Student Stories is a collaboration between The Merck Manuals and real medical and nursing students. Our team of bloggers offers insights, tips, and a glimpse into what it’s like to experience medical school today. Meet our current contributors below. If you are a current pre-med, nursing student, or a first, second, or third-year medical student and are interested in becoming one of our bloggers, please visit our Blog For Us page to learn more.
Avani
Avani discovered in the past four years of medical school that she is more than just a future physician. She has found passions in other areas of medicine such as policy, advocacy, and healthcare administration. Therefore, she is taking an interim year to pursue these passions which she will share throughout her blog posts before pursuing residency. She also enjoys traveling, advocating for patients and students, and serving as a leader locally and nationally. She has lived in Mississippi her entire life, and it has taught her true community. Avani serves on Board of Trustees for Mississippi State Medical Association, Executive Council for Central Medical Society, and the Ambassador Steering Committee for American Medical Association in addition to serving as the 2017-18 Southern Chair of the Organization of Student Representatives affiliated with the Association of American Medical Colleges. Outside of school, she enjoys nurturing friendships, spending time with family, meeting new people, public speaking, organizing events, and writing. A few other noteworthy passions of hers are adventure, cars, beauty, and fashion.
129 Articles
Ashleigh
Originally from South Carolina, Ashleigh is a third-year international medical student. She graduated from Clemson University with a degree in Spanish and International Health, with an emphasis in health administration. Before graduation, she had the opportunity to spend a semester abroad in Costa Rica, where she became fluent in Spanish. Ashleigh is getting ready to start her clinical rotations in Atlanta, Georgia. In her spare time, she is a pet sitter and dog walker. She also loves traveling (domestically and internationally), reading murder mystery books, and experimenting with new recipes.
90 Articles
Kimia
Kimia Etemadi is going to be entering her fourth year in medical school as a DO/MPH dual degree student. She is passionate about women’s health and helping underserved communities. She hopes that her posts will help answer any questions about the medical school journey and inspire those that are working towards becoming future health care providers. During her downtime, Kimia enjoys going on hikes, cooking new recipes, and spending time with her family.
72 Articles
Rathisha
Rathisha is a second-year medical student at KYCOM. She completed dual undergraduate degrees at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Biology. Rathisha joined City Year Columbus, an AmeriCorps program, to help mentor and tutor inner-city kids in Columbus, Ohio. She is a huge planner enthusiast, loves all things self-care, and enjoys blogging on her website! Check out her blog at www.MedMeansMore.com.
31 Articles
Alex
Alex is a third-year medical student at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, not far from her home in Chicago. She is currently completing her clinical rotations. Her interest in medicine largely stems from her volunteer work in free clinics in underserved communities and experiences growing up with a brother with autism. Before attending medical school, Alex completed her undergraduate degree at Northwestern University in 2014 and her Master of Public Health (concentration in Chronic Disease Epidemiology) at Yale University in 2016. She is an aspiring pediatrician who wishes to be highly involved in the community, as a patient advocate and potential community clinic leader. Outside of school, Alex loves fitness, music, spending time with friends/family, and expressing herself through art, makeup, and fashion.
28 Articles
Adil
Adil Menon is a student at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine. Before medical school, he received his Master of Bioethics degree from Harvard Medical School. His written work includes Joseph Goldberger: Epidemiology’s Unsung Hero and Is There a United Hippocratic School? in Hektoen International, a book review of The American Healthcare Paradox in HMS Bioethics Journal, and Geographic Disparities in Reported US Amyloidosis Mortality From 1979 to 2015 Potential Underdetection of Cardiac Amyloidosis in JAMA Cardiology. For fun he enjoys dragon boat racing, listening to podcasts and reading, especially science fiction and fantasy.
27 Articles
Max
Max is a third-year medical student at the University of Nebraska Medical Center with an interest in Psychiatry. He received his Bachelors in Biology at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and he plans to practice in his home state after graduation. He is married to Hannah Lydiatt and has three very spoiled cats, Jixie, Yule, and Daphne.
24 Articles
Manasi
Manasi is a first-year medical student at McMaster University and received a Bachelor of Health Sciences (Honors), with a specialization in Global Health. Manasi has held numerous leadership positions such as the Student Director for the Canadian Public Health Association and is the co-chair for the Medical Genetics Interest Group. She was a panelist on a World Leadership Dialogue at the World Congress on Public Health last year, which was focused on highlighting her work with engaging students and young professionals in public health in Canada. She was also selected to attend the Women Leaders in Global Health conference at Stanford University and has presented her research at the World Congress on Public Health, the American Public Health Association’s Annual Conference (2017) and Public Health 2017 and 2019. She is also a volunteer with Let’s Talk Science which organizes science presentations for children aged 5 – 18 years old. Her interests include genetics, improving access to healthcare and health systems and policy evaluation. In her free time, she enjoys hiking and exploring new bike trails.
19 Articles
Christopher
Christopher is a 28-year-old, second-year Physician Assistant student at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia. He completed his Biomedical Science and Public Health degree at the University of South Florida in 2016.
15 Articles
Jenna
My name is Jenna and I am currently in my first year of school to complete my Doctorate of Nursing Practice degree at the University of South Florida. I’m from Florida and am now living in Virginia working as a travel nurse on a cardiac floor. I have been a nurse for three years and have learned so much through all of my work experiences and I cannot wait to learn more! I would love to ultimately become a dermatology NP and work as a university professor.
14 Articles
Luke
My name is Luke, and I’ve lived in Denver the majority of my life. I received my undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Colorado – Denver. Before medical school, I worked as an EMT on ambulances and in hospital emergency rooms. Throughout medical school, I have been involved in many extracurricular activities, such as serving as the president of our school’s pediatrics club, treasurer of our rotary club, biomedical research at the VA medical center, and volunteered at a local PICU. My goal is to one day become a pediatrician. Outside of medicine, I enjoy playing basketball, snowboarding, and spending time with my family.
2 Articles
Aaron
Aaron grew up in San Antonio, Texas, where he directly experienced the benefit of multiculturalism. The product of a mixed-race family, Aaron has always been fascinated by the different cultures and customs of the world. His interest in medicine stems from his interest in people, and he plans to pursue a residency in ophthalmology. Aaron blogs about topics in diversity in healthcare, emerging tech, and studying effectively. His interests outside of medicine include coding mobile applications, antique watch repair, traveling, and spending time with his wife, daughter, and puppy.
1 Article
