We are so proud of Katie and Sarah, and wish them both the best!
The photos above are from the official White Coat ceremony. The blurb below is from FSU College of Medicene
Students Robyn Rachesky, Saritha Tirumalasetty and James Zorn were each helped into their coats by one of their parents, members of the College of Medicine’s clerkship faculty.
Watching and cheering this rite of passage were relatives and friends so numerous that they filled Ruby Diamond Concert Hall. Afterward, a sea of white coats and proud parents encircled the fountain in front of the Westcott Building for the ultimate family photo op.
Also honored at the ceremony were 12 members of the Class of 2012. Based on nominations from faculty, staff and fellow students, they were inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society and saluted for having the ideal blend of knowledge and compassion. Those students were Kate (Cleary) Alonso, Natasha Demehri, Laura Diamond, Aaron Hilton, Brett Howard, Demetrios Konstas, Brandon Mauldin, Diana Mauldin, Ricardo Sequeira, Michael Silverstein, Elise Switzer and Helen Travis.
Speaking to the first-year students, fourth-year student Demehri passed along hard-won wisdom from a time during clinical rotations when her private and professional lives collided. “I never thought that the first patient I would lose would be my friend,” she told them. It was a moving story. (Read it on Pages 30-31 of the summer issue of FSU MED magazine.)
Among her other messages to the new students were these: “You have little to lose, and everything to gain, by letting a sick person into your heart…. What is humanism in medicine? It’s simple: It’s a relationship between two human beings, one of whom – you – happens to be a doctor.”
The evening’s featured speaker was Dr. Paul McLeod, senior associate dean for regional campuses, and dean of the Pensacola campus. He urged the new students to be willing to laugh at themselves – then invited them to laugh at him by telling tales of his own rookie shortcomings.
On one occasion, he said, “I encountered a young lady in the emergency department with a complaint of a swollen jaw. Having just finished studying diseases of the oral cavity, I thrust myself into a barrage of questions intended to uncover her occult dental abscess or her salivary gland tumor…. I gave a comprehensive presentation to my supervising resident. Appearing totally unimpressed by my efforts, he accompanied me back to the patient’s room…. He flung open the door, glanced in her direction and asked one question: ‘Someone hit you, ma’am?’ ‘Yes.’”
He also told a poignant story about a patient who was much too sick much too early in life – and how he wrestled with the questions of “Why her?” and “What if…?” and “Why didn’t I do something sooner?” (For the surprise ending to that story, watch the White Coat Ceremony video, starting shortly after the 1:05 mark.)
College of Medicine Dean John Fogarty thanked all who attended for supporting their favorite students – and jokingly warned the families not to seek medical advice from them just yet. He also encouraged the students to wear their white coats with pride.
“This ceremony serves as a reminder that you are not just going to school – you are joining a profession,” he said. “Ceremonies provide opportunities to commit or recommit to the oaths, vows and traditions of our profession.”
He reminded the first-year students that they have eight semesters of medical school remaining. But they have one completed, and now they have their white coats. It’s been a big summer.
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