An older doctor dressed in blue scrubs quickly paces down the white, sterile hallway. Following closely behind him, the Jesuit student meticulously writes down into his notebook, noting all of the doctor’s actions. They enter into the surgical operations room. The doctor washes his hands before entering the room. Quietly watching just a few feet away, the Jesuit student looks as the surgeon picks up the scalpel and begins the surgery.
The beginning of the year is a hectic time for the Medical Society as it begins to gear up for the new projects it will undertake. One thing especially notable in Medical Society is that it molds its activities around each individual student. Unlike most clubs, the Medical Society specifically chooses certain assignments and tasks for students based on their varying levels of experience and their age. The fall is always an extremely busy time as the club begins to assign different tasks to each group of students.
One of the younger groups, some of the sophomores, begin their Medical Society journey this week. To kick off their year, they begin with the eye structure function lab. The students are learning how the eye works and creating a simulated eye to understand its function. Conner Thomas ’18 told the Roundup, “The Structure Function course is a lot of fun. Not only do we learn about parts of the body, but we also dissect them every other week. I love the hands-on aspect of it all.” This lab is always a huge hit among the sophomores, as it is a fun way to begin learning about the eye before they move on to dissecting them.
Another group beginning to suit up for the new school year is the prominent group of juniors in the Medical Society. Some of the juniors gain the wonderfully insightful opportunity to be a part of the clinical rotations as they begin later this fall. Clinical rotations began as a part of the Medical Society over 10 years ago and are now one of the cornerstones of the club. The rotations are designed to give juniors experience in the medical field, so they can explore if it may be a field they would like to enter as an adult. Although students have not yet learned if they are able to take part in the rotations, Aaron Olivo ’17 remarked that “I am very hopeful that I will be able to take part in the opportunity. They are always acknowledged as one of the best and coolest things you can do!”
While many of the activities gearing up are recurring from past years, the Medical Society is also beginning many new assignments this year. Some of the new things coming up this year include the integration with the Community Service Department for Senior Wednesday service opportunities, a new Health Issues day, and a Microbiology infectious diseases lab class.
The new integration with the Community service Program to coordinate the Wednesday senior service at area hospitals is especially groundbreaking. This year we have about 25 seniors in the medical society serving at many hospitals: Children’s, Baylor, Methodist, Scottish Rite and the Agape Clinic (a low cost health care clinic near downtown). These opportunities are amazing ways to get a more in depth look at the medical field, while being able to give back to the community. Andrew Arraj ’15 commented that “I [have] enjoyed and [I am] looking forward to working more with Children’s Hospital because it allows me to view medicine from a different light while putting the lessons of service I have learned into action.”
This year is gearing up to be another successful one for the Medical Society. Medical Society veteran Will Aberger ’17 told the Roundup, “I am so excited for this year, we have so much going on, it is so cool to be a part of the work that we are doing.” His words of excitement were echoed by almost all members of the Medical Society. There is no doubt, this year is getting ready to be a great one.
Remember, its not too late to get into Medical Society this year so if you are interested make sure to contact Mr. Von Schlehenried soon!
