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Look Like
You're my doctor?
You've got to be kidding.
You look like—
I have socks that are older than you.
And then, none of it mattered:
the years,
the degree;
your differential diagnosis
methodically constructed,
the papers I stayed up reading
or how much I cared.
Instead, you turned
to my intern
and asked, what is the plan?
And I wondered,
what should I do to look like a doctor?
Grow a beard, wear high heels,
or buy pretty scrubs
under a fitted white coat,
methodically constructed.
If I don't look like a doctor,
how can I be a cardiologist?
Wear a surgeon's cap;
deepen your voice.
What should I do to look like a cardiologist?
Add "DOCTOR" in big block letters
below the badge
that already says MD.
How many MDs should I wear
to look like a cardiologist?
One more than
I will ever have.
Still, no matter what I
look like,
here to help you is what I
am.
This poem was authored by Christine P. Shen, MD, a cardiovascular fellow at Scripps Clinic. Twitter: @iconsideritjoy.
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