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UTHealth Medical School seniors meet their match

Students learned at Match Day where they will train as residents

UTHealth Medical School seniors meet their match

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With four years of medical school behind them, more than 200 excited students at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School found out today where they will begin the next phase of their medical training.

Known as Match Day, the event occurs simultaneously at medical schools across the country as students discover their destination for residency training.

Of the UTHealth fourth-year students, 41 percent will stay in Texas for at least the first year of their post-graduate training and 22 percent will stay right here at UTHealth.

Match Day is the culmination of a complex process that matches graduating medical students with residency programs through the National Resident Matching Program. Every year, thousands of U.S. medical students and independent applicants compete for residency positions.

Here are stories from some of the UTHealth students who participated in this year’s match:

For Saviour Achilike, Match Day was the pinnacle event of his academic career. While he is looking forward to celebrating his graduation later this year, this event was the culmination of various challenges and accomplishments that will dictate his professional career. Achilike, 26, interviewed at seven neurology residency programs throughout the country and said that ranking them came down to splitting hairs. He matched to UTHealth Medical School. “I wasn’t nervous or anxious because I was happy with all of the places I ranked,” he said, who was surrounded by family today. “I matched here and it is comforting because I have my brother here and other family members who live in the area. There are friends who graduated last year who are also here and my mentors are here, so I am very happy. This is a great place to be. I’m excited to start my career here.” The Garland, Texas native vividly remembers the 16- to 18-hour days common during his four-year journey at UTHealth Medical School. He partially credits his time as a track athlete at The University of Texas at Austin for instilling a work ethic that emphasized grit and persistence, which sustained him throughout his time at UTHealth. “We had a saying in track. ‘It was more mental than it was physical.’ You literally had to train your mind to go through the pain. Just when you thought you had reached the edge and you couldn’t go anymore, you could always do a little bit more,” Achilike said. He feels this mindset will assist him as he encounters the numerous challenges associated with being a physician. “At the end of the day, when you’re in the hospital and someone just lost their loved one – you have to understand pain, grief and the mental challenge that comes with stressful situations – because if you don’t understand that, you can’t identify with the patient and their family. That mentality, that grit is important for everything especially in medical school,” he said.

Uchechi Azuike doesn’t remember a time when she didn’t want to be a doctor. “It’s been in me from the beginning and from there, I’ve always had a passion for working with children. It fits my personality – everyone says I’m still pretty much a kid at heart. I still watch cartoons and kid movies,” said Azuike, 26, whose parents left Nigeria to train as pharmacists in the United States. They returned to Nigeria for a short time before deciding to move to Houston to give their children better educational opportunities. She is thrilled that she matched to pediatrics at UTHealth Medical School. “I was so excited I had no words,” she said moments after opening her envelope. “All I could do was scream and jump up and down.” There are doctors sprinkled throughout her family: One sister has a doctor of pharmacy degree and another sister has a doctor of osteopathic medicine degree. Azuike’s rotation in pediatrics was a highlight of her time at UTHealth Medical School. “When you wake up every morning not worried about going to work, you kind of know this is the right field for you,” she said. “I loved interacting with the children.” She would eventually like to serve patients in Nigeria.

Natalie Diaz and Michael Keller, both 26, matched to residencies in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and couldn’t be happier since they’re getting married May 2. Diaz matched to Allegheny General Hospital in psychiatry and Keller to UPMC Mercy Hospital in surgery. “It was very nerve-wracking leading up to the event,” she said. “Up to the point of opening envelopes, I never felt so anxious.” Their first “official” date was at a fancy restaurant in Diaz’s hometown of Dallas and they have been a couple since. When applying for residency programs, they focused on programs in the same city but were prepared to train several hundred miles apart. Diaz learned early on about the importance of health care. One of Diaz’ aunts succumbed to breast cancer in a tiny town with few medical resources south of Mexico City. Diaz decided then that she wanted a career that would allow her to make a difference in the lives of others. Keller, a Houstonian, comes from a long line of physicians and the only question was what type of doctor he would be. Keller is following in the footsteps of his father and North Cypress Medical Center surgeon Kim Keller, M.D. In fact, when he completes his residency, the younger Keller plans to partner with his father. While the soon-to-be physicians have much in common, they are rivals when it comes to sports: Diaz went to TCU and Keller to Baylor University.

Match Day was slightly less suspenseful for students such as Kara Farley, 25, who are entering the military following graduation. Matches for military residency programs were made in December and Farley will be doing a three-year family practice residency at a U.S. Naval facility in Jacksonville, Fla. Afterward, she will serve as a Navy physician for four years with assignments that could range from assisting with disaster relief efforts to treating sailors at a foreign base. Farley enlisted in the military during her sophomore year at Baylor University, where she majored in biology and biochemistry and was a cheerleader. Farley knew she wanted be a doctor long before college or even high school. When she was 12 years old, she fractured her right arm during a gymnastic drill and was impressed by the skill of the doctor repairing it and the care she received. She plans to be equally caring as a family practitioner. “We are typically the first point of contact for patients. We are someone he or she can feel comfortable with and discuss anything about their health – should something suddenly come up or if they are concerned about their diet,” she said. While she already knew her results, she didn’t want to miss Match Day. “It was very exciting to be here and feel the energy. I’m excited for everyone.”

Lizzie Gibson, 28, grew up watching reruns of Rescue 9-1-1 and Mystery Diagnosis, knowing all along that she wanted to work in health care. The Clear Lake resident, whose father graduated from UTHealth Medical School in 1982, moved away from home to study nursing at the University of Tulsa. She returned to Houston and began working as an orthopedic trauma nurse at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center. On the trauma floor, Lizzie worked alongside renowned surgeon James H. “Red” Duke, Jr., M.D., for two and a half years. One of her most vivid memories of Duke was when he corrected her for calling him a trauma surgeon. He told her he was a physician and physicians take care of the patient in any way necessary. When Lizzie decided she wanted to take the plunge and become a doctor, she shared her hopes with Duke, who wrote her a glowing letter of recommendation. “It’s a real joy to see her go through all these laborious years and accomplish this first major step,” Duke said. “There’s no question she understands what it means to be a physician who cares for people.” Now she will continue her training at Orlando Health in an orthopedic surgery residency. “This was my top choice, so I am super excited,” she said. “I think what I like the most about orthopedics is that it’s a very objective fix. You can fix a broken bone, look at an X-ray and say, I did that.” She also will take a page from Duke. “I will remember that I am a physician and to treat my patients with their full well-being in mind, just like Duke.”

Cherry Onaiwu, 36, always wanted to be a doctor, but after graduating from Houston Baptist University, she found herself in a successful career as a clinical research coordinator. She could never seem to find the right time to pursue her dream of practicing medicine. Onaiwu said “life told her it was time” when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008. She had to quit her job and relocate to be near family in Houston, giving her a chance to rethink where her career was taking her. During treatment, she was amazed at how much teamwork was involved in her care and thought, “This is something I want to be a part of.” Onaiwu decided to go to medical school after she was declared cancer-free to extend the same kind of thoughtful treatment to her future patients. “To be able to help people get through these tough moments in their lives is such a humbling experience,” she said. Onaiwu matched to an internal medicine residency at Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. “I am really excited. They have a great program and great residents,” said Onaiwu, who was surrounded by family that came in from around the world. She has felt called to work with socioeconomically disadvantaged populations.

Kelly O’Shea and Daniel Tim, who entered the couple’s match, began dating during their pediatric surgery rotation – just like her parents, who are 1986 graduates of UTHealth Medical School. “When I found out that’s when my parents started dating, it was funny,” said O’Shea, 25, who is from Munster, Indiana. Both students come from medical families. O’Shea’s father is an occupational medicine physician and her mother is a psychiatrist. Tim’s father is a pediatrician and his mother is a nurse. Both have known since childhood that they wanted to be doctors. “Of course, I wanted to be a baseball player and an astronaut and then I got to kindergarten and since then, I’ve wanted to be a doctor,” said Tim, 27, who is from Lilburn, Georgia. O’Shea, one of 10 children, has always dreamed of being a pediatrician. Tim was drawn to the versatility of internal medicine. O’Shea said the couple’s match process was a whirlwind as they arranged their schedules to travel the country together and then decided on their list. When they found out they had both matched to programs in Cincinnati, they were ecstatic. She matched to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and he matched to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. “I didn’t sleep too much last night,” Tim admitted. “Cincinnati is a great location and the faculty were very welcoming.”

Jaimin Shah, 25, has a passion for medicine that is only rivaled by his passion for sports. As a first-year medical student, the former Rice University football player thought that he could combine both passions by specializing in orthopedic surgery. Over the last four years Shah’s path would lead him in a different direction. The New Braunfels native cites the care his mother received at a San Antonio hospital when he was 6 years old as the foundation for his interest in women’s health. As a medical student at UTHealth, his interest in obstetrics and gynecology intensified as he worked on numerous projects with researchers throughout the Texas Medical Center. His projects included identifying barriers in seeking prenatal care and documenting the frequency and nature of abnormal pap smears. “I think women’s health has always had an important role in my life because my mom and brother might have passed away 19 years ago,” said Shah of his mother’s complications in childbirth. “A year ago, my mother passed away from another complication. At that time it made me realize what I wanted to achieve and what is more meaningful in life.” Shah matched to UTHealth Medical School. “Today was an awesome day. I was among family, friends and faculty who have supported me throughout my time here. Opening the envelope was crazy because I got it within the first ten minutes. Having to wait almost an hour was really tough because I really wanted to open it. I’m really glad that I matched to UTHealth. My brother is here and I really love the entire faculty so I am really excited. Four years have passed quickly and I am one step closer to becoming a doctor.”

In a perfect world, Fiona Strasserking, 40, would have graduated from a West African medical school a decade ago. But, a civil war broke out in Sierra Leone about halfway through her training and she had to flee. Still committed to becoming a doctor, she moved to Houston to be with an aunt and joined the U.S. Navy. While serving as a petty officer second class, she had the opportunity to work in cardiac laboratories, support family members and become a citizen. Following an eight-year stint, she applied for admission to UTHealth Medical School and is close to realizing her dream. Strasserking matched to Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. “Washington University is one of the top schools for internal medicine and I know I will get great training,” she said. She chose internal medicine because many people need help with lifelong conditions such as diabetes.jen “Internists build relationships with their patients over a long period of time and help them manage their disease,” she said. When asked what sparked her interest in health care, Strasserking recalled a nurse who cared for the sick in her hometown of Freetown. “She would give shots and help people when they were sick. She was someone we could always count on. I want to be like that,” Strasserking said.

To see our Match Day coverage, check for updates on Twitter @UTHealth. Follow the hashtags #uthealth #match2015. For photographs of the event, visit https://www.facebook.com/MyUTHealth, Flickr.com/UTHealth and Instagram @MyUTHealth.

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