NOT the Club Med

It is sometimes easy to believe, even as a student, that medical school in the Caribbean is a vacation, a Club Medicalschool. I have to admit, that waking up and walking out to my front porch overlooking the most beautiful expanse of God's Aquarium is intoxicating . It is no wonder why people retire to places like this. But clearly, the reason for being here for us is study and the goal is collect as much information as humanly possible about the practice of medicine.

That stark reality happened (again) for me late last night, while studying at the open classroom study area at school. One of my colleagues in the 4th term who, like me, has to repeatedly review in order to codify that information into her brain. We are the blighted student who have to actually review, study, read and review again...unlike our much hated brothers and sisters who can read something one time and remember it forever (and quote it with impunity)

This was the note she wrote on the top of my paper (I scanned it in with the content today). She's here to get away from her boyfriend who distracts her from learning. I'm here because the Internet is down at home with no immediate possibility of having it come back up in the near future. For me, the Internet is my library. Beyond my local digital world (what's on my laptop) the Internet is the equalizer. I have access to the greater medical knowledge of the world that every medical school in the world has access too.

I was looking up disulfide bonds on the Internet when the intrusion happened. The glancing eye, the Internet was all that was seen, but I appreciate her attention to my success.  It was a great reminder about the subtle aspects of learning. One simple word, "STUDY", written almost with violence in pencil, woke me to the reality that this is not the Club Med, and exams are in two weeks.

While I've been going to class, reading, reviewing the day's work and studying with some intent...there is a mental shift to this place that has to happen at some point for the ungifted like me. Time with the content. Studying (contraction of the words "student" and "dying". Who knew??

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"There are few more valuable professional commodities than a medical degree." - Unknown

P.S. Just heard from a recently departed (the island) student. He passed USMLE part 1 with flying colors. There is hope :)