6 things I wish I knew before starting medical school

Going through medical school was a difficult transition for me. It was a new phase in my life and I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. Having completed medical school, I learnt several things about myself and I realized several things I wish I knew that would have made the transition slightly easier. Here’s what I learnt as a medical student.

1. It is okay to be average.

I know, being average isn’t what got you into med school. You were one of the best from high school. But remember, your med school classmates are the same. You are now part of the cream of the crop. By nature, some people must be average. However, the fact that you got accepted into med school alone shows that you have what it takes to succeed.

You don’t need to be the best anymore. Work as hard as you can but know that being average is okay, you will still be a qualified doctor at the end.

2. Try different study methods during your first year of med school and see what works.

The common analogy of entering med school is drinking from a fire hydrant; you are constantly exposed to a huge volume of new information and expected to learn and keep up with the material. Your study method during high school won’t cut it; you didn’t have that much to learn and you had more free time. When I started med school, I quickly realized this and spent several months trying different study methods until I found one that works.

Experiment with different study methods. Do you prefer studying in the library or in your room? Making flashcards or highlight notes? Going through textbooks or lecture notes? Group study or self-study? See what works for you. Also, take your studying seriously. The knowledge you acquire could be what saves a patient’s life.

3. Be engaged with your classmates and participate in group activities.

I’ve been an introvert all my life. In my first trimester of med school, I mostly kept to myself and would only interact with my classmates during lectures and tutorials. Afterwards, I decided to be more social and started to getting to know my classmates and be part of more social gatherings. From this, I have gotten to know some cool people and have forged great friendships. Although I’m not a socialite by any means, I’ve become more extroverted and have learnt that my classmates are cool and have done some amazing, interesting things.

Attend more social gatherings with your classmates and get to them. You are a group of intelligent individuals with the common interest of helping people. Use this common ground as a means to strike up a conversation. A simple conversation can lead to a strong friendship. Everyone has their own unique skillset that they bring to the table and it’s cool to learn how diverse and unique your class is.

4. Don’t be scared of the patient.

This one might seem weird but let me explain. At the start of my clinical years (3rd year), I was terrified of seeing patients. We spent the first two years in the classroom learning the basic medical sciences, practising our history taking and physical examinations on each other and then now, suddenly, we are seeing real patients. I had all these thoughts running through my head:

“What if they don’t want to talk to me? What if I hurt them while doing the physical exam? What if they ask me a question and I don’t know the answer? Will they think I’m a fraud?”

I soon found out that my fears and worries were unfound and unnecessary. Most of the time, patients were grateful that someone is seeing them. They would happily allow me to spend thirty minutes taking their history then another thirty minutes doing their physical exam (which was excessive). Through repetition, I gained confidence and my patient interactions improved. Of course, there would be a rude patient or one that didn’t want to be seen but those are few and far between.

Do not be afraid of seeing patients. Learn from them and realize that one of the key steps to being a good doctor is seeing patients to improve your clinical skills.

5. Take your sub-internships seriously and learn from the residents.

You will be a resident one day. In the final year of med school, it’s a good idea to shadow the residents, see how they go about managing the ward and the scutwork and learn from them. Some of these things you will pick up with time but it’s good to know how to go about certain things that are not taught in med school. For example, how to order blood tests, how to order x-rays, how to fill out discharge summaries etc. This will give you an edge when you start your residency, and it will help you be more efficient from the get-go.

6. Enjoy this time as a medical student.

I realized that I did not fully appreciate my last two years of med school. I really wanted to graduate and finally start earning a salary after all those years of hard work. In hindsight, I miss having the extra free time and lack of responsibility that I once had as a student.

You are only a med student once. People know that you are still are med student so they won’t be too hard on you. Use that to your advantage to learn as much as you can. Cherish the moments as a med student since you won’t have as much free time and responsibility for a long while.