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Journeys in Medicine: An ECFMG Blog

Category: My Story

Author Journeys User4Posted on Categories Cross-cultural Experience, My StoryTags , , , 1 Comment on Morning Meditation: An Indian Exchange Visitor Physician Reflects on his J1 Experience

Morning Meditation: An Indian Exchange Visitor Physician Reflects on his J1 Experience

By Dr. Abdul Kareem Khan

A beautiful Floridian morning is peeping through my window, when sunlight seems to be at her cheerful best, before it resigns to the daily routine. It makes a glittering appearance every day, warming up the beaches and boats, for the rain and the famous Orlando lightning would be due by noon. The shades of weather shall favor me today, as I reflect on a delightful journey, celebrating a lovely concoction of flavors.

It is interesting how we change shoe sizes. The leap into a second year resident’s shoes has been remarkable. As a PGY-2 in internal medicine at Florida hospital Orlando, I must admit that the second year of residency has been the best of both worlds so far. The worlds I refer to are two amazing phases of learning medicine. The first part is the relentless responsibility to learn at every step, and the second is sharing the knowledge and learning through supervision. It is challenging, yet very enjoyable, to extend my abilities and further the skills learned in the first year, to apply and practice medicine with a new sense of maturity. Expectations are higher, and it is the time for me to be prepared for added responsibility. It is time to make decisions for the team, be the second in command after the attending physician, and guide, supervise and organize with the interns.

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Author Journeys User4Posted on Categories Cross-cultural Experience, From EVSP, My Story

Volunteering with Exchange Visitors at the 2018 NYC Marathon

By Katie Powell
Exchange Visitor Cultural and Educational Affairs Program Manager, ECFMG

It was a beautiful fall day, 55 degrees and sunny, in our nation’s “Big Apple.” The sound of spectators and volunteers cheering rose from the sidewalks as more than 50,000 runners persevered along the city streets. It was a perfect setting to introduce exchange visitor physicians to the New York City (NYC) Marathon, an American tradition 48 years strong. We were gathered for a day of volunteerism and cross-cultural sharing with the aim of fostering international understanding in line with the spirit and intent of the J-1 visa program we represent.

ECFMG serves as the sole sponsor for nearly 11,000 foreign national physicians participating in the U.S. Department of State’s Exchange Visitor (J-1 Visa) Program to train in U.S. programs of graduate medical education. Each year, the U.S. Department of State (DoS) reaches out to program sponsors to plan an exchange-visitor volunteering event at the NYC Marathon. The idea is to bring exchange visitors from all different sponsorship categories—of which there are scholars, trainees, physicians, and more—together for a cross-cultural activity. It also gives exchange visitors the opportunity to connect with each other and engage in an exciting volunteer event supporting marathon runners from around the world.

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Author Journeys User4Posted on Categories Cross-cultural Experience, My StoryTags , , ,

Facing Hurricane Harvey, Finding Community

By Dr. Hussein Hamad

I took a few minutes from my dayshift and ran into the nearest computer station. I calculated the time difference between the Eastern Time of the United States and Beirut for the tenth time. As I opened my email I had to make sure I was not misreading the words, “Congratulations, you have matched!” it said. Between the sigh of relief and the energetic mix of emotions, I could sense the smell of formaldehyde from the anatomy lab again and I could remember the late night study sessions, and it felt strangely more familiar than ever. Three months later, my paperwork and medical license have all been approved and it was time to say goodbye to the sunny days of Beirut and to welcome new beginnings in the windy city of Chicago.

Chicago offered nothing to dislike about it. The warmth of a very culturally diverse program and the amazing city scenes helped to ease the homesickness and the challenges of my internship year. The residency years in Chicago also witnessed me fulfilling my lifetime career goal to become a hematology and oncology physician, so before I could get used to the cold winters it was time for me to embark on another move to Houston for my fellowship.

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Author Journeys User4Posted on Categories Clinical Training Experience, From EVSP, My Story

How a Personal Experience Transformed My Professional Perspective

By Tracy Wallowicz
Director, ECFMG Exchange Visitor Sponsorship Program and Compliance

WELCOME
Welcome to Journeys in Medicine. ECFMG is thrilled to launch this new blog developed to profile the physicians, institutions, and experiences behind our Exchange Visitor Sponsorship Program (EVSP). With each post, Journeys in Medicine will highlight the accomplishments and contributions of a current or former exchange visitor participant and/or feature a host teaching hospital that is taking a unique approach to resident education resulting in an enhanced experience for exchange visitor (EV) physicians.

You may wonder why we are launching the blog and why we are doing so now. The answer to both questions is quite simple. We feel strongly that the contributions of current and former EV physicians to health care around the globe cannot be underestimated and should be shared. While in the United States, these doctors hone their skills and share their medical expertise while engaging in valuable cross cultural experiences and enriching their communities. Upon completion of U.S. training, many make significant impacts on health care in their home countries. We look forward to sharing their stories with you.

Below you find our inaugural blog entry. It marks the first time that I am sharing the very personal story of my unexpected and profound interactions with two exchange visitor (EV) physicians.

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