Natalie Corrilo: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS CARING FOR THE UNDERSERVED

My humble beginnings are something I cherish greatly, because without them I wouldn't be the person I am today. Both my parents immigrated from Mexico and because of their illegal status, healthcare was never an option. Throughout my life my family has always relied on public hospitals, community health centers, and the emergency department.  Experiencing this type of adversity has made me aware of the immense demand for doctors who can provide quality healthcare to underprivileged communities. My white coat means that, as a current medical student and future doctor, I will care for the underserved patients who have been abandoned by our healthcare system; patients like my parents, my neighbors, my friends.

-Natalie Corrilo, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

Lauren Barrison: "My White Coat Means"

my white coat means a multifaceted view of health

My white coat means appreciating all of the aspects that contribute to my patients' health. As a double Hoya with a unique Georgetown degree in International Health, I have become one with the idea that health requires caring for the whole person. The diverse experiences that Georgetown has afforded me both locally and abroad over the past five years have shown me that the most important aspect of being a care provider is listening. My white coat means that I will dedicate myself to listening to my patients to understand how I can best support their emotional and physical well-being. 

-Lauren Barrison, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

Marilee Goad: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS EMPOWERING PATIENTS TO IMPROVE THEIR HEALTH AND THEIR COMMUNITIES

I feel uncomfortable in my white coat. Starched, stiff, and overlarge (with a proclivity for carrying traces of organisms I’d rather not find or spread), it engulfs me in an awkward embrace that signifies a history not only of care for the sick but also of men in coats declaring the antidote to another’s ailment with an authority that denies the patient’s agency. At the same time, it reminds me of my responsibility in donning the white coat, in representing a voice often unheard in medicine as a queer woman, and in advocating for communities similarly silenced. By acknowledging the complex relationship I have with my white coat, I agree to remember the grace and missteps inherent within its cloth, the discomfort and tinge of pride arising from accepting its mantle, and I promise to do my utmost to empower patients to help themselves and their communities, to fight for their rights, their voice, to render my role merely a tool in an arsenal aimed at improving their lives, as well as that of their communities and the world. 

-Marilee Goad, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

Allix Hillebrand: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS ADVOCATING FOR THOSE WITH NO VOICE

Most patients have no voice in the politics which will inevitably affect them the most. As a physician, I will be the voice for what my patients deserve. As a feminist, I will advocate for amazing women all over the world. As a human being, I will fight for what I believe is right.

-Allix Hillebrand, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

Serina Lewis: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS RESILIENCE

serina white coat final.jpg

My white coat represents resilience, and to be able to use my tenacity to be a healthcare advocate for my patients, particularly the underserved. My role as a future physician will involve a dependable partnership with my patients by working together to improve their health.  Through reliable communication, I will be better able to support my patients, and offer more personalized care. With expanding my knowledge each year, my perception of the white coat has strengthened my understanding on the importance of a meaningful interaction with patients that will shape their lives in some way. These different patient interactions, including those with others in the healthcare field, will contribute to the progression of quality health services. 

-Serina Lewis, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

Johan Clarke: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS REVOLUTION AND REPRESENTATION

Doctors have a long and terrible history of policing queer bodies through treatments and surgical procedures, discriminating against members of the LGBT community by denying gender identity or necessary care, and maintaining a hostile environment for both members of the medical team and the patient. It's telling that a lot of health care disparities in the LGBT community are a result of fear of going to the doctor and that one study claimed about 30% of non-heterosexual med students did not disclose their sexual or gender identity during their time in med school. I wear my white coat as an act of rebellion against a field that wants to deny and forget my existence, in the hope that I can help make the medical community a better place for my fellow members of the queer community. That being said, I recognize that I am still a white male presenting human and that is still an untrustworthy figure for many. I know that the white coat is a strong player in queer erasure and wearing it can be a step backward in my attempts. My white coat reminds me of what I look like, what I need to do to hopefully counteract that fear and erasure, and what I should do to make medicine less dangerous to people like me. 

-Johan Clarke, MD Candidate, Class of 2019

My White Coat Means: Second Year Students

The white coat is a polarizing symbol, both to those who see it and to those who wear it. For medical students, the short white coat is an object of identification and standardization. As a utility, it clearly demarcates our professional role within a healthcare team. But beyond its functional role as an identifier, the white coat adopts a deeper symbolic meaning unique, yet malleable, to its owner.

We asked second year medical students what their white coats means to them. Their responses speak to their motivations for entering medicine, their future aspirations, and life philosophies. Many of their reflections share themes: that medicine is a vocation, a special window into unfiltered humanity, and a position from which to effect change and help others.

As much as the white coat standardizes every person in these photos, they all remain individuals, each with a story to tell. For many, this story is a narrative in progress, as the meaning of their white coats ebbs and flows with their own medical journeys. We hope these photos and reflections lay bare those stories. 

Neha Rajpal: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS DOING ORDINARY THINGS EXTRAORDINARILY WELL

How does it feel to swim across a lake when you can barely see the other side?

Ask a medical student. She will tell you that every stroke is a deliberate one. Most of her actions, seemingly ordinary, will fade from her memory when she emerges from the water on the other side. What will remain is the greater feat of conquering the lake. Mastering each stroke along her journey, she strives to transform into someone worthy of her white coat.

-Neha Rajpal, MD Candidate, Class of 2020

Jaspreet Bahia: "My White Coat Means"

MY WHITE COAT MEANS A SYMBOL OF TRUST

My white coat is a symbol of trust. Every time I put on my white coat people not only look at me differently, but also treat me differently. It’s only been my first month of medical school and a patient has already disclosed intimate details about their life to me. A patient has already trusted me with things that they were not comfortable telling their closest friends and family members. What have I done to earn the trust that comes with wearing this white coat? I think I was given this coat because someone believed in me, someone believed that I can be trusted to show every patient I encounter empathy, compassion, and give each and every patient the care they deserve. Every time I put on my white coat it is a reminder of the trust I was given and it is a new opportunity to show I am worthy of this trust.

-Jaspreet Bahia, MD Candidate, Class of 2020