The time has finally come.

I'll finally be submitting my application to residency programs this week.

People who have gone through this process always told me that the due date would sneak up on you fast. And whaddya know, it did just that. For the longest time, September 15th was a date that seemed so far out into the future. I had filed away the date in my brain a long time ago and slowly began working on my application little-by-little. Although I was aware of the approaching due date, I don't think it really hit me that it was coming up so soon until about a week ago. Thankfully I had been working on my application all summer, so I didn't have a freakout moment or anything once the realization hit me. But with that being said, I spent all of yesterday finalizing my application so that I could print it out, review it all one last time in PDF form, and officially submit it at some point this week. My letters of recommendation have also been trickling in, which I'm very thankful for. In regards to where I'm applying to, I'm looking at programs across the East Coast, with most of them being concentrated in the Southeast region of the U.S. I initially had over 30 programs on my list, which I've successfully whittled down to 18. Man I swear, I can't wait to finally submit this application so that I won't have to think about it anymore!

This upcoming week is also the last week of my Peds Heme/Onc AI. 😔 I must admit, I'm not ready to finish up this rotation just yet. I've learned A TON about cancer therapies, treating various blood disorders, how to effectively communicate with the families of cancer patients and how to write my patient notes in a more effective manner. My team has been absolutely wonderful to be around, and I've loved the time I've spent with the patients on the floor. I've also surprised myself on how well I've been able to manage my emotions during the rotation so far. There have been some really sad moments as well as some very happy moments, all of which have been memorable. We even had a taco party for one of our patients, much to the delight of both him and his mother! Along with the experiences I've had here, I've found that I am quite interested in the pathophysiology of cancer and the innovative ways that are being used to treat the various types of cancer that exist. As of right now, I can definitely see myself working in this sub-specialty in the future! However, my mind is still open to other possibilities and it will remain open as I continue to get through fourth-year and work through my various electives in residency.

In addition to caring for my patients last week, I got the opportunity to attend the Department of Pediatrics session of the Dean's Research Symposia Series as well as another Schwartz rounds, a multidisciplinary forum focused on discussing the experiences that various healthcare providers have gone through. The research symposium was styled like a TED Talk, where pediatricians in various specialties spoke for five minutes at a time about some of the research they were doing. The topics ranged from things like obesity, food insecurity and literacy promotion to NICU clinical trials, palliative care and medical education. It was pretty interesting to see such a plethora of ideas being presented and reminded me of just how vast the field of pediatrics is.

The theme of this month's Schwartz rounds was focused on medical error and how the healthcare professionals on the panel dealt with it in their careers. It was powerful to watch them talk about their experiences with error and learn how it has impacted the way they practice medicine as well as their own personal lives. As much as I want to believe otherwise, I know that there will come a time in my life where I'll unfortunately make a medical error. When that time comes, I'll be able to draw from the experiences of these professionals to help me cope with the emotions and consequences that I'll face. Especially after having attended that session, I believe that it is incredibly important to be in an environment where you feel comfortable enough to share experiences like this with others without feeling judged. Medical professionals have to deal with this unrelenting pressure of having to be perfect, which is unrealistic because we are all human. Because of this pressure, people in healthcare are naturally afraid of admitting mistakes, which can ultimately have negative consequences for the patients. By admitting errors, working to resolve them, and making sure that they don't happen again in the future, medical professionals will ultimately be delivering healthcare in a safer manner. It is also worth mentioning that it is much better for your mental health if you feel that you can be open and honest about your mistakes with others. I'm really glad that I was able to attend and learn from this session!

Alright, gotta go now. I hope that you start your week off on a positive note!

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” – Anne Frank

– Black Man, M.D.

P.S. – That finals match in the U.S. Open between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka was WILD. Definitely one of the craziest tennis matches I've ever seen. Oh, and Drake and Meek are friends again. I just figured that was worth noting lol.