I first applied to AELPS in 2020–yes, that 2020. I was a first-year medical student at the time, very very new to the field, and had yet to even complete a clinical rotation. I learned I was accepted to the program in March of that year, shortly before I learned that the program would be rescheduled to later in the summer, and then eventually to the following summer (and then the summer after that!)
Two years later, it seems as though the program will finally be able to occur safely. I am now at the end of my third year of medical school, with my clinical rotations nearly complete. I’m a bit more experienced and a bit more informed than I was when I first applied to this program, as I only a had semester of medical school under my belt at the time. The patient safety concepts that I wrote about in my application were more theoretical back then, but I have now had the opportunity to see them play out in the clinical setting. These topics feel even more salient now that I’ve been able to work with patients firsthand and have a greater appreciation for how the medical system operates.
I will be applying to residency this fall, and I feel that this program is coming at a wonderful time, despite the fact that it is occurring later than originally planned. My hope is that I will learn more about the concepts and methods that patient-safety-oriented institutions utilize, and that I will be able to be more discerning in my quickly-approaching residency application process as a result.