Sarah Naracon, MS4, is a current TIP student at the Marquette Family Medicine Residency Program.
by Sarah Naracon, MS4
Marriage, motherhood, and medicine are the three best words to describe why I give my all each day. These keep me busy and consume most of my time, as I strive to achieve balance and give the best part of me to each. Work-life balance is important to me as a wife and mother, and I am excited to embark on a career path that has family in the name. I will have the privilege of caring for many families apart from my own. In my clinical experiences thus far, I have loved caring for patients of all ages. Continuity of care is a desirable aspect for my future career. On my family medicine clerkship, I enjoyed seeing the same patients multiple times throughout the rotation. I was impressed with my preceptor’s ability to enter their patients’ health and wellness journeys. I desire to form similar strong relationships with my future patients.
My family medicine clerkship was the most challenging and rewarding rotation to date. Bouncing from room to room between vastly different patient cases was a test of my clinical knowledge and skills. I quickly developed a deep appreciation for just how much medicine my preceptor knew. Their knowledge, flexibility, and confidence in thinking on their feet amazed me. From infant milestones to psychiatric care, joint injections to diabetes management, my preceptor never failed to impress me with their expertise. I also worked with skilled family medicine hospitalists caring for some of the Upper Peninsula’s most ill patients. A career in family medicine is an opportunity to learn without ceasing in both inpatient and outpatient medicine, challenging me to become a well-rounded physician. I have a thirst for knowledge and wish to master as much of medicine as I can through my training and practice to provide the best possible care for those in the Upper Peninsula.
The Marquette Family Medicine Residency program is imperative to training and retaining quality physicians to serve the Upper Peninsula. What better way to prepare for my career in the Upper Peninsula than to train with the Marquette Family Medicine Residency program. Marquette, Michigan is where I first ventured away from home to study at Northern Michigan University. It was here I met, fell in love with, and married my husband. Though we both were raised elsewhere, Marquette is the place we consider home. Rural living suits our personalities, and we cannot imagine raising a family anywhere else. I have worked with the Marquette Family Medicine Residency program for several years. I participated in MSUCHM Rural Premedical Internship Program. I shadowed within the Marquette Family Medicine Residency program and continue to work with family medicine residents and teaching faculty as a medical student. If accepted to the Marquette Family Medicine Residency program, I would love to work with and teach pre-medical and medical students, as I know firsthand how valuable this experience is as a learner.
I have compassion for and wish to serve citizens of the Upper Peninsula, especially mothers and infants. As a mother, I know how difficult breastfeeding is, and as a medical student I learned much more about breastfeeding and lactation than I ever did as a patient. I took this education a step beyond the medical school curriculum and became a certified lactation counselor. I am partnering with the Marquette Care Clinic, volunteering to serve women and infants of the area. My empathy for this patient population has sparked my interest to study maternal and infant wellness with a focus on breastfeeding and lactation in the Upper Peninsula. I hope to discover needs of mothers in the community and implement patient education programs, resources, and support throughout my career.
My greatest challenge to date is balancing roles as a mother, wife, and medical student. I strive to be my best each day, inching closer to serving the citizens of the Upper Peninsula as a physician. I would be grateful for the opportunity to continue learning, practicing with compassionate care, and serving the Upper Peninsula through the Marquette Family Medicine Residency program. I am honored to be learning as a medical student in my favorite place on earth, and I hope to continue my career here.
