The Importance of Early Clinical Experience in Medical School
With the advancement in the medical field, experience is an important aspect for medical students. The universal way of studying in medical school is to do the course work and less practical work. A lot of students opt for clinical exposure to get experience for applying to a med school
There are times when early exposure to the clinic can be very beneficial for a student. Other than depending on what the med school is giving you, you have to put an effort on yourself to get the experience.
The early clinical exposure gives the students a broader perspective on medical education. It helps in choosing the career they want to choose with firmness. We all know experience is the most important part of becoming a doctor, then why not start it early.
Working in a clinic as a Volunteer
Just for the sake of gaining an upper hand during the admission, a lot of premed students do volunteer work at a clinic. This is especially important for those who are aiming to become a physician in the future.
There are so many clinics that are free for patients and welcome volunteers. Clinic volunteering gives you the opportunity to know and interact with different types of patients, and learn a few basic things that can help in understanding studies.
But remember to volunteer at a place that gives you exposure to medical basics instead of just doing paperwork.
Get a License
Although it is really early to start working but every big physician has dozens of experience levels mentioned in their CV. How do you validate experience? By doing work that gives you a verified certificate. For example, working as an Emergency Medical Technician earns you a certificate, you not only learn emergency priorities but also get to interact with patients and perform simple treatments.
By the time you graduate from med school, you are already an expert and you can apply to larger institutions that only accept experience students.
Final Words
As mentioned above, clinical exposure gives a broad sense of knowledge for any student. You learn the tactics of patient care and dealings that help in the future career.
Although you might struggle and find it hard to do some tasks, in the future, they will be the easiest to do! So don’t wait and get yourself a clinical exposure before med school!