What did I do over the summer? I had an amazing time! No, I wasn't in Venice or chilling with Kobe Bryant (although that would have been a GREAT time!), but I was working. I had the magnificent opportunity to do an internship. It was more of an internship/work/volunteer opportunity, but you get my drift. I worked on campus for Dr. Heather Orom. She had me participate in numerous learning experiences. Among the many things I did, we continued writing a systematic review and I worked on a study involving men with prostate cancer. For the study I not only worked behind the scenes, but I was able to interact with potential and on-going participants. In addition, I was able to shadow a urologist at work, Dr. Willie Underwood III. Not only was I able to observe his clinical interactions, but I was able to watch several surgeries - one of the highlights of my life! The surgeries can only be described using one word (and a thesaurus), they were AMAZING, SPECTACULAR, EXTRAORDINARY... just PHENOMENAL!This experience taught me many things. First, it is always worthwhile to explore the opportunities around you. I did not realize all the potential learning experiences that UB has to offer and due to the kindness of others and the willingness of them to expose me to things of my interest, I was able to do so. Second, it takes a lot of hard work to do what you love. Despite the wonderful experience I had, this summer was a lot of hard work (especially in addition to all the work we were putting in on the court!). What motivated me the most was my environment, since I was surrounded by extremely determined people. Despite the hard and often stressful work, their passion and determination never lingered. In fact, it seemed to grow with every interaction or task completed. This speaks well to what our coaches preach, which is that in order for us to be successful, we must be willing to put in the work (blood, sweat, and tears included!). Finally, this experience confirmed my aspiration to help people. No matter how good or bad the days were, one thing that was always evident with my summer colleagues was their genuine commitment to the health of others. It was a special thing to see the joy they got from helping others and the appreciation of those who were aided. I am humbled to have been given such a great life experience and I am determined to continue along a similar path of work in public health in the future.
~ Teresa Semalulu # 22
