Medical Exposure During COVID

I cannot overstate the importance of medical exposure during your undergraduate years. Interacting with patients and the healthcare team is invaluable to helping you decide if you actually want to practice medicine! Some people go through pre-med wanting to be a doctor because it “sounds good” but completely change their minds about medicine as a career after shadowing and talking with physicians and members of the healthcare team. And that’s okay, it’s not for everyone! But the sooner you know it is (or isn’t) for you, the better. In addition to needing this exposure to ensure medicine is right for you, you also need it to complete your application! No medical school will seriously consider you for admission if you can’t show that you have taken the necessary steps to expose yourself to a career in medicine…and they shouldn’t! 

There are several different ways to get this all-important “medical exposure,” including shadowing, volunteering at a hospital or clinic, being an EMT or medical assistant, scribing, international medical experiences, etc…Even pre-COVID sometimes students find it difficult to get these clinical opportunities. With concern for student and patient safety, COVID certainly brings new challenges to this, but this doesn’t change that you still need the exposure, so let’s explore some ways to get it! 

What is most important in your quest for medical exposure is that you are SAFE and taking all precautions if you choose in-person activities. The goal is not to wind up with COVID because you’re trying to get your clinical experience in…so really make sure that you’re wearing a mask, washing your hands often, distancing, and taking all the precautions Dr. Fauci and your momma told you to take.

Ideally, you want experiences that allow you to observe first-hand the relationship between the patient and physician but if this isn’t immediately available, there are certainly other volunteer experiences within the field of healthcare that you can consider. As always, with volunteer experiences, you want to make sure that it’s something you’re doing because you want to make a difference—not just to check a box on an application. 

I’ve been asked by several students of things they can do during COVID; here are a few ideas for medical exposure:

Traditional shadowing

Don’t just assume that because of COVID, all clinics are closed to shadowing students during this time. If you don’t already have an office in mind, check with your pre-med advisor (see previous post–you should be meeting with them soon anyways, right?) to see if they know of offices that usually allow students to shadow. If you are at a college with a medical school or residency program, there is usually a process for students to shadow at their medical center or clinic; this is still going on at several schools, albeit with some restrictions, so check it out. Consider reaching out to your local NMA (National Medical Association) chapter, your current/ past personal physician, etc, to see if they allow students. Some private clinics may be happy to have student volunteers during this time who can check temperatures and screen patients at the door, so they don’t have to use a staff member for this. 

We’ll talk about this in a later post, but I believe the best way to approach a medical office to shadow is with a CV and/or a statement about your interest in medicine and a desire to shadow that can be given to the physician and/or office manager. In this statement, especially during COVID, you can mention that you’d love to shadow the physician but can also volunteer with any other clinic needs. Offering to do something other than shadowing right now may get your foot in the door to be able to shadow later, post-COVID.

Virtual shadowing

So virtual shadowing is a whole thing. It makes sense, right? We’ve transitioned so many things to virtual due to COVID. From what I’ve found, these experiences vary anywhere from guest physicians who talk about their careers, to patient presentations, to case examples; allowing you to document hours and certify that you participated. While some health professional schools are allowing this, and it certainly is better than nothing, you really need to exhaust your options to get in-person experiences, instead of relying on this as your only exposure. There are several options for virtual shadowing that you may find online, but let’s be really clear, you should not be paying anything to shadow anyone! Check out the American Medical Association for some legit options.

COVID Vaccine Help

Don’t sleep on the need for volunteers during this pandemic; they are needed now more than ever! There are a lot of requests for help to get as many people vaccinated as possible. And there isn’t just a need for people to put shots in arms; people are needed to take temperatures, monitor patients after they get their vaccine, help with administrative duties, etc. Contact your local health department or hospital to see if there are any ways you can help during this important time.

Hospital/Medical Facilities

Check with your local hospitals, nursing homes, hospice centers, etc, to see if they need any help during this time. They may just need someone to answer the phone, show family members to patient rooms, or something that has nothing to do with patient care. Or they may actually have some patient care opportunities- you won’t know unless you ask and you need service hours also, in addition to medical exposure, and you could be providing a tremendous service to these institutions that may be short-staffed due to COVID. Again, in these settings, your safety is extremely important- if you choose these, make sure you and those around are taking all precautions.

Crisis Help Line

Serving as a volunteer on a crisis phone line or text line is always a great option for service as a college student. If you’d rather not have physical interaction with people you don’t know during COVID, this is a great option and allows you to provide a great service to those in need. Don’t worry, they’ll train you to handle the calls or texts that come your way, and you’ll have resources available to you. This can be local or national and there are many credible agencies that you can volunteer with. This is something you can consider during COVID and for future years, as well. 

American Red Cross

American Red Cross is almost always looking for volunteers. This is certainly no different in the setting of a pandemic. Check out their website to find opportunities near you. There are virtual opportunities or you can volunteer in-person at blood drives, etc.

—

These are just a few options, but definitely a great place to start. Pre-med students all over the country are asking these same questions so the AMA and other resources are starting to put out more information. So don’t only go with my list, take the time to look for others too! COVID is here and we have to adjust. But it isn’t all negative, COVID surely has given you some free time. The Kappas (probably) aren’t having kickbacks right now and campus social events are likely at a minimum, so use this time to focus on making good grades, preparing for the MCAT, and working towards being a strong applicant. 

Have you found other ways to get medical exposure during COVID or have resources to share? Please include them below!