“The more you acquire knowledge, the more you realize that you know little”, this phrase I heard from one of my pastors of my church on a Sunday morning made me reflect to something. And this has been somehow true in all aspects of our lives. That we think we know everything but we barely scratched the surface of what is reality.

These experiences that we hurdle in this present world full of unsure and temporary things are so much little that we cannot boast for. But despite these failures and wrong doings we do in our lives, somehow we learn from them. Life has never been designed to be perfect that you just live with it so easily, but at least you must know the purpose why you live and who are you living for.

If I could mention a lesson I learned in my experience being a student of medicine, it is that being knowledgeable to a particular area of your interest will never give true fulfillment if not being shared or applied to anyone. And what makes it more interesting for me now is the idea of how am going to share and influence others more with the wonderful life lessons and teachings I get in med school aside from the myriad concepts from books I learn. For real, there are so much life lessons I learned in my experience that I can share you not just in the area of the profession I am journeying.

Medicine is a very serious course that not everyone has interest to and not everyone has given opportunities to pursue, for some reasons it is financially draining and another it is emotionally distressing. Not every medical student has the audacity to express their thoughts on how much struggle they go through because as much as possible they really wanted to maintain a figure that behind those white clothes they wear is a firm, prim, proper and responsible person. So you have no option but to be strong and be an example to be a person they seek medical advice in the future.  

Meanwhile, in as much as we wanted to gain information and experience, we read all possible materials for the next lecture or exam no matter how seems impossible may be. But anyways, we are but just simple people, we get too tired, suffocated with hifalutin medical terminologies and there are also those times we are mentally altered –because admit it we are not perfect and we meet the limitations of our minds can do.

As a second year student, I am now in the process called adapting in a situation where you need to be more emotionally prepared rather than being intellectually ready. Preceptorials in the hospital and one on one interview with people are more often than my first year. I must admit speaking with people has been my weakness but slowly I am learning and enjoying it. Community and Family Medicine is one of the subjects that my medical program is offering and I am learning so much.

I am now understanding how the community functions and what made me write this very honest realization is that I had first-hand experience to what is happening in a community.

Paratong is just one of the many barangays of Paoay, Ilocos Norte that we are assigned to. Last year, we had an extensive health assessment and we came out with a result that hypertension along with diabetes are among the top threats of the barangay.

These diseases are very common in class discussions, but amidst the etiologies, the nature, how-to-diagnose, treatments and drugs is that how are we going to apply these concepts of books in real life? If you think of the pages of reading materials and effort just to understand, you will be amazed because it is a different story when you witness it in front of a patient.

As a realization I have shared it in my fb timeline my awe in my very first ever experience of reading a 150/100 blood pressure in a very normal looking person was never as accurately described the feeling when I was reading my book.  

Another is my experience of reminding to elderly to seek for their doctors ASAP because they are hypertensive but as if it was not serious after all.  

Another would be a lola who thought she has hypertension and having a maintenance but only to find out it is just Vitamin B complex supplement and paracetamol.

Another would be when we go interview people think we distribute vitamins and hypertension maintenance.

Another would be people think we administer dengvaxia or some sort of vaccine.

Another would be people asking for the right way of taking drugs.

Another would be my experience of being rejected to interviews for they thought it was just a waste of time.

Another would be people asking you if it is just ok to take herbal medicines.

These are just few of the many situations I personally encountered in the community. It is a very big responsibility that we are facing now because we are not in a situation wherein we need not be serious. We are to address the problem and at the same time we need to learn.

Here are some of the pictures I had chance to capture :)

                                           me  interviewing a hypertensive and diabetic patient 













In classrooms we are taught about people's different lifestyle, culture, how they behave, how to address health issues and many more. But the community taught me dedication, compassion, understanding and love to neighbor that never you will learn in a classroom.

With these I am doing now, no matter how difficult may be, it is always by the grace of God and all glory belong to Him.


this Monday will be my first day of second semester of my second year and we'll be having an examination on Surgery, this is just how dedicated our mentors are and we should be as dedicated as them as well. God Bless everyone :)

-lesterrific [12/07/18]