My Own Health

It was a long week, and I had a lot of personal things going on which meant I could not make it to San Jose this week. It's a long story, interesting yet irrelevant to this blog. However, I definitely plan on volunteering this coming week.

My time at San Jose has been really eye-opening, and I'm truly glad that I had the opportunity to volunteer there this semester. What began as a service learning assignment for Medical Microbiology turned into an enjoyable and highly informative real-life experience in a different aspect of the medical field.

No matter what emotional things happen in my life, it all seems so trivial to the realities of low-income health care. I feel lucky to have been given so much in my life, and I do not plan on taking it for granted. If anything, I am lucky to have health insurance and not be burdened by the possibilities of outrageous health care bills should an emergency occur.

Comparing my parents' plastic surgery clinic to something like San Jose, the two are drastically different in the way they are run, and each has their own unique good and bad aspects. My mother recently talked to me about our business, and the economy has hit it hard. People just do not have the income anymore to have as much voluntary plastic surgery. An underserved clinic like San Jose, however, is always in need because they provide primary care necessary for maintaining basic health.

Easter break is almost here, and I will have more time not only to volunteer but also contemplate on a lot of things about San Jose, medicine, and life in general.