I was born and raised in Uzbekistan and now reside in California. I hold an M.D. degree awarded by Tashkent Medical University in 1992 and later earned a Ph.D. from the Scientific Research Institute of Pulmonology and Phthisiology, both in Uzbekistan. I am a highly experienced physician and researcher, and I now seek the opportunity to practice family medicine in the U.S.
My early goals were: to become a highly qualified physician so that I could help people, especially the poor, or possibly to become a medical scientist so that I could advance medical knowledge and so help many people, as did my hero Avicenna, and finally maybe to become the Minister of Health in my home country so that I could oversee an improvement in the availability of health services generally. I did qualify as a physician; I also became involved in successful medical research, and, while I will probably never be a Health Minister, I did, in fact, share some thoughts about somnology with the Minister of Health in Uzbekistan. So my childhood dreams have nearly all been turned into reality.
As you will note from the papers submitted to support my application, I have acquired vast experience in various branches of medicine and research since qualifying. I have worked in a wide variety of settings. I have also been published in several areas of my research. However, I have concluded that I can best apply my talents and satisfy my own vocation most fully by treating patients directly and especially as a family doctor.
I love dealing directly with patients, and the idea of treating patients of every generation and of different social backgrounds is enormously appealing to me. My goal now is to become a family practitioner in a rural area of the United States. As a newly qualified physician, I treat country people in my homeland and admire their honesty, kindness, and openness; I have always felt a particular affinity with them. I am wary of physicians who regard patients as ‘bundles of symptoms rather than as individuals who have been committed to their care. I will always seek to develop positive and friendly relationships with patients and feel that this is more efficiently and effectively done in rural communities. I am also aware that such communities sometimes lack the facilities and expertise available in the cities and I would hope to be part of the solution to the gap in rural health services.
As the population ages, there is a growing need for physicians who are interested in the medical problems of aging, and this has always been a particular interest of mine. I have worked with elderly patients in the past and have greatly enjoyed doing so. I come from a culture where the aged are incredibly respected and cherished, and specializing in family medicine will also enable me to care for this age group.
I have lived in Russia, undertaking the more significant part of my undergraduate studies in St. Petersburg. I have also lived in Canada and the United States and have traveled to various parts of Europe. I have happily studied, worked, and socialized with people from many cultural and social backgrounds. I enjoy sharing knowledge about my own culture and acquiring such knowledge from others. I am aware of the vital importance of exercising cultural sensitivity in the area of family medicine and will always seek to do so.
I am aware that family medicine residency programs attract many well-qualified applicants. However, I genuinely feel that I am an exceptional candidate; I am highly qualified, I have undertaken significant amounts of both work and research that relates directly to the area of family medicine, and, not least, I am enthusiastically committed to a lifetime career in this specialty.
Successful Family Medicine Residency Personal Statement Examples