and through that experience I learned a lot about myself and healthcare in general. This experience helped me to decide that I wanted to pursue a career in emergency medicine and it made me better understand the obstacles facing patients who do not receive adequate healthcare. I owe a lot to my time spent helping to run the free clinic. I am happy that this was such an important part of my medical school career.
Above is a picture of me with the rest of the steering committee for the Columbus Free Clinic.