Submitting in a couple days ANY LAST CRITIQUES???

[PG2174]

The elderly woman spoke softly, but her voice carried a tone of excitement as she told me how her husband should be returning from his deployment in Germany any day now.  She eagerly told me of his many harrowing acts of bravery as a fighter pilot, and how she impatiently anticipated his letters, although they were few and far between.  Her voice wavered as she expressed her concern that he may never make it home, and so many before him had not.  She touched my hand so gently that I barely felt her hand on mine, and asked me with a concerned voice when I would be returning from combat with her husband.  At this time I realized that she had placed me in combat beside her courageous husband.  Her mind had brought her to the conclusion that as I was young man about her husband’s age, that I too must be a soldier. In her eyes, I had fought right alongside him; we were buddies, both fulfilling our duties as soldiers, while praying each night that we would make it home alive.  I chose my words carefully, as not to upset her, or disrupt her reality. I spoke to her as if it was 1944, as if I had fought beside her husband. I told her I was sure that he would make it home safely, just as I had.   She smiled at me, her face shone with re-assurement that she would be reunited with her beloved.   At first I felt guilty for indulging her fantasy, for lying to this woman about who I really was.  Should I have told her that I was just a volunteer, and that I had not fought beside her husband? Should I have given her such false hope? I later learned from an aide in the nursing home that she had advanced stage Alzheimer’s disease, and her short-term memory had been absent for quite some time.   The next day I returned to the nursing home, and sat by the same woman. She re-told me the stories of her husband’s daring feats as a fighter pilot, and once again she asked me if he would be returning home safely as I had.  I confidently told her, that he would indeed be returning to her soon.

The brief time that I had with this woman was perhaps the most rewarding time of my life, and this experience fostered my already present desire to better the lives of anyone I could. I was grateful to receive an opportunity to shadow a physical therapist, and while I thoroughly enjoyed my time shadowing, and the opportunity to interact with patients, I realized that the physical therapist profession was not for me. I desired a career with more patient interaction, as well as a greater focus on the initial treatment of that patient rather than the rehabilitative services that a physical therapist provided.

My desire to become a Physician Assistant was cultivated in quite a unique way.  I was visiting my doctor’s office to received my college immunizations and I was seen a by PA. She inquired about my future education, and I told her that I had a strong desire to work in medicine, but I did not know what exactly. She enthusiastically told me about the career of a physician assistant. I instantly became interested. What really appealed to me was the amount of direct patient contacts the career offered, as well as plasticity. The PA profession offered a chance to practice in many different disciplines of medicine throughout one’s career.

 After I graduated with my associate’s degree, I decided to continue education and pursue a bachelors degree it biology. At this point in my college career I had firmly decided that the physician assistant profession was the right career choice for me in biology. While working towards my bachelor’s degree I was employed as a residence counselor for the Upstate Cerebral Palsy organization.

 

 

Since the encounter with the elderly woman, I had desired to somehow make impact in other’s lives, no matter how small that impact may be. This position allowed me to do just that. My position in this organization was to assist clients, (young men who had a diagnosed development disability), in regaining their independence, with the ultimate goal of enabling their reintegration into society. Every day working for this organization brings me the same joy as the few moments that I spent with the elderly woman. To be able to help these hardworking young men reach their goals and prosper brought me the utmost satisfaction, and it was the experience that I receive working for this organization continually reaffirms my desire to work in a field that would allow me to have these type of intimate contact with the patients that I would encounter, and improve their lives in any way possible.