The Culmination of Months' Work

Last Sunday, December 1st, I approached Dr. Heather Bellanger, M.D. of Plano Women's Healthcare at Baylor Scott and White Plano to be my mentor, which would involve me shadowing her for at least an hour a week and gaining valuable feedback on my independent study. I am incredibly thrilled to say that she accepted my request and I cannot wait to begin my mentorship and shadowing experience under the tutelage of such a respected member of the OB/GYN community in North Texas. Dr. Bellanger was my first interviewee and I chose her to be my mentor as I admire her incredible work ethic and commitment to her patients, her punctuality, and her compassionate and respectful attitude towards everyone around her. In my interviewing experience and my cold calls, I've often found that potential interviewees will claim to call you back the next day, but never do. Although I completely understand how busy physicians are with their intense schedule, I feel as though it would be appreciated to at least receive a rejection for an interview rather than no response at all. However, Dr. Bellanger was incredibly considerate and made sure to punctually respond to my emails and calls, which was refreshing and greatly appreciated. Even at the interview, she let me interview her for two hours, which was four times as long as the interview was originally stated to run, and made time to accommodate me and her patients simultaneously. Additionally, as soon as I walked in the office, I felt very comfortable and safe. The nurses there were very welcoming and there was an overall friendly atmosphere of a mutual relationship between the physicians and the entire staff that I genuinely enjoyed. Dr. Bellanger was also wonderfully compassionate and kind and her dedication to her profession and her family was truly inspirational, which motivated me to request her for a mentorship. I am so elated that she accepted and I could not have asked anyone better to be my mentor. 

Along with my mentorship, I am progressing steadily in my Original Work. I have completed all of my necessary research and have started formatting the content that I have been working on for months into my final paper. This is the toughest part of the original work in my opinion because I have to transform all of my notes and my research into a polished draft and present it to be displayed. As I have not actually attended medical school and have not had the privilege to study medical terminology or concepts, nor have I practiced as an OB/GYN, I'm anxious that my research is flawed. Although I understand most of it, some of the medical concepts are insanely difficult to grasp and I worry that I may not be conceptually tying these concepts together correctly in my paper. To help me in this process however, I've contacted my former interviewees Dr. Barry Schwarz, M.D. and Dr. Evelina Alcalen, M.D. of the UT Southwestern Obstetrics and Gynecology Division for their expertise on incomprehensible topics in my research. I await a response for them as I continue to perfect my Original Work. Overall, I am incredibly proud of the work I have done in the ISM program and I truly feel like I have progressed as an individual. I hope to continue the hard work in the coming weeks and achieve something great that both my peers, my mentor, and I can be proud of!