The Medfools IM Internal Medicine Sample Residency Personal Statement Library is now open!
These sample Internal Medicine residency personal statement examples for Internal Med are here for your viewing pleasure (fully anonymous). We’re hoping to add more in the future, including Pre-Med personal statements. If you’ve got one to add to the free library, don’t forget to contribute yours.
I vividly remember my first independent diagnosis as a medical student. An elderly man was with a drooping eyelid was reluctant to divulge his symptoms. To engage him in conversation, I started asking him about his grandson. Warming up, he began discussing his grandson at great length, which allowed me to segue into the subject of his complaints. He gestured towards his eyes and started telling about his frequent double vision. On examining the pupilary reflex and the range of motion of his eyes, I initially thought that the third cranial nerve was involved. However, upon further questioning, I found that the he had an excessive urge to drink, eat and urinate. I then concluded that he was suffering from diabetic mononeuropathy. Blood sugar tests confirmed my diagnosis and I was thrilled with my success. My next step was to educate him about diabetes, and the importance of dietary control. Tight sugar control led to an improvement in his conditions and he profusely expressed his gratefulness. As apparent from this case, a simple symptom may have several possible causes and a single root cause may manifest in a wide variety of ways. I welcome and enjoy the challenge of correlating theoretical knowledge with patient interaction to arrive at a diagnosis. The subsequent improvement in a patient’s condition makes the task even more fulfilling.
I continued to thrive on the patient-doctor relationship further, through a wide variety of clinical cases in subsequent years at medical school. This was most obvious in my internal medicine rotation where my patient contact was far greater than I had ever experienced. Over time, I became useful as a caregiver to my patients, performing simple procedures or comforting them in their critical moments. Their appreciation was warm and satisfying but above all their confidence in me was moving. This role of an internist and its consequent rewards hold the greatest appeal for me. Knowing that an internist is involved in most health issues in adults covering important subspecialties is also a very exciting aspect of internal medicine.
As a caregiver, I also realized the importance of patient education in long-term care. In medical school, I witnessed first hand, the lack of access to health facilities and education in rural patients. This led to my involvement in organizing and coordinating several health education and immunization camps for the rural Indian population. These taught people the importance of sanitation in combating common diseases, preventing vitamin deficiencies and usefulness of family planning. It was heart warming to see small changes making useful difference in the lives of the local people where resources were constrained.
In the US, my interest in internal medicine led to my involvement in several projects covering a diverse set of subspecialties. In the nephrology department at the VA, I am involved in a retrospective analysis of patient records to determine whether incidentally discovered renal cysts from radiographic studies become malignant or cause morbidity over time. Furthermore, in the gastroenterology department at VA hospital, I am participating in research designed to determine if a new, high resolution, laser microscope which is guided through an endoscope can differentiate pathologic from normal tissue. Through these projects, my interest in research has grown and I have become aware of the tremendous research potential in internal medicine. Collaborating with several professionals on these projects was satisfying and gave me a better insight into the American health care system and reinforced the importance of being a team player. To further my understanding of clinical care in the US, I have kept in touch with patients by volunteering at a couple of free clinics. Through these clinics I have served many patients from different cultures.
Balancing personal life with medical career is also a priority for me. My husband has been greatly supportive of my interest in medicine. We have traveled extensively and also share our common love for hiking. His profession allows him the flexibility to work from anywhere so geography will allow me maximum flexibility in my residency training.