Summer 2013 COM Outlook | NSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

38 COM Outlook . Summer 2013 (First Place) Florida Osteopathic Medical Association Poster Competition (First Place) American Colleges of Physicians Medical Student Poster Competition Medical Students for Choice Reproductive Health Internship 2013 NSU-COM Research Award Dr. Young loved her entire NSU- COM experience and said her most enjoyable time was during her third- year clinical rotation at Largo Medical Center. “Working in the clinics and hospital was a wonderful experience in an organized, professional, and positive learning environment,” she explained. “D.O. preceptors taught me how to add osteopathic manipulation to routine patient care, helping me to solidify the skills I learned during my first and second years and build a commitment to including manipula- tion into my future practices.” In contrast, her most challenging time at NSU-COM occurred as she started her first year. While she has enjoyed her “Nova experience,” she admitted that, “Looking back, I would say first year was the roughest for me socially and academically. I came to NSU-COM from Philadelphia and took almost the whole year to find my fit,” she said. “Luckily, as I settled in and began to thrive, the school became a wonderful fit for me.” While pursuing her professional passion, Dr. Young discovered her personal one. According to Dr. Young, getting married in November 2012 was the most memorable mo- ment of her life. “I never imagined such good fortune would come to me, to find such a partner and such happi- ness,” Dr. Young said as she reflected on her road to romance and marriage. “Luckily, NSU’s College of Optom- etry had a wonderful guy named Adam Sweeney in its third-year class when I was a first-year medical student. I had always seen him in the HPD Library, and then we got set up on a blind coffee date that turned into dinner and four hours of conversa- tion. I went home to the Rolling Hills graduate housing that evening and told my classmates I had just met the man I was going to marry.” Four years later, Dr. Young’s father married them in a small ceremony on Clearwater Beach. “I feel so lucky to have a great love in my personal life, and for it, I know I am better in my professional life,” Dr. Young said. With her strength in building for- titude in those around her, Dr. Young offered some advice for new students on handling the stresses and challeng- es of medical school. Quoting Plato, she said, “Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle,” which are words that highlight the importance of empathy. “There were times when the stress- ful and unique situations of medical school challenged this personal phi- losophy for me, and those moments were necessary—albeit sometimes painful—learning experiences.” Now, a bright future beckons. Dr. Young has been accepted into the Uni- versity of Virginia Family Medicine Residency Program in Charlottesville, where she will train in the global and women’s health tracks program. Dr. Young plans to use both behavioral medicine and osteopathic manipula- tion to care for refugees from coun- tries undergoing political unrest and treat chronic somaticized pain—the condition wherein an emotional pain becomes a physical symptom. She will also practice obstetrics along a model similar to midwifery and provide preventative reproductive health and comprehensive family planning that includes abortion care. Another mentor, David Thomas, M.D., J.D., professor and chair of the college’s Department of Surgery and Division of Correctional Medicine, has instilled within her a strong commit- ment to serving in correctional facili- ties, where Dr. Young hopes to assist incarcerated juveniles and women. In the future, “I would love to enter aca- demic medicine, be a faculty member of a university, and be involved in medical student and resident develop- ment,” she concluded. With her formidable skills and compassion, Dr. Young is set to serve and succeed in myriad ways. Family portrait in St. Petersburg, Florida.