Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Hike #3: Yosemite

Amazing vistas, waterfalls and well worth the tough hike out of the valley.

Hike #2: Skyline to the Sea Trail

30+ miles in less than 2 days with my mom. We made it to the beach!

Hike #1: Big Sur

Testing out some new gear in the Ventana Wilderness

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

1/4 of a Doctor

As of 10am today, I am 1/4th of a doctor. Officially done with my first year of medical school! It's one of those times when you should be celebrating, but instead you are more in disbelief. Time off? Relax? No studying? I hardly know what to do with myself. I feel bewildered, really, free time?

WOOHOO!!!!!!!!  Busy finalizing plans for the hiking trip of the century (more on that later), and time for real life (finishing taxes, financial aid, good stuff like that).

Looking back at my first year, I feel a strong sense of pride, I worked hard, I tried my best, I learned more than I thought possible to learn, and had a really good time. I actually enjoyed my first year of medical school, probably learned just as much about myself as I did about the human body...but now...FREEDOM!!!!!!!

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Number 25

I think it's fitting that National Hikes Day falls on my birthday! To celebrate, I enjoyed a relaxing 4 mile hike this morning with the fam, followed by wildberry frozen yogurt and a picnic for lunch... Then relaxed by the duck pond all afternoon, reviewing for my final exam. What a wonderful day, with chinese food for dinner and angel food cake to top it off! Beautiful weather, wonderful company, and a reason to celebrate, what more could I ask for?

Number 25 is certainly off to a fabulous start.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

NEJM Letter on Arizon Immigration Law

Thought it necessary to share this brief letter to the editor...While I was reading it, I was struck by the fact that the Arizona law has such similarity to the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 that made it illegal for people in the Northern states to "conceal, harbor or shield" a slave and effectively turned police officers into "slave catchers". This is wrong. If I ever am subjected to such inhumane laws, I will choose to nonviolently protest and disobey.
Arizona Immigration Law and Medical Practice
















More Information


To the Editor: The new Arizona state immigration bill (SB-1070) signed into law on April 23 will seriously obstruct, if not undermine, the practice of medicine in the state of Arizona. It specifies that those who "conceal, harbor or shield or attempt to conceal, harbor or shield" a foreign person who came to the United States illicitly "are guilty of a class 1 misdemeanor" punishable by a fine of at least $1,000 (Sec. 5, Section 13-2929).1 It can be argued that health care providers who neglect to report illegal immigrants under their care will violate the law and be considered criminals. The bill provides physicians with no guidance as to what constitutes "reasonable grounds" to suspect that somebody is in the country illegally, leaving the particulars of such scrutiny to anyone's imagination (although the fact that Arizona shares a border with Mexico rather than a European country suggests that whites will not be "reasonable" suspects). One interpretation is that health care providers in Arizona will need to ask for a passport before seeing certain patients (and providers themselves will need to carry their own passports at all times, depending on their physical appearance or accent). Arizona practitioners, hospitals, and medical associations need to ponder the extent of their liability under the new law and draft clear institutional policies to defend their patients and employees from potential harassment. Asking patients to produce immigration documents violates the trust that physicians, nurses, and other health care workers endeavor to earn from them.
This bill threatens one of the oldest traditions of medicine: physicians shall protect patients regardless of nationality or race.2 This legislation, if unchallenged, will force health care providers to choose between the dignity of their profession and the indignity of violating the law.

Lucas Restrepo, M.D.
Barrow Neurological Institute
Phoenix, AZ

The 6 things between me and summer break

Last lecture of the year
HHD Pediatric cardiology lab
Mini-CPX exam
CV End Block Exam
Practice of Medicine Exam
Integrated Final Exam.

then: DONE WITH MY FIRST YEAR OF MEDICAL SCHOOL!!!!!! 1 year closer to caring for patients...

Quote of the Day

"To relentlessly force the tender wisdom, thoughtful reflection, and perceptive honesty of the human heart to conform to the ridiculously impossible, inhuman speed of the world, its effortlessly generated images and mind-driven technologies, is to do violence to our most precious, valuable treasure: the necessary guidance of the human heart. Without it, we may get more and more done, and push ever faster through the gauntlet of our to do list, but we may never, in the end, catch up to anything."