The Room in the Corner
Still lungs. / Silent heart. / Time of death: 2:40.
Tag: Art in Medicine
Resident Physician Contributing Writer
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
Dr. Jennifer Geller is a general surgery resident at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. She completed medical school at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School with distinctions in bioethics and medical humanities and during that time served as both Managing Editor and later Editor-in-Chief of In-Training. She is a graduate of Brandeis University with majors in Biology and Chemistry. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys baking, hiking and spending time with friends and family.
Milestones
Wrinkly face and wonky head; I support your wobbly neck. No matter the emotion, you respond with a cry.
A Tale of Two Worlds
It was the most joyful of times. It was the most horrific of times. A week before my first child was born,
an act of terror occurred on the other side of the world.
Well Child Visit
Hello, come in, / and welcome to peds clinic! / My attention is on you / for the next 20 minutes.
Yearning for Better Opportunities at Home
Home became a dark / place, and I miss the feeling / of warmth on my face
The Life of a Medical Student: A Photo Essay
During my medical school journey at the University of Maryland, I created this photography series as an introspective representation of my experiences and to portray some of the unseen challenges and realities of medical training that, for example, are not seen on “medfluencer’s” pages — some feelings, experiences, and stories I wish I would have known prior to embarking on this career path.
Levity
At the turn of every corner / I will be found out / You will see / The fraud in me
The Newborn Perspective
Don’t you forget the first day of life, / You had turned upside down / And a tight slap upon your backside / Even to get you to breathe!
Along the Road: A Perspective on Medical Training in a Pandemic
It feels odd to have family members in the hospital regularly again. My patient’s wife approaches cautiously; for a second I pretend not to see her. She looks like she wants to talk and I’m afraid she wants good news I can’t give, promises I can’t make, and time I don’t feel like I have. She wants time to tell me her loved one’s stories.
Stargazer
Graduation gown: shiny, matching cap / She looks up / With aspirations
A Second Home (2019)
Scared and frightened, we came in as interns / We had the knowledge, but we needed direction
A Story of Artistic Reclamation (2019)
Here I am, come and get me! A playful provocation we have all used with much more than literal meaning as a mantra. But going through the rigors, chills and metaphorical bacteremia of medical education, I lost some of the pieces that made me confident to be myself.
Fellow Physician Contributing Writer
Johns Hopkins University / National Institutes of Health
Dr. Michael Barbato is a pediatric hematology oncology fellow at Johns Hopkins University/National Institutes of Health. He is specializing in epigenetic research and considering a bone marrow transplant clinical focus. He is interested in advocating for maintaining professional and personal life balance in medicine and physician burnout. He is particularly passionate about the arts and how they can be used as expressions in medicine. He can be found on Instagram @mibarbato.