My first exposure to Orthopaedic Surgery began in high school with an evaluation of my shoulder, having dislocated it while playing lacrosse and again later on the football team. Dr. Harlan Selesnick, physician to the Miami Heat, also volunteered as our team physician, and so performed a battery of physical exam maneuvers with various eponyms of the Orthopaedic forefathers to help diagnose my labrum cartilage tear. As he showed and explained the significance of the different vague shades of gray on the MRI film and their corresponding anatomy, and pointed out the increased signal intensity indicating my particular tear, I felt a curiosity for understanding that went beyond my personal injury. Dr. Selesnick honored my request to join his team as a summer intern and has been inspirational in all my contacts with him over the past several years.
In truth, my early passion for medicine was born specifically through the lessons and experience that came from witnessing both Dr. Selesnick’s relationship to his patients as well as his craft in the operating room. I saw the physical and psychological aspects of the healing process come full circle and the tangible gratification from helping those who were injured return to the sports they loved. I understood that surgeons do not simply repair a…show more content… As captain of my high school varsity lacrosse team I first learned to stay open-minded to others’ input, set the bar for the hard work required to win, intervene when conflict detracted from our success, and make sacrifices in my personal life for the betterment of the team. If I am fortunate to join a team of surgical attending physicians and residents, my values and experience will allow me to fit in and become a productive member of an already cohesive group. I intend to bring my interpersonal skills and team-oriented personality into an Orthopaedic program that prides itself in the camaraderie among its
