Tomatology Personal Statement

In 2008, I took a trip with my family to Lagos, Nigeria, my homeland. Nigeria is a country that is rich with natural resources, culture, and a lot of fun. It is, however, lacking in other aspects. During this trip, I visited a public hospital- to see a sick family member- and witnessed a situation where a mother gave birth to premature twins in the obstetrics unit. As a result of the mother going into early labor, her twins had to be put in an incubator to ensure their survival. The electricity was suddenly cut, as is considered normal in the country, and so was the power supply to and electricity- dependent equipment in that hospital. As we already know, certain industries, including medical, generally keep generators on standby in case

As a senior, I am currently faced with thoughts of what comes next in life. I now have to really think about and plan for my future alongside college applications and school work. With my other responsibilities, I also volunteer at Ocean Medical Center. It has afforded me the opportunity to learn about what I want to do in the future. Learning of the death of the twins in Nigeria gave me my first hint of what I would like to do within the medical field. Volunteering at the hospital helped me to further explore my options and confirm that neonatology is the field of my choice. It was confirmed the day I encountered my first premature baby. I was volunteering at the hospital and I had walked past the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Watching the babies lie helplessly, and in need of some kind of technology to keep them alive, made me both curious and emotional. This moment pushed me to do research on premature babies and I discovered the field of neonatology as a potential medical field. I learned that the neonatology unit of a hospital deals with premature babies and babies with a higher risk of