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I was also interested in science. But that didn’ t satisfy my desire to enact meaningful change in my community. Eventually I realized that medicine was an avenue for me to have a positive impact in people’ s lives while combining my love for science with my creativity and innate curiosity. When I told my dad I was interested in medicine, he sat me down and pointedly asked me if I was sure. He wanted to make sure that I understood that there was a long road ahead filled with hard work and sacrifices, and that I wasn’ t picking medicine due to a lack of knowledge of other career paths. But I wasn’ t choosing this because it was the only path I knew. I was choosing this because following his example of service, compassion and care was the greatest thing I could think of. Despite other paths I had tried to follow, I always found myself drawn back to medicine. I knew that even on my worst day as a doctor, I would have still tried to help somebody. The experiences I had shadowing in our town hospital and various departments in the local clinic solidified my decision, as I learned more about different specialties and paths in medicine. I’ ve worked as a scribe in multiple cities, learning more about various health care settings while getting to engage more with patients. Throughout my journey to medical school, my dad has been an invaluable resource to me with his professional advice and encouragement.
While he has worked incredibly hard in his professional life, any description of my father would be incomplete without noting his commitment to his family. Despite juggling so many professional roles, he was home every single evening to spend time with us. Most nights, he would return to the hospital to round on his patients but without fail, he was sitting at the dinner table at 6 p. m. waiting for us.
He was at piano recitals, volleyball games and academic competitions, cheering me on at every event. I’ ll never understand how he can make everyone feel like they are his priority, and make it look so easy. I can only hope to emulate that in my own life. Even as an adult, if I am ever having car trouble, need life advice or just want to say hello, he makes time for every phone call.
While my dad has been an incredible mentor to me throughout my life, we’ ve never been closer than now after I’ ve started medical school. A part of me will always view him as a larger-than-life hero but now we have discussions about new medical innovations and share medical memoirs to read. He’ s given me his old textbooks to study for my exams, filled with his old annotations that I can trace over and imagine him in my shoes 30 years ago. I like to think that this partnership isn’ t one-sided. Inspired by my sister and me, my dad has begun precepting for University of Kentucky medical students on their rural health rotations. In 2024, he was awarded the Outstanding Mentorship Award, highlighting just another avenue that he is passionate about. I’ ve always admired my father, and medicine has allowed us to understand one another even more. I can appreciate his journey through a different lens, as I navigate making choices about my future career. I am excited about what the future holds for me, and I know that I have a wonderful support system behind me. It will be an incredible honor to become Dr. Sheth one day and have the chance to carry this legacy forward.
Aashka Sheth is a third-year medical student at the University of Louisville School of Medicine.
This essay was a submission to the 2025 Richard Spear, MD, Memorial Essay Contest.
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