My Love for Sports: Basketball, Athletics, and Swimming - Essay Sample

Introduction

I love various sport games: however at varying degrees, because of their individual contributions to my life. For instance, I like basketball game especially because of the competitive atmosphere that fills the stadium. Besides, I would prefer athletics because of the drive of a track that an athlete requires to reach a personal best. The other sports game is swimming which allows a swimmer to apply their ability to endure countless hours of training. The love I had for the games drove me towards sports medicine. However, the athletics captured me and sparked a new passion. Sports medicine makes it possible to change the trajectory of patients and have a lasting impact on their quality of life.

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One of the most important things I have learned is to look at the athlete as a whole person and not just as a sportsman trying to reach a tangible goal. I realized this for the first time when I was working at a 24-hour ultra-marathon in a medical school. Many athletes were constantly in and out of the medical tent, but one, who was a lady stood out to me. She was taking part in her twenty-fifth ultra-marathon run. Her goal was to hit 75 miles before the day was over. She was determined in spite of the others' perception that her target would not be considered a "top female distance". Throughout the course of the race, we worked tirelessly together to keep her body strong and up to the challenge. This ranged from stretching out a sore hamstring to draining the multiple blisters that lined her feet. At one point our talks shifted and she focused on me. She explained how she used to suffer from self-harm for many years. From our conversation, I learnt that she started running after a suggestion from her primary care provider. This little idea created a big outlet for her, which ultimately saved her. This influential role in promoting a patient's quality of life is what inspired me to venture into sports medicine.

I have cared for a wide variety of athletes during my residency. I continue to immerse myself in sports medicine to help improve my patients' quality of life. I have been able to learn the importance of continuous improvement by interacting with the athletes. Besides, they taught me the value of never being complacent, which has encouraged me to stay actively involved. This has also led me to be part of the University of Minnesota pediatric obesity team striving to create a cohesive and successful way to treat childhood and adulthood obesity across our clinics in the St. Paul/Minneapolis region, where I work currently. Being involved with community projects, wellness groups and research throughout my training has given me a wide variety of tools to offer proper services to my patients. Most recently, I have helped research the presence of the female triad amongst collegiate swimmers. I believe that assessing the many contributing factors that can lead to an injury, such as the female triad, are important to prevent an injury in the future. I have chosen to participate actively in helping my patients succeed in their sports and move forward in their lives.

I have worked hard throughout residency to find unique ways to connect with my patients and athletes. My patients are often of diverse cultural backgrounds and face hard economical issues. Consequently, I believe in establishing the most applicable strategies including the creation of goals around that excitement to better improve their overall health and wellbeing. Much like the athletes I take care of, as a physician, it is hard to perform to the best of my abilities without an amazing team. I firmly believe you need an amazing team surrounding you to better serve your patients whether in the clinic or on the field. We have done things from setting up extensive home programming for a diabetic patient to quick creative buddy tapping of a lacrosse player. My ability to connect to patients, my diligence for solving difficult questions, and my belief that medicine should be a team effort are all reasons I believe I would make a strong fellowship candidate.

Conclusion

I have worked hard to refine my skills for this fellowship. I am excited for this next stage of my career. I am willing to work hard to continue to gain the experiences and knowledge needed to be the best provider I can for my patients. My interaction with athletes enabled me to realize the type of physician that I want to be. Whether it is looking at the whole patient, the drive to never be complacent or playing a role in a much bigger team the athletes have helped shape my passion. I therefore choose sports medicine because of these reasons and for the love of "the game."