PanaceaMedical College of Georgia Student Magazine | Georgia Regents University | Fall 2014

Top Row Picture: Students participate in the 3rd Annual Beard Auction. Audience members were able to “buy”beards and shave them any way they wanted. Even our beloved heme/onc professor Dr. Dainer got in on theaction! Proceeds went to ZERO, a nonprofit organization with the mission to end prostate cancer.Middle and Bottom Row Pictures: Students entertained a full house at our annual MCG Talent Show, provingthat medical students are more than just brains!

A Note from the EditorOn behalf of the Panacea staff, I am pleased to present theFall 2014 issue of our student-­‐run magazine. I hope that thisPanacea offers a glimpse into the wonderful student life atMCG. Here are a few of the tenets of student living thatwe’ve chosen to highlight in this issue:

Adapting to Change

Adaptability is forged by combining creativity and patience.We have encountered many exciting changes recently,including ultrasound lab curriculum, a brand new building, aweekly quiz schedule, academic houses, more diningoptions, a remodeled gym, regional campuses, a student ITrepresentative position, and expanded problem-­‐basedlearning, just to name a few. Let’s embrace the realizationthat in today’s society, growth is the new norm. AcademicHouses are an addition to the MCG community that haveadded a dimension of familiarity and comfort to medicalschool life. In my beloved House 5’s infancy, we haveenjoyed dinner on the town and in the beautiful homes ofour professors. In this Panacea, Liz Cappello tells us moreabout academic houses and their happenings. Also in thisPanacea are articles by our fellow students on clinicalrotation at our regional campuses throughout the state ofGeorgia. From Step exams to residency and from marriagesto having babies, medical students live on the brink ofadventure and change.

Engaging Our Community through Service

Service is second nature to healthcare professionals. Myclassmates are constantly sharing volunteer opportunities atthe student-­‐run free clinics downtown and on campus, thefarmer’s market, as part of school electives, festivals, foodand clothing drives, and more. To me, volunteering at a freeclinic is the epitome of service learning— I invariably get outmore than I put in, in getting to learn and practice clinicalskills in action while helping provide needed care. This year,we started tracking our service hours using NobleHour (ourschool dashboard says we have logged 2219 hours so far,which is an underestimate due to logging and approval lags).Quantifying the impact that our students make with theirservice should help everyone feel like their contributionmatters and is felt in the community— and encourage futureMCG classes to meet the challenge of surpassing us inservice hours! In this issue of Panacea, I am delighted tooffer stories by a few servant leaders among my classmates.

Rooting Ourselves in a Tradition of Research

This summer, walking from the hospital to the StoneyBuilding (home of outpatient psychiatry and my borrowedcubicle in the PGY office) could prove to anyone that thecampus was bustling with medical students conductingsummer research. The large and increasing involvement inresearch is certainly a respectable tradition that I expect willendure in future students. At the 2014 Annual MedicalScholars Research Day, an incredible 135 posters werepresented, each accompanied by a student and mentorrightfully excited about their work. The variety of topicsresearched is too numerous to list, and included clinicalapplications across the board of medical specialties. Outsideresearch sites and sponsors included the American HeartAssociation, Arnold P. Gold Foundation, Alpha Omega AlphaMedical Honor Society, National Institute of Health, BostonChildren’s Hospital, and Massachusetts’s General Hospital.Georgia Regents University sponsors included theEducational Innovation Institute, Dean’s Summer ResearchProgram, and Children’s Summer Scholars Program.Students have presented their research throughout the yearat conferences around the nation—not only sharing theirwork, but also enjoying a weekend away!

In the Next Panacea

In the next issue of Panacea, I look forward to highlightingmore of the things we enjoy and cherish about student lifeat MCG, including a spotlight on a member of our faculty, alook at how students stay healthy, and an in-­‐depth look atour beautiful new education commons building, although itwould take more than 20 pages to fully explore the awe-­‐inspiring amenities housed for us in the new building andtheir exciting implications for the future of student life atMCG. As students, the curriculum is the principal forceshaping us into excellent physicians, and we hope tohighlight the ways that our curriculum prepares us to deliverquality, patient-­‐centered care. For now, we are pleased togive you these stories of the scientific research, communityservice, and exciting changes happening among us. Onbehalf of the Fall 2014 Panacea staff, I hope you enjoy thisissue of our student-­‐run magazine.

Regards,Alexandra Dodd (M2)Panacea Co-­‐Editoraldodd@gru.edu

Helping People MakeHealthy Choices

The Veggie Truck is a farmer’s market in the heart of the community of Harrisburg in Augusta, Georgiathat is dedicated to improving the health and well-­‐being of the community. The Veggie Truck is openfrom March through October every Tuesday from 4:30-­‐7:00 across from the Kroc Center at the corner ofEve St and Broad St. Check out “The Veggie Truck Farmers Market” on Facebook for healthy eating tipsuntil we reopen in the spring. See y’all then! -­‐ Rachel Calhoun, M2

There is always a wide variety of seasonal,naturally grown produce available from ourlocal farmers at the Veggie Truck. You canfind homemade jams, dried spices, and

tomato plants from Jeannie Cleveland andthe Backyard Garden. Don’t know what to

cook? Plan It Foods makes delicious,healthy, frozen meals and are perfect forbusy students and families. All ingredientsare organic and locally produced, even themeat! More cream of zucchini soup please!

This summer, some students participated inthe School Day Soiree cooking contest. Theywere given precooked pasta and $10 inmarket tokens to buy ingredients from themarket. The students then had one hour tocook their dish before patrons sampled andvoted on their favorite.

The Class of 2017 even built their own raised bedgardens earlier this year. They planted tomatoes,zucchini, squash, peppers, eggplant, and sweetpotatoes this spring. They have had a bountiful cropthis season and sell their produce at the VeggieTruck with all proceeds going to their class charity,the Hematology/Oncology Department at theChildren’s Hospital of Georgia.

Cusco

Peru

CerviCusco is a non-­‐profitgynecological clinic in Cusco, Peruthat provides low cost or free papsmears and breast exams to thelocal Peruvian women. They alsooffer colposcopies, biopsies,Guardasil, and a variety of other services for women and also have adental clinic. CerviCusco was started in response to the growing cervicalcancer issue in Peru. The clinic provides the much needed health carethat the women would not receive otherwise.

Working for CerviCusco is a required rotation for Ob/Gyn residents atthe Medical College of Georgia. First year medical students can alsoenroll in a 1 credit hour Ob/Gyn elective and travel to CerviCusco for 2 weeks and 4th year students canparticipate in the elective as well. There are living quarters above the clinic for the students and physicians.While in Cusco, residents and students gain a lot of practical experience and are able to see a variety ofgynecological pathology that they may not see in the United States. There is also the opportunity to workalongside brilliant providers from all over the world, including Program Director and cervical cancer expert Dr.Darron Ferris and nurse practitioner Ms. Lynn Allmond. Participants not only volunteer in the CerviCusco clinic,but they travel to the Peruvian mountains on campaign and serve women who have limited access togynecological health care. The number of women served on campaign ranges from roughly 50 to over 100 perday. In addition to serving the women, participants in the elective/rotation can visit Machu Pichu in their sparetime and explore the city of Cusco.

According to Ms. Lynn Allmond, one of the coordinators of the CerviCusco Program, “The clinic provides uniqueexposure to the diversity of another culture while allowing students to have ‘hands on’ experience nototherwise available in most medical programs. This program is a once in a lifetime opportunity to experiencethe true humanity of the medical field. Every person who experiences this program leaves a different person forthe better.”

Students interested in participating in the summer CerviCusco elective can visit www.cervicusco.org orwww.gru.edu/studyabroad/cervicusco.php for more information. -­‐ Khalea Wrensford, M2

CerviCusco 2014!

I want to take this opportunity to share with our peerstwo different accomplishments that our students,faculty and staff have been working to achieve overthe past year – starting the Equality Clinic andexpanding the Clínica Latina. Both clinics serve theuninsured and underinsured members of ourcommunity but focus on two distinct populations. TheEquality Clinic is devoted to educating all volunteers onLGBTQ health disparities in the underprivileged LGBTQcommunity while Clínica Latina is devoted toconcentrating on the underprivileged Hispaniccommunity.

Our efforts in the last year have been focused onstarting clinics in the Interdisciplinary Practice andResearch Center (IPRC) in the Health Sciences Buildingon campus. We involved programs from across GRUHealth Sciences so that our students have theopportunity to work side-­‐by-­‐side with students fromother professional programs – our healthcare teams inclinic consist of one student from each program, notjust a team of medical students – all while allowing usto gain experience caring for our diverse patientgroups. The clinic space, generously lent to us, has 5clinical exam rooms, and we are now able to offer freelaboratory services to all of our patients through thekindness of GRHealth. This incredible space andresource has allowed us to see more patients than wethought possible and for us to provide the best carepossible to our patients.

One of the questions that I have received specificallyabout the Equality Clinic is why there is a need for thisclinic at all, an issue that I want to take the time toaddress here. The LGBTQ community has shown tohave unique health needs, and some services neededby our patients are denied by their insurance. Forpatients that cannot afford out of pocket healthcareexpenses denied by their healthcare coverage, such asgender transition care, it is extremely important thatwe are able to fill in the gap to ensure that they haveadequate resources and the best quality of life that wecan help them achieve. It is equally important that weprovide an environment that is welcoming, friendly,and competent to care for our patients that havelimited opportunities for care elsewhere in thecommunity – all while giving our students muchneeded experience with LGBTQ patient care that theycan use in their careers.

Hopefully the reason we are becoming doctors is tomake differences in the lives of those around us, all ofthose around us, regardless of what makes ourpatients unique. These two clinics, while only twoclinics out of many, provide a distinct opportunity thatbenefits our students but ultimately benefits ourfuture patients by providing a foundation in competentcare working with a diverse healthcare team that maybe difficult to gain elsewhere.-­‐ Kyle Freiz, M2

Serving the Local Community

CreatingCommunityLeaders

Health Equity and Access Leaders (HEAL) is a 2 credit hour elective available to firstand second year medical students at MCG. The class is offered both semesters andis held every other Wednesday at noon and during each class there is a seminarabout health disparities. There are two tracks that students can participate in whenenrolled in HEAL. The Healthy Harrisburg track involves volunteering in the HistoricHarrisburg community of Augusta, with programs such as Kids with a Future and theVeggie Truck. The Equity and Disparities Programming/Political Advocacy trackinvolves planning educational programs about disparities and submitting solutionsto some inequities to state politicians.

The course is led by Dr. Kimberly Halbur and Ms. Denise Kornegay. According to Dr.Halbur, the class was started in 2010 by the Office of Student and MulticulturalAffairs because there was no place in the medical curriculum for students to learnabout health inequities. Every semester the class is different and many studentstake the elective more than once.

A repeat HEAL enrollee and second year medical studentShanti Bhatia states that, “HEAL to me means anopportunity to explore the Augusta community that younormally wouldn’t do. [You are able]…to be involved in thecommunity and have a reminder of why we went to medical

school in the first place.”

The HEAL elective is Pass/ Fail. To receiveSatisfactory for the course, students must officiallyenroll in the course, attend lectures, participate incommunity service or programming board planning,and keep a journal describing their lecture, service,and programming board experiences. For moreinformation about the HEAL elective please visithttp://www.gru.edu/mcg/students/heal.php.

-­‐ Khalea Wrensford, M2

In mid-­‐2014, videos of celebrities dumping ice water on their own heads started appearing on the internet.Surprisingly, this had nothing to do with global warming. In the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, a campaignerchallenges a few, typically 3, other people to donate money to support Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis researchor a charity of their choosing. Videos often feature a personal twist, for example, celebrity Matt Damon usedtoilet water in his video to raise awareness of global clean water scarcity. Facebook reports that 17 million ALSchallenge-­‐related videos have been viewed a collective 10 billion times. The New York Times indicates that theALS Ice Bucket Challenge helped raise over $115 million towards ALS charities in the U.S. this year. While this issix times more than annual pre-­‐challenge funds, economists must hopefully await confirmation that thisrepresents an overall increase in charitable giving and not just a shift away from other charities, as critics havepostulated. In response to critics, Ice Bucket Challenge supporters have maintained that we should allow charityto be a part of social networks, using hyper-­‐connectivity for a common goal when the opportunity arises.

MCG medical students werenominated by their friends atMercer, and MCG students met thechallenge by raising funds to splitbetween the ALS Association andChildren’s Healthcare of Georgia.Many other students, faculty, andstaff participated in the ALS IceBucket Challenge on campus,helping give ALS research and othernoble charities an unexpectedboost.

Sharing the KnowledgeMCG students have great opportunities for research andsharing their research with others. Jeffrey Ahn, BurtonDunlap, Orishebawo (Bawo) Popoola, Chandana Papudesu,Katherine Tison, Elena James, Serena Jen, Molly Cinderella,Sirivalli Chamarti, Grace Patterson, Sean Bandzar, adChristine Phillips were the twelve MCG students to attendthe National AMA Interim Meeting in Dallas, Texas. Elevenof these students presented posters in the 12th AnnualAMA Research Symposium and one student served on theCredentials Committee.

Pictured below are Angela Chiang and Rachel Calhoun whopresented their summer research projects at the firstannual Pediatrics Research Conference at UF in Orlando,Florida.

This year, with a growing class size in mind, the Medical College of Georgia created Academic Houses.The 20 houses, composed of 10 first year, 10 second year, and a sprinkling of third year students, serveto be a smaller community within the greater MCG and GRU family. Each academic house also has twofaculty advisors.

The Academic Houses have been a great resource for first year students who are able to find mentors inthe second and third year class. They also provide an opportunity to get to know more students throughsmall group social activities. Some academic houses even had sessions prior to exams and quizzes forthe M1s so M2s could answer their questions and share their wisdom on study tips and school-­‐lifebalance.

With a monthly budget supplied to each house, monthly bonding activities have been held ranging frombowling to ropes course team building to volunteer projects within the Augusta community.

And what's a little Academic House pride without some friendly competition? Houses have already havebeen trying to outdo the others with pins, shirts, crests, and even hand motions. All in good fun ofcourse! And now with the Skull and Crossbones Cup beginning, this has given each house a greateropportunity to show Academic House pride, MCG pride, and involvement in the GRU and Augustacommunity. We'll just have to wait and see who comes out on top and will have their name on thattrophy. -­‐ Liz Cappello, M2

A Home Away from Home

WordsofWisdom

M1's:1. Work hard! Learn it properly the first time so it’s easier the second time.

2. Take a deep breath -­‐ everyone will feel overwhelmed at times. You’re not alone!

3. Really learn your anatomy. You will be pimped on anatomy a lot 3rd year, especially during surgery. Learnanatomy before going to dissection. Without pre-­‐studying labs, it's a waste of time that you will pay for ontest day and on your surgery rotation. Work with a tutor and a study group in lab. One hour in the anatomylab is better than 2 at home with an atlas.

4. Try to find connections instead of simply memorizing -­‐ later on, your tired brain will thank you for thememory aides! Buy BRS Physiology!

5. Enjoy non-­‐studying time: socialize, exercise, and just relax. Learn how to balance life and school becauseyou can't just do school. Try not to burn out. Make time for hobbies, friends, and volunteering. These 4years go by fast. Enjoy them while they last!

6. Remember, it is pass/fail! Go for the P! Pass/fail or not, the only person to compete with is yourself.

7. Don't stress too much over not being able to retain EVERY LITTLE DETAIL. Learn as much as possible andjust pass! All of the most important things you learn in your first year will surface again and get easier.

8. We lived through it, and you will too!

M2's:1. Doing a little throughout the year will go a long way. During second semester, I met with friends once aweek to review one organ system, and it really added accountability.

2. Know your own study habits and make a study schedule that will maximize your retention. e.g. For me,practice tests were very effective for the MCAT. I did a full-­‐length practice test once a month during the secondsemester, and once a week during my study weeks. By the time I took Step 1, it was routine.

3. Have a schedule and follow it. Build redundancy into your schedule. Don't freak out about the perfectschedule -­‐ there isn't one. Simply study hard, and it will work out. There’s no use in overanalyzing.

4. Once you decide what you're doing, don't get freaked out by what other people are doing. You can't doeverything. I freaked out at 3 weeks in (out of 6) thinking I needed more time -­‐ but by the 5th week, I couldnot wait to take the test. Some of my friends scheduled their studying by the hour. Instead, I had a daily to-­‐dolist that I could approach it in any way. Pick a program and just buckle down and do it.

5. Do practice half and full tests. Read First Aid and know it WELL. Read First Aid for each organ system as youdo it in class. DIT had great structure and pacing. UWorld is a wonderful learning tool. Do UWorld more thanonce if you can. The first time around, read ALL of the question explanations. The second time around, youonly need to read the ones you don't know. Firecracker is an awesome tool if you have the time to keep upwith it. SketchyMicro is great for micro.

6. If you have test anxiety, study and/or take practice exams in an unfamiliar location to get used to focusing instrange environments.

7. Beware resource overload. If you use too many programs/sources, you will be overworked. Choose fewresources that you like to stick with instead of using too many books/resources.

8. Continue to exercise, eat well, and relax. Prayer!

9. Plan to take one day off a week; you may really need it if you get sick or have an event to go to.

10. Get enough sleep every night.

Advice for step

There's no place like

Jamie Oakley (M3) is on clinical rotation at the Northwest Clinical Campus in Rome, GA. She is anative of Kennesaw, GA and is interested in Pediatrics. We asked her and her classmates aboutRome and their experiences there.

What initially drew you to the Rome campus?

I initially became interested in the NW campus due to its small size and personalized education.After talking to current fourth years in the Rome program, they had nothing but positive thingsto say about their experiences. They commented on the great community here – communitywith their patients, doctors and fellow classmates. Dr. Reeves, Vicki Wiles and Shelia Young, thecoordinators of the campus, were also very helpful in answering my questions and providing meinformation on the program. One thing I really liked about this campus initially was the factRome only has one residency program and few students besides MCG students rotating here.Because of this, I have received a lot of hands on experience and one-­‐on-­‐one attention from thedoctors. I was also attracted to the longitudinal curriculum due to the continual educationalenvironment and long-­‐term relationships it fosters.

What’s one of your favorite places to eat in Rome?

I love Harvest Moon Café, which is downtown on Broad Street. Anything off their menu isdelicious, but they are famous for their Hot Wicked Pimina Dip. After dinner, I suggest walking afew doors down to their bakery, Honeymoon Bakery, for a cupcake, gelato or cannoli.

What's a good place to study in Rome?

While I traditionally study at home or Starbucks, I’ve also found Swift & Finch, a local coffeeshop, is a good place to study. The ambience there is very relaxed and their ginger tea is myfavorite.

Tell us about a challenge you faced in moving to Rome, and how you overcame it.

Moving from Augusta to Rome was slightly stressful due to Step 1 and having to be here July 1st.Plus, I also wanted (and needed) a vacation after studying for Step. I ended up taking Step 1 inmid-­‐June, went on vacation and then moved to Rome and started the next morning. It wascrazy, but everything worked out, and I got my vacation. If you end up moving to an awaycampus, I wholly suggest taking Step 1 early enough in June so you can get a vacation and alsohave time to move; you won’t regret it.

Rome

What fun events in the community have you experienced so far?

Rome has many exciting things to offer on the weekends! There is a weekly farmer’s market at Ridge FerryPark that runs from the spring through the fall. In September, there is the annual Rome Beer Fest with over150 beers and live entertainment. The Coosa Valley Fair is nearby the first weekend in October. Just recentlywas the 50th annual Chiaha Harvest Fair, an arts and crafts festival. Berry also has lots of trails to hike, run orbike.

What would you say to an M2 on the fence about applying to a regional campus?

If you are on the fence about a campus, then talk to the students at each campus and ask them about theirexperience so far and any questions you might have. Each campus has a different personality and you haveto decide which location is best for you. Remember in the end though, no matter where you complete yourclinical rotations, you will be receiving a suburb education.

TOPTENReasonsTo chooseThe SW Regional Campus

The theme of second year seems to be “MakingDecisions About Things You Don’t Understand WithoutAdequate Information.” Between picking a basecampus, a rotation sequence, and individual sites foryour rotations (all with Step 1 looming in thebackground), it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Here arethe top ten reasons why we love the SW campus.

10. Albany

There’s a lot more to do around Albany than peoplerealize. Highlights include a lot of good restaurants(our personal favorite: Thai food at Lemongrass), themall, movie theater, art park, and plenty of places tocatch the sporting event of your choice. It’s also athree hour drive to Atlanta or the beach.

9. PLAC

PLAC, or Physician Leadership and AdvocacyCertificate, is unique to the SW campus. Sessions focuson anything from understanding the financial aspectsof medicine to leadership skills. Additionally, Dr.Simmons is always open to covering clinical topics that

we request to help us on our rotations.

8. First choice for SW sites

Being SW campus students, we had first pick for any ofthe sites in our region. With only twelve of us, weoverlap with, at most, one other student on the samerotation. This meant that most of us got our topchoices for all rotations. Lotteries can be hit or miss,but being at the SW campus made it far less stressful.

7. Free books

We have access to the SW campus library, which has alot of books for each rotation. We can check out asmany books as we want for each rotation. It doesn’tseem like a lot, but preparation books for each shelfcan add up quickly.

6. Free food

Breakfast and lunch are free in the doctor’s lounge atPhoebe Memorial Hospital in Albany, and most of theother SW sites also have free food available.

5. One-­‐on-­‐one interactions with volunteer attendings

Attendings in the SW region are all working on avolunteer basis. They take on students because theyreally enjoy having them around. In our experience sofar, they do everything they can to make sure theirstudents get the most out of every rotation. And sincethere are no other students, and rarely any residents,we work directly with the attending all the time.There’s never any competition for seeing patients ordoing procedures.

4. Double the patient encounters

Another result of being the only student is that we logapproximately double the number of patientinteractions. This was a huge influence in our decisionto come to Albany, and we have not beendisappointed.

3. Close-­‐knit group

Third year is busy, but we generally manage to meetup around once a week, whether it’s Moe’s Monday,late night Waffle House runs, or just hanging out atsomeone’s apartment. It’s nice to be a part of a smallgroup that’s always got your back (especially when youget an inopportune flat tire).

2. Hanging out with the Dean

Having Dr. Simmons as your Dean means openinvitations to weekend fishing trips, pediatric academic

half-­‐days that are tailored to specific learning needs,and administrative involvement in the SW response tothe ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. By the time Dr. Simmonswrites our Dean’s letters, he’s going to know each of usvery well and be able to personalize our letters.

1. Administration

Our administrators are always our strongest advocatesand have consistently gone above and beyond inhelping us through any situation. When one of ourclassmates had a family emergency, everyone workedwith them to postpone one of their exams andreschedule clinic days so that they could be at homewithout worrying about those details. When one of usexpressed interest in a neurosurgery rotation, theywent around and spoke with neurosurgeons in theregion until a site was found. We can’t overstate howwonderful it is to have administrators willing to fightfor you.

Coming to Albany was definitely the right choice for us.We hope it’s the right choice for some of you!

-­‐ Joanne Boggs (M3) and Prianka Kandhal (M3)

For more information, feel free to email us atjboggs@gru.edu and pkandhal@gru.edu!

The GRU-­‐UGA Medical Partnership in Athens is the newest basicscience and clinical campus available to medical students attendingthe Medical College of Georgia. Since its inauguration in 2010, thecampus has combined the instructional resources of UGA withGRU’s expertise in medical education to produce a problem-­‐basedlearning curriculum distinct from Augusta’s for the first and secondyears of medical training. Students have the opportunity to workthrough clinical cases in groups of seven or eight, facilitated by anM.D. and Ph.D., to gain a better understanding of the underlyingphysiologic processes that ultimately present as patient illnesses.

In addition to a greater emphasis on active learning in theclassroom, the partnership also strives to help students with theirtransition into a clinical environment from the start. As early as thefirst year of training, students have periodic encounters withcommunity volunteers who serve as simulated patients, helpingthem hone their clinical skills. This is built upon in the second yearwith hospital rounds every two weeks with a student partner andclinical preceptor in one of two associated hospitals. Finally, theschool has established a relationship with various hospitals andphysician practices for 3rd and 4th year rotation sites, giving studentsa relatively wide pool to choose from.

Students who choose to attend the Athens campus will have accessto everything that GRU, UGA, and Athens can provide.Extracurricular activities thus abound, whether they be through themedical partnership itself or through the community. Student-­‐runmedical interest groups, student government organization,community service events, clinical shadowing, and volunteeropportunities at the local free clinic are all options that are availableto members of the Athens campus. Moreover, the medicalpartnership’s association with UGA provides ample opportunitiesfor social events with students from the UGA law, pharmacy, publichealth, and veterinary schools, as well as GRU’s own nursing schoolcampus in Athens. Finally, the classic city itself offers a host ofevents and activities ranging from 5K runs, a variety of restaurantsand local breweries and, of course, UGA football games onSaturdays in the fall. You’ll have a hard time finding someone whovisited Athens and left disappointed! -­‐ Carlos Soriano, M2

Explore theClassic City

I was beautiful once.Larry would always compliment my feet.

Larry was my husband.He donated in 1999.

I had mixed feelings when he told me,But I saw it coming.

His passion for his students was second to none.I couldn’t get over the image.

Not laying him to rest.Not spreading roses over his oak

Final resting place with chrome plates.His last mark on the world,

“Beloved husband, friend, and connoisseurOf all things medicine.”

Now here I lie before you.Those cute little feet, still polished.Hands curled from my last days,

Ramifications of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Most people never picture themselvesHere.

I never pictured the last person toMarvel at my homemade manicure

To be you.Nervous. Jittery. Stressed out.

You approach me nervously with the scalpel.It is no violation.

Your respect is necessary.Your pity is not.This is my legacy.

This is my last mark.My gift.

My family’s sacrifice.

To honor me is to respect me.To learn all that you can.

To reflect on my life before I was here.My experiences, wit, accomplishments.

You will never forget our experiences together.Me, your first patient.

This is my charge to you.

IWasOnce

by Maryam Robinson, M1~

Student Updates

Aditi Dey (M2) and fiancé Kevin

Thomas Holmes (M2) andfiancée Hannah

John Shapiro (M2), baby

Katy, and wife Liz

Hunter S

haffer (M

2) and

fiancée

Deanna

Samantha Smith (M2) and

fiancé Brion

Se Yoo (M2) and fiancé

Michael

KhaleaWrensfo

rd (M2)

and fiancé Ca

rson

Howell Jarrard (M2) andfiancée Merry Teague (M2)

Panacea StaffLead Editors: Alexandra Dodd (M2) and Khalea Wrensford (M2)Writers: Joanne Boggs (M3), Rachel Calhoun (M2), Liz Cappello (M2), Kyle Freiz (M2), Prianka Kandhal(M3), Jamie Oakley (M3), Maryam Robinson (M1), Carlos Soriano (M2)Pictures: Rachel Calhoun (M2), Christine Phillips (M2), Elizabeth Ahn (M2), Brian Sullivan (M2), Brett LeeClarkLayout Design: Jennifer Simpliciano (M3)Faculty Advisor: Dr. Carol NicholsSpecial thanks to all students who helped contribute to this issue!

Medical Campus Outreach Summer Mission Trip to Peru

MCG Admissions Tour Guides for 2014-­‐2015

PanaceaMedical College of Georgia Student Magazine | Georgia Regents University | Fall 2014

Online at issuu.com/panacea.mcg