NASHVILLE, TN — On Friday, March 21, fourth-year medical students at Meharry Medical College learned where they would begin their medical careers. Match Day, the annual event where medical schools across the nation announce where students will complete their residencies, was celebrated by Meharrians in front of proud parents, colleagues, mentors and friends.
The program began with an invocation given by fourth-year medical student, Letitia Lyons, who is also the chaplain for the School of Medicine’s class of 2014. Charles P. Mouton, M.D., M.S., senior vice president for health affairs and dean, School of Medicine, followed with opening remarks. “Society expects lifelong learning. It must be self-directed. It must be disciplined,” said Mouton. “We must make sure that you hold high what Meharry has given you and do it with all the dignity, respect and honor that you yourself, and it, deserves.”
Unaware of where they would spend the next three years, students opened sealed envelopes detailing their specialties and which hospitals they had been “matched” with in front of hundreds of people. Surrounded by those who helped get them to this defining day, students were given an opportunity to speak. Emotions of tears, laughter, relief and nervousness filled the auditorium.
Yakisha Partee, who matched at Barnes-Jewish Hospital at Washington University in St. Louis, is one of the many Meharry students eager to live Meharry’s mission of serving the underserved and providing care to those who are most in need.
“I chose to specialize in emergency medicine because many in the underserved community have no health insurance and so their only real access to care is the emergency room,” said Partee. “The energy keeps me on my toes and challenges me to acquire a broad set of skills so I can treat those who need it most.”
This year, Meharry matched 86 students and had a match rate of 88 percent. Meharry students complete their residencies in small towns and large cities across the nation.
Student “matches” were determined by the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP), a non-profit organization that uses computerized mathematical algorithms to coordinate the matching of over 30,000 student applicants to open residency positions at teaching hospitals across the U.S.
Meharry is a leading national educator of African-Americans with M.D. and D.D.S. degrees and Ph.D. degrees in the biomedical sciences. Visit http://www.mmc.edu to learn more.
Featured Image By: Roland Photography