Hi everyone,

In 15 minutes i will be starting my Organic Chemistry class. It has been pretty hectic these last few days. I go to bed at 12 and wake up at 7:30 to go to class at 8:00

My classes:

1)Cell Biology

2)Organic Chemistry

3)Peak Performance: in this course we learn time management skills, study skills, and we also learn about what might affect us academically ( stereotypes, lack of confidence, etc.) and how to face them

4)Mathematics

5)Health Care and Disparities: throughout this course we will learn about health care disparities in America. We will analyze the reasons explaining why there are so few minorities in the medical field, the differences between health care in the states and in other countries, and a lot of other very interesting issues (i'll try to post a list)

6)Standardized Patient Interviewing & Beta Interviewing: we will learn throughout this course, how to interact with patients. An actor will play the role of a patient with a specific personality (shy, extroverted, etc) and we, the scholars, will have to learn how to determine what the story of the patient is.
The Beta interviews are mock interviews with faculty members to prepare are interview once we have been selected as interviewees by a Medical School.

7)Ethics and the patient Doctor relationship (starts today so the explanation will be for the next post)

8)Writing in Medical Education: we prepare our personal statement and do various other writing activities

9)I also shadow at the Hospital every Thursday (somewhere different every Thursday):
on June 19th I will be shadowing in Labor and delivery
26th : (MICU) Medical Intensive Care Unit
3 Jul: (NICU) Neo Natal Intensive Care Unit
10 Jul: Pediatrics ER
17 Jul: CCU Cardiac intensive Care Unit

Day 3 at Duke University...

I know that it's a little bit awkward that i start by day three but the this week end as been action packed.

Since leaving Cornell I have been in Richmond Virginia (beautiful town!!!!!!). Sadly I decided to go to Richmond at the last minute (two days before leaving Cornell) thus I couldn't write the coordinators of SMDEP to ask them to change my travel plans (I think it would be really inappropriate to suddenly change my travel plans after everything had been settled). Initially I was suppose to leave from JFK but I was in Virginia... The solution was relatively simple: Friday June 6 I left Richmond at 10 pm on a Greyhound bus, arrived in New York Saturday morning at 5 am; then took the subway from Port Authority (E Train), got off at Stuphin Boulevard in Long Island, took the Air train and finally ended up in JFK at 7 am (very tiring!!!).

My flight was suppose to be at 9 am but I had to wait one hour before being able to leave JFK (waiting for a delayed flight is really annoying). After a one hour and 20 minute flight I arrived in Durham.... SO the adventure begins...

Thankfully once I arrived at the airport I was lucky enough to meet up with 3 Cornellians (they left from La Guardia). At 12:30, 4 Cornellians (2 BSPers!!!) 1 Student from Harvard, 1 from Stony Brook, and finally 1 from Fordham leave the Durham airport on bus heading to Duke University.

The Duke campus is amazing (but Cornell is of course the best ;) . The campus is relatively big (I still have a lot of exploring to do ) there are a lot of Victorian style buildings on the campus, and very beautiful facilities.

Once we arrive on campus we receive our room keys, our books, and the plan of the day...

Sadly it's 11 o clock right now and I have to go to bed ( I have to wake up at 6:30 !! tomorrow). What courses am I taking? What activities have we done so far? Are there other Cornellians on campus? Is the SMDEP at Duke University as great as the rumors say it is???????????

Stay tune... I'll be back ;)