Q&A with Bonnie

"Besides the London and Windsor hospitals, Schulich Medicine has a large network of rural and community locations. I have completed rotations and observerships in Stratford, Wingham, Owen Sound, Woodstock, and St. Thomas. Since I hope to do rural locums in the future, the large network of distributed education sites was a draw for me."

Bonnie
MD Class of 2025

Click here to contact Bonnie

Why did you decide to pursue medical school?

Prior to medical school, I volunteered with the Canadian Red Cross as a connector between socially-isolated older adults and their doctors. I met many faces of the geriatric population, learned about their complex health needs, and heard about the impact doctors made on patient lives. Following this, I worked closely with doctors as a triager at a fast-paced walk-in clinic. Seeing up close their qualities of problem-solving, scholarly acumen, and compassion for patients solidified my desire to become a doctor.

What was your academic or life journey to applying to medical school?

Prior to medical school, I completed a Bachelors in Health Sciences (Honours) at McMaster University with a thesis in hematology.

What do you love about Schulich Medicine?

  1. The people. Classmates are so supportive, collaborative and diverse in backgrounds, and faculty are all very knowledgeable in their field.
  2. Learning medicine. Dissecting cadavers in anatomy labs, reviewing cardiology with faculty-run Jeopardy, learning clinical skills through simulation labs. Upper years also pass on many learning resources.
  3. The sites. Besides the London and Windsor hospitals, Schulich Medicine has a large network of rural and community locations. I have completed rotations and observerships in Stratford, Wingham, Owen Sound, Woodstock, and St. Thomas. Since I hope to do rural locums in the future, the large network of distributed education sites was a draw for me.

What organizations or extracurricular activities are you involved in through medical school?

I was involved in the Schulich Geriatric Interest Group, Global Health Committee, Rural Medicine Interest Group, Teddy Bear Hospital (health outreach to local kindergarten classrooms), and Produce Prescription (nutrition education). Additionally, I am a Tachycardia producer (med student musical) and sang for Schulichpalooza (med student band).

Outside of school, I volunteer with the Canadian Red Cross and work part-time as a research assistant for the McMaster Centre for Transfusions Research where I did my thesis. Extracurriculars are very important to me and make med school all the more fulfilling!

What has your experiential learning been like thus far?

I was lucky to complete rural observerships in Stratford, Wingham and St. Marys the summer after 1st year, including Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Surgery, and Anaesthesia.

The summer after 2nd year, I completed a 5-week observership in Rwanda, run as a partnership between Western’s Africa Institute and the Government of Canada’s Global Skills Program. I observed Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Surgery, Ophthalmology, Anaesthesia, Paediatrics, and Psychiatry in three different regional hospitals in Kigali.

Why did you become a Student Ambassador?

I understand the importance of mentorship as I had many amazing supports in pre-med and in medical school.

While in medical school, I have been involved in Schulich ACCESS as a mentor for underrepresented pre-med applicants and Big Sibs/Little Sibs as a mentor for first year medical students. It was always awarding to see my mentees get acceptances and to see my under-years begin to thrive and find their place at School.

What do you wish you knew before you were accepted to the MD Program?

Schulich Medicine is amazing due to its flexibility for you to pursue opportunities (eg. research, observership in any specialty, extracurriculars) outside of the classroom. In 2nd year, we had Wednesdays off and our in-person classes were only booked in the afternoons. Since Schulich Medicine has something similar to flipped classroom learning, where most of the new material is delivered via online modules, there is a lot of flexibility time-wise as long you kept up to the weekly schedule. I also appreciated how many assessments in pre-clerkship were formative and thus lower-stakes.

What do you like to do for fun?

I like to bike, bake (egg tarts especially), watch and analyze A24 movies, read poetry books, and organize the next post-exam or birthday hotpot for my friends. I always try to make time to be with my family and my partner, who is also a healthcare worker.

What is your favourite local attraction, activity or restaurant?

In terms of activities, I recommend rollerblading at London community centre, exploring Covent Garden Market and Museum of London, and biking down Banana Kingdom on a good day.

In terms of restaurants, I recommend Mykonos (Greek food), Korean Jokbal and Chicken Plus. There are many options along Richmond. 

What is a fun fact about yourself?

In 1st and 2nd year of medical school, I had an orange tabby cat called Osler, named after Sir William Osler. He was a Zoom celebrity during COVID online school.

Where is your favourite campus study location?

International & Graduate Affairs building (love how they made the outdoors ‘indoors’ complete with lamp-posts and evergreen trees). Sorry MSB basement!