Episodic Care Experience

Sir William Osler famously said, “It is much more important to know what sort of patient has a disease than what sort of disease a patient has’’. This quote readily brings to my mind the importance of individualized patient care rather than the episodic care of a presenting complaint. As a child, I found myself frequently in the hospital due to fever but I clearly recall the compassionate care I received from our family doctor each time I visited the hospital. He had such a strong bond with my family because he knew us not just by names and diagnoses in a chart, but also as a people who fit into their family structure and community. Even though I was little, I drew great inspiration from his comments and professional attributes and was determined …show more content…
The sheer need in this setting was overwhelming and the challenges were enormously complex, but I remained resolute in my commitment to impacting people’s life and making a difference.Considering the fact that I completed my internship training in a teaching hospital setting where I had the luxury of accessing all the healthcare resources that I needed to provide quality care to patients, I knew I had to be at my creative best to effect a change in this new terrain. As the only physician within a 40-mile radius, I reorganized and resuscitated the operations of two community health centers and mobilized the residents to utilize the facilities. In less than two months, I was already busy seeing patients, writing treatment protocols for common medical conditions, counseling and teaching classes. Still, I found myself thriving in the midst of this chaos because it elicited imagination, insight into people’s needs and beliefs, patience and a whole lot of compassion. The importance of being a family physician was firmly established in my mind because I had to be the internist, gynecologist, obstetrician, neonatologist, pediatrician and surgeon all rolled into one. From this experience, I developed my tapestry of poverty medicine and working with the underserved population became more meaningful and …show more content…
From my ongoing clinical externship experience at Conejo Valley Family Medical Group, I have developed proficiency in navigating medical interviews, formulating and negotiating care plans, and documenting patient care. Practically speaking, I have gained tremendous experiential learning on management protocols of common ambulatory cases, use of electronic health records, Patient-Oriented Evidence that Matters (POEM), and other practice-based improvement strategies. Also, I am constantly seeking out further medical education and my mind thrives on the intricacies and nuances of evidence-based