Skip to main content

Learn More About AUC's COVID-19 Response

AUC Med Logo

Mobile Main Nav

  • About AUC
    • About AUC
    • Residency Outcomes
    • Accreditations & Approvals
    • Diversity & Inclusion
    • Facts & Figures
    • St. Maarten Campus
    • UK Track
    • Request Information
    • Blog
    • Viewbook & Factsheets
    • Photo Gallery
    • Meet Our Faculty & Staff
    • Medical School Guides and Resources
  • MD Program
    • MD Program
    • Medical Sciences Curriculum
    • Clinical Sciences
    • Affiliated Hospitals
    • USMLE Preparation
    • OFFICE OF CAREER ADVISEMENT
    • Class Profiles
    • UK Track
    • Medical Education Readiness Program
  • Admissions
    • Admissions
    • Admissions Requirements
    • MCAT Information
    • Admissions Assessment
    • Transferring to AUC
    • Career Changers
    • Non-US Applicants
    • Canadian Student Applicants
    • Tuition & Financial Aid
    • Scholarships
    • How to Apply
  • Student Life
    • Student Life
    • About St. Maarten
    • Safety & Security
    • Health & Wellness
    • Virtual Tour
    • Clubs and Organizations
    • Housing
    • COVID-19 Response
    • Spouses Organization and Families
  • Discover AUC
    • Discover AUC
    • Events
    • On-demand Webinars
    • News & Publications
    • Blog
    • Alumni News
  • Apply
    • Start Your Application
    • Submit Your AMCAS Application
    • Submit Your AACOMAS Application
    • Submit Your TMDSAS Application
    • Continue Your Application
  • Alumni
  • Faculty
  • Students
  • Parents
  • Careers

Secondary Mobile Menu

  • Request Info
  • Apply Now

Social Media Navigation

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Call
  • Request Info
  • Apply Now
  • Alumni
  • Faculty
  • Students
  • Parents
  • Careers

Utility Navigation

  • REQUEST INFO
AUC Med Logo
  • About AUC
    • ABOUT AUC

      Our medical school offers a collaborative learning environment that features a multitude of student organizations, small class sizes, international training opportunities, and a team-based learning culture.

      VIEWBOOK & FACTSHEETS

      • About AUC
      • Residency Outcomes
      • Accreditations & Approvals
      • Diversity & Inclusion
      • Facts & Figures
      • St. Maarten Campus
      • UK Track
      • Request Information
      • Blog
      • Viewbook & Factsheets
      • Photo Gallery
      • Meet Our Faculty & Staff
      • Medical School Guides and Resources
  • MD Program
    • MD PROGRAM

      A US-modeled curriculum designed to prepare you for practice in the US, Canada, and beyond.

      Learn More

      • MD Program
      • Medical Sciences Curriculum
      • Clinical Sciences
      • Affiliated Hospitals
      • USMLE Preparation
      • OFFICE OF CAREER ADVISEMENT
      • Class Profiles
      • UK Track
      • Medical Education Readiness Program
  • Admissions
    • ADMISSIONS

      Our medical school admissions team is eager to assist you as you embark on your journey to become a physician. Our goal is to provide you with all of the information and guidance you need to explore AUC as a medical school option.

      Take the Admissions Assessment

      • Admissions
      • Admissions Requirements
      • MCAT Information
      • Admissions Assessment
      • Transferring to AUC
      • Career Changers
      • Non-US Applicants
      • Canadian Student Applicants
      • Tuition & Financial Aid
      • Scholarships
      • How to Apply
  • Student Life
    • STUDENT LIFE

      Learn what it's like to be a student at AUC, including living in St. Maarten, opportunities for community involvement, and clubs and organizations.

      TAKE THE VIRTUAL TOUR

      • Student Life
      • About St. Maarten
      • Safety & Security
      • Health & Wellness
      • Virtual Tour
      • Clubs and Organizations
      • Housing
      • COVID-19 Response
      • Spouses Organization and Families
  • Discover AUC
    • DISCOVER AUC

      From our alumni news, to informative blogs, and virtual tour, discover all that AUC offers.

      Learn More
      • Discover AUC
      • Events
      • On-demand Webinars
      • News & Publications
      • Blog
      • Alumni News
  • Apply
      • Start Your Application
      • Submit Your AMCAS Application
      • Submit Your AACOMAS Application
      • Submit Your TMDSAS Application
      • Continue Your Application
  • Apply Now
      • Start Your Application
      • Submit Your AMCAS Application
      • Submit Your AACOMAS Application
      • Submit your TMDSAS Application
      • Continue Your Application
Pattern Two
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
Alumni News
Global Health

A woman smiling

Share

  • facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • email

Breadcrumb

  1. About Us
  2. News & Publications
  3. Aimee Shock, MD ‘17 Traces Passion for Global Health to Experiences at AUC

Aimee Shock, MD ‘17 Traces Passion for Global Health to Experiences at AUC

Ever since Aimee Shock, MD ‘17 spent a month in Zimbabwe during medical school, she’s made it a priority to infuse global health perspectives into her approach to patient care. Today, she has the opportunity to do just that as an internal medicine resident participating in the Global Health track at MedStar Health in Baltimore, through an affiliation with Georgetown University Hospital.

Dr. Shock is one of many AUC graduates who have completed the Global Health Elective, an immersive clerkship offered through a partnership with Danbury Hospital and the Western Connecticut Health Network (WCHN). Through this collaboration, students can travel to one of several different countries to experience medical care in a new environment.  

For Dr. Shock, attending AUC’s medical sciences campus in Sint Maarten was the spark that enabled her to develop her growing interest in global health. 

“During my time in Sint Maarten, we were able to go to the hospital there, which was basically my first experience with global medicine. I absolutely loved it,” says Dr. Shock. “I also did some service work through Community Action Day and Phi Chi [AUC’s service fraternity] with the orphanage on island, which was a very rewarding experience.”  

Traveling to Zimbabwe for the Global Health elective brought a new dimension to her understanding of medicine. 

“We worked in the medical wards and the pediatric wards, the emergency department, and the HIV clinic,” Dr. Shock remembers. “When you’re learning medicine without all the resources you’ve come to expect, it’s completely different. A lot of the medicine is based on taking a really good patient history and physical exam since lab testing and imaging aren’t available.” 

A Cross-Cultural Approach to Medicine 

Her experience in Zimbabwe inspired her to seek out similar opportunities during residency. The Medstar/Georgetown Global Health track was a perfect fit: Residents could complete several monthlong rotations at sites ranging from Thailand to Namibia or Colombia. These experiences would be complemented by regular didactics, featuring lecturers specializing in economics, epidemiology, global health and other fields.  

Earlier this year, Dr. Shock traveled to Ecuador as one of her rotations in the program. After practicing tropical medicine and working the clinic in the mornings, she joined fellow residents in taking conversational and medical Spanish language classes in the afternoons.  

All of her international experiences have left her with plenty of lessons that have remained invaluable long after she’s returned stateside. “Culturally, there’s a lot about the American health system that is easy to take for granted,” she says. “Going abroad to certain areas and seeing the doctors there working with so little—in areas with few social programs, extreme poverty and political instability—is just eye-opening. And yet, many doctors in resource-limited countries take the time to focus on things that are very hurried here in the United States.” 

Her time abroad has emphasized the importance of the biopsychosocial model and being attuned to the social determinants of health.  

“In the U.S., it’s not always common to check on the physical needs of patients as it is in other countries,” Dr. Shock says. “It’s so important to know about food and security, access to clean running water, whether a patient has a reliable job or transportation. For example, if a blood pressure medication isn’t working for a patient in the U.S., the initial response from the doctor may be to try another one. But you have to ask the patient, how often are you taking the meds? Can you pick them up reliably? And, do you fully understand what these meds are for and why you need them? I think these kinds of questions should be part of every interview.”   

Dr. Shock hopes to return to Sint Maarten to complete a rotation one day. Until then, she’s putting her lessons learned into practice. 

“[These experiences] have helped me to ask more questions of my patients,” says Dr. Shock. “Often, it’s easy to feel rushed to put in labs, put in imaging, but if you sit with patients, get a good history, and just talk with them, there’s always something you can learn.”  

Dr. Shock recently spoke as a panelist on an AUC webinar, "Exploring the Benefits of a Global Perspective in Medicine." Watch the recording here >>

 

Recommended for you:
  • Silvia Pereira-Smith, MD '12 on Increasing Access to Healthcare and Dissolving Language Barriers
  • Pediatric Resident Auriel Mouzon, MD '17 Advocates for Diversity in Medicine While Helping Patients Through the Pandemic
  • On-Demand Webinar: Exploring the Benefits of a Global Perspective in Medicine

 

Related News

News
Ashlyn Brown Match
A FIRST-CHOICE MATCH FOR ASHLYN BROWN MEANS HEADING HOME TO TEXAS
Accomplished athlete reimagines career helping rehab patients.
News
Commencement-2022-Tassels
AUC Celebrates Graduates at 2022 Commencement Ceremony
The ceremony recognized the accomplishments of recent graduates and their dedication to the field of medicine.
News
Melissa McCarthy 2
Dr. Melissa McCarthy ’18 Accepts Indiana University’s Motorsports Medicine Fellowship
For Melissa McCarthy, MD ’18, the Indy 500 is more than a race – it is a part of her family history.
Top
AUC Med Logo

Footer Social Media Navigation

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Careers
  • Student Email
  • Colleague Email
  • Contact
  • Sitemap

ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE

1600 SW 80th TERRACE, SUITES 100 AND 200
PLANTATION, FL 33324
PHONE: 305-446-0600

TOLL-FREE: 866-DR2B-AUC
(866-372-2282)
FAX: 305-444-6791

ST. MAARTEN CAMPUS

1 UNIVERSITY DRIVE AT JORDAN ROAD, CUPECOY, ST. MAARTEN

PHONE: +1 721-545-2298

FAX: +1 721-545-2440

PRESTON, UK PROGRAM SITE

VERNON BUILDING ROOM 64, SIZER STREET PRESTON, LANCASHIRE PR1 1JQ

PHONE: +1 721-545-2298

FAX: +305-444-2440

American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine (ACCM, www.accredmed.org), which is the accreditor used by the country of St. Maarten.

 

© 2022 American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine. All rights reserved.   
Privacy Policy | Student Consumer Information | Online Cookie Policy | Accessibility | Catalog and Student Handbook | Office of Equity and Access

 

  • Call
  • Chat
  • Request Info
  • Apply Now
  • Alumni
  • Faculty
  • Students
  • Parents
  • Careers
  • "Chat Now"