The Boards

It’s hard to imagine that we will be starting our rotations in the hospital in May. The time that we’ve spent in the classroom and in the library studying has made it seem like ages since we started our medical education, when in reality, it’s only been a year and a half. There’s so much that still needs to be learned, but when I reflect back on where I was in August of 2008, I’m amazed at where I am now, and a little terrified of where I need to be before I start on the wards. The ominous first step of the medical licensing boards is fast approaching: something that is constantly on my mind, and on the minds of many of my classmates.

Someone once told me that studying for the boards is the best/worst thing you’ll never want to do again. That sounds pretty accurate. Though I’m not looking forward to the “intense 6 week study period” that we have, I’m excited for the outcome. This is a period of time when second years synthesize all of the information we’ve learned so far into something that’s usable. It’s our time to organize the vast amount of knowledge we’ve learned (and forgotten already), and package it into a usable form. The thought of being able to think of a McDonald’s #1 and the number of things a 2nd year student could tell you about what happens to that as it passes through our body astounds me. It’s incredible that after only a year and a half, most 2nd year students can tell you the gross anatomical route the food will take down our body, the innervations, blood supply and musculature of those structures how it’s absorbed and digested, what enzymes and chemical mediators are involved, and the different interactions between organ systems from a gross to a cellular to an enzymatic (sometimes even genetic) level. The more I learn, the more I want to know (though it always seems like there’s too much to know before a test). The more I learn, the more I realize I still have to learn. It all seems so daunting, but it’s both inspirational and comforting to know, that practicing physicians have all gone through a period of time like this in the past and have made it through.

4 months of crazy studying, and then the wards—the part of medical school that I’ve been looking forward to the most.

The interesting thing that I’ve heard from many people in medicine, during different times in their careers is that you’re always looking forward to the next step. 1st and 2nd year med students look forward to their 3rd and 4th years when they’ll be rotating, 3rd and 4th years look forward to residency when they’ll have more responsibility, and residents look forward to finally finishing their training and becoming an independent doctor. It’s sometimes hard to enjoy the moment, but I think it’s important to always remember how fortunate we are to be going into such a wonderful career. Each struggle / obstacle along the way is just one more step in the right direction.


-Ed Cheung