During Intersession, Field students have the option of interning at local organizations or even companies outside of the DMV. Yessi '28 spent her internship working at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C. Keep reading to learn more about this unique experience.
What was appealing about this internship?
This internship was appealing to me because I have been interested in medicine for the past few years. My dad had cancer a few years ago and seeing both the treatments and appointments he had plus the doctors' dedication and compassion to cure his sickness sparked an interest to learn more overall about the medical field.
Describe your typical responsibilities each day.
During this internship I am shadowing four different doctors in both breast cancer and GI oncology. Typically, I am watching over many appointments with patients each day and taking notes that I find necessary and informational. Each appointment lasts from 20-35 minutes on average and there are about 8 per day. Before the appointments, the doctor I am working with that day gives me the overview of the patient so I have context to what's being discussed. After the appointment I usually ask any questions that I had about the patient. I also have been working each day on my internship project which is a patient informational video about what to expect when taking taxol chemotherapy for breast cancer treatment. The doctors I am shadowing have been teaching me about different kinds of cancer and how each medicine works to treat it. It is overall very informative and I am learning so much.
What was your favorite moment or biggest accomplishment?
My favorite moment from from this internship so far has been with one specific breast cancer patient who is going through chemo that I was able to sit down and have a conversation with. We talked about her kids and she mentioned that her son loves soccer. This was something I could relate to because my brother also loves the sport. We talked about the teams they play for and were able to relate about how in our houses, it feels like that's what every conversation is revolved around. It was so cool to not only listen to the cancer treatment portion but also relate to patients on a personal level and bring some cheerfulness during a tough time.
What is the most important thing you learned during this experience?
The most important thing I learned during this experience is how much care and communication go into treating cancer patients. During my internship so far, I saw that each patient is different and needs their treatment explained in a very clear and supportive way. Watching appointments has taught me that it is very important to approach each patient in both informative and comforting ways. Overall, I learned that treating cancer is not just about the medicine, but also understanding the patient using empathy as it helps provide better quality care and both are equally important.
What surprised you most about this experience?
What surprised me the most about this experience was that even after being cured of cancer, there is still so much difficulty and necessary medicine that comes with life in the following years. Before this internship, I didn't realize that after the tumor was gone, there was still medication necessary to reduce the chances of cancer recurring for so many years following surgery or other medications to deal with side effects after chemotherapy like nerve damage.
How has this internship influenced your future plans or interests?
This internship has definitely further influenced my plans of pursuing a medical career in the future. I really enjoy observing clinics and have learned that I find the the day-to-day general work of being an oncologist very interesting. Although I don't have complete insight on the doctors responsibilities, it seems like a rewarding and intriguing job that I would be interested in pursuing. This internship has confirmed my thoughts of going to med school in the future to become a doctor.
