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- TBSM Humanities
- Jan 9, 2022
Unconventional, unknown, unrelenting. Medical school during a pandemic left students to balance the unorthodox dilemma of focusing on their medical education so they can one day use their knowledge to help others, while also staying away from the social and clinical interactions that are so crucial to the training of a physician. Students volunteering with Tampa Bay Street Medicine, a free clinic focusing on healthcare for those experiencing homelessness in the Tampa Bay Area, took care of those in need during this unprecedented time once it was deemed safe. The pandemic has burdened medical students both physically and emotionally, but due to the ceaseless pace of medical education, many students unfortunately have not had the opportunity to begin to process what they have gone through as medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Through narrative medicine, the Tampa Bay Street Medicine Humanities Coordinators aimed to give students dedicated time to reflect both on how their experiences as medical students during a pandemic and as volunteers with those experiencing homelessness have impacted them. Students were presented with three images and given five minutes to freely write about how these images impacted them.
The first was a quote from T.H. White:
“The best thing for being sad… is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.”
Students reflected on how they have learned from difficult times, and how they have utilized learning and education to get them through hard moments. Students stated that focusing on learning has “power[ed] me through rough patches and motivated me to grow and become stronger.” Another student discussed finding the lesson in the hardships, stating that “trying to bring some logic into the sadness helps me cope.” Other students discussed utilizing studying to productively distract themselves from loss and sadness, finding “comfort in learning so that I can better help my future patients.” One student stated there is learning to be found in sadness, as showcased by the pandemic. The student said that they can “reflect and see how much we learned, even if we didn't know it was happening at the time.” One student described learning as an anchor, grounding them during the difficult times in their lives. However, other students reflected on the privilege of learning, and how others do not have this luxury. The student wondered “who has access to learning and all of the positives learning can do for someone. Not only who has access to learning, but who has access to dreams and choices and time that are interrelated with the privilege of learning." A third-year student discussed that, despite how difficult medical school can be, there was always something to be learned from each experience. They wrote about how TBSM has shown them that there are “many social determinants of health and medical health cannot be fully achieved without food security, stable shelter, etc.” The student discussed how frustrating it could be to be unable to provide everything the patients need. In this case, the student tried to “channel the energy into what I have learned from the community and how we can work towards the goals of providing more holistic care.”
The second was a drawing of a healthcare worker in full personal protective equipment, standing within dark gray clouds, staring into bright light:
This picture resonated with many students. It took one student back to the start of the pandemic, when they “wondere[ed] if life will ever be back to normal and what [the] virus means to me and my family and friends.” One student stated that it showcased “the uncertainty and challenges that have been present throughout my start to medical school.” Another student said they thought this image represented the “hope of vaccines”. Many students believed that the picture represented finding the ‘light’ in the dark times. A third-year medical student discussed the stories of resilience of healthcare providers, and believed that there is a “difficult balance between community and isolation [with] community from the shared provider experience and relying on the team unit over the past year… but contrasted against isolation within families as the only healthcare provider.” The student was discussing a feeling of solidarity with other healthcare providers during the pandemic, and how that drastically contrasted with the feeling of being the only provider in the family and the risk of bringing the virus to those they love. Many students described the healthcare provider as fearless and selfless, “fearlessly entering a dark abyss- but there is light within.” A student stated that they “know that trouble is ahead but [want] to do anything and everything possible to dive in and make as best an impact as one can.”
The third picture showcased a photograph of a man experiencing homelessness giving a peace sign, lying down with his possessions near graffiti of the inside of a house:
As volunteers with those experiencing homelessness, many TBSM student volunteers found this picture particularly engaging. Students reflected on their time working with Tampa Bay Street Medicine, stating that “the best lesson to learn from it all is that we must always try to be understanding, empathetic, and put ourselves in other people's shoes, especially in terms of our future patients.” Students wrote about their own experiences volunteering with this population, stating that the way the man set up his belongings like a home reminded them of how many of the patients they had met did the same. They said that the “opportunity to talk to these patients has made me so appreciative of what I have and what I can do for them…I am so excited to wake up everyday and learn more about how I can help those in need, and I think about how TBSM has given me an outlet to do just that.” Students focused on the fact that the man was making a peace sign and how it represented the resilience of those stating that “he may have the least, but still makes the most of every day. I think it is a beautiful thing to see that often our homeless patients are some of the most cheerful patients I have ever met.” Many students believed that this picture tells how life is all about perspective, and how life really is “ how you look at it.”
The students’ anonymous reflections showcased the diversity of emotions and the unique experiences that these student volunteers had been going through. Many students focused on the feeling of gratitude, stating that they “make me think about how grateful I am to be learning medicine during such an uncertain time in our country. There is nothing more valuable than helping people when they feel most vulnerable.” Another student said that they were able to care and make a difference in someone's life by being non-judgmental.
Other students focused on the feeling of powerlessness. One student stated that being a medical student during the pandemic “made me feel dissociated and absent from reality. I have learned so much about how the body works, but I have not stepped inside the hospital or helped a single person. It almost feels selfish to see doctors, nurses, and healthcare providers working so hard everyday, while I plug away at the spacebar doing anki.” Others chose to reflect on their experiences with TBSM, stating that they “are able to actually help others with our own actions immediately [without] having to wait to make a change.” To this student, TBSM helped them “see the light at the end of the tunnel and our purpose for being here." Another stated that although witnessing others’ suffering can lead to “feeling depleted and disappointed in the state of our world.” However, the student reflects that it is “what we chose to do with the sadness and disappointment that we feel is very important.” The student discussed how they can make a difference through TBSM, being “ a light in the darkness of illness and social injustice. By choosing to confront these things…we stand a chance of changing them.”
By providing students with the time and space to reflect on their experiences as medical student volunteers during the pandemic, the TBSM humanities team hopes to help students begin to process the incredibly unconventional year they have had. Even though the pressures of medical school continue, the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on each student. It is essential to the students’ physical and mental health to take the time to understand what they have been through and how it has impacted them. By doing so, students can not only process and discover how these experiences will help them in future difficult times, but also utilize these lessons to help others cope and persevere through their own difficult times.
