The integration of basic science with clinical medicine first caught my attention during preclinical physiopathology courses. It was however not until after a few months of clinical clerkship that I was able to fully appreciate the role of Internal Medicine as the backbone of medical sciences. I vividly remember how one of medical school mentors always told me that “an internist always investigates.” Internal medicine physicians rarely have the luxury of providing a quick cure for a relatively simple disease, but rather have the responsibility of managing diseases that affect a broad array of vital organs and systems. There are few other medical specialties, where one has the opportunity to be a leading member of a team of several physicians and support staff to treat the patient as a whole, both addressing the acute illness while at the same time managing multiple challenging chronic comorbidities. I still remember one of our patients who was admitted to the hospital because of complications of what was otherwise expected to be a routine appendectomy. She was a young woman who had subsequently developed several high output enterocutaneous fistulae after the surgery. While the surgical team had requested our help to manage the patient’s electrolyte imbalances, it was a thorough investigation of the patient’s medical history by our team that led to a gastroenterology consultation and eventual diagnosis of Crohn disease, which identified and helped us manage the root cause of the patient’s symptoms. Although I enjoyed all my clinical rotations, I have always found Internal Medicine to be the most rewarding and challenging. I truly believe that it is a great opportunity to be able to treat patients with a wide variety of complaints and ailments in a comprehensive
The integration of basic science with clinical medicine first caught my attention during preclinical physiopathology courses. It was however not until after a few months of clinical clerkship that I was able to fully appreciate the role of Internal Medicine as the backbone of medical sciences. I vividly remember how one of medical school mentors always told me that “an internist always investigates.” Internal medicine physicians rarely have the luxury of providing a quick cure for a relatively simple disease, but rather have the responsibility of managing diseases that affect a broad array of vital organs and systems. There are few other medical specialties, where one has the opportunity to be a leading member of a team of several physicians and support staff to treat the patient as a whole, both addressing the acute illness while at the same time managing multiple challenging chronic comorbidities. I still remember one of our patients who was admitted to the hospital because of complications of what was otherwise expected to be a routine appendectomy. She was a young woman who had subsequently developed several high output enterocutaneous fistulae after the surgery. While the surgical team had requested our help to manage the patient’s electrolyte imbalances, it was a thorough investigation of the patient’s medical history by our team that led to a gastroenterology consultation and eventual diagnosis of Crohn disease, which identified and helped us manage the root cause of the patient’s symptoms. Although I enjoyed all my clinical rotations, I have always found Internal Medicine to be the most rewarding and challenging. I truly believe that it is a great opportunity to be able to treat patients with a wide variety of complaints and ailments in a comprehensive