申请专业：医学
Veterinary Background
Changing the bandage on an angry bulldog’s paw or trimming the hooves of a 2000-pound draft horse can be an intimidating venture. Curing animals requires compassion, precision, and confidence; it is also an excellent way to learn about practicing medicine and to feel the satisfaction of helping someone in need. Due to my rural background, knowledge of animals, and love of science, I began working for a local veterinarian at a young age. Later in life, when I decided to become a physician, I saw that my veterinary experiences had prepared me well for a career in health care.
When I started volunteering in an emergency room, I learned that humans really aren't so different from other animals -- I needed to show my compassion in order to earn their trust before I could heal or comfort them. When a child or widow brought me their dying pet and pleaded for me to cure it, I had to soothe the person as well as the animal. I used this calm compassion in the emergency room when comforting the family of a father who had just suffered a heart attack, or when talking with a husband frantic about his wife’s car accident. I saw further similarities between human and animal medicine when I shadowed Dr. Harry Williams in his family practice. I saw that his close relationship with his patients led him to keep thinking of them long after his office closed for the day. Likewise, as a veterinary technician, I had often carefully considered how to help each animal. Compassion is truly a prerequisite for any career in health care.
In my work with animals, I learned that perseverance is key to successful treatment. Interruption of that treatment can lead to disastrous results. In many rural communities near my home, I witnessed the consequences of the absence of consistent medical care. As a farrier, I have worked in many old-order Mennonite communities whose needs aren’t being met: when one client's daughter injured her hand in a corn sheller, she was unable to get medical care because facilities were far away and no doctors could come to their farm. The girl’s hand was infected and not healing well. I did what I could, but I was troubled that I didn’t have the expertise to treat the injury. On my next visit, I saw that her hand had grown deformed. Had she been able to see a physician more frequently, her hand might have healed correctly. Encounters of this kind have revealed to me the consequences of medically underserved communities. I look forward to working toward a solution to this problem when I am a physician.
A good veterinarian operates with precision. I have applied the careful, exacting skills I learned with animals to my lab work. I am currently involved in research on corneal endothelium with Dr. Carson Kennedy. In the lab, we study mammalian corneal cells; eventually, we would like to describe and prevent ophthalmic diseases such as glaucoma. Through this work, I have honed my scientific skills and sharpened my analytical mind. It is exhilarating to catch a glimpse of valuable knowledge, not yet known by anyone, which has the potential to help many people. It is also very rewarding to know that I have contributed to the advancement of medicine by providing research results that will improve people’s health.
Perhaps the most important quality required to practice human or animal medicine is confidence. In the lab, in the emergency room, and in the field, I have had many opportunities to observe the importance of confident leadership to a medical practice. Over the years, I have observed that the best veterinarians and physicians handle each issue swiftly and appropriately, delegating tasks to others with self-assurance. In every medical situation, someone must take the lead role while working to manage the team. Leadership roles have always come naturally to me -- I spent twelve years working toward becoming an Eagle Scout and helping my younger brother to do the same. The composure I gained as a troop leader helped me to excel in my role as supervisor at a large walking horse farm. Since then, I have grown into leadership roles that required more significant responsibilities. I am comfortable as a leader because I am confident in my ability to ensure the health and safety of others. The leadership skills I have developed will be a vital part of my work as a physician.
When I began working as a veterinary technician, I did not fully realize that the skills I gained would be so applicable to my eventual career as a physician. Yet my experiences with animals have provided me with an excellent foundation to continue my studies of human health and well-being. I am eager to develop the medical knowledge I have gained thus far in order to become the kind of physician my community will be able to rely on.
