MEDICAL SCHOOL EVALUATION & GRADUATION
ALL IN THE FAMILY
A Love for Medicine Bridges the Generation Gap By David Henkes, MD and Nichole Henkes, MS-II
what was more important was them being happy with the vocation they chose. Never Make Predictions I predicted my son would be most likely to go into medicine. My daughter, Nichole, was smart, but I worried some of the unpleasant experiences in medicine would turn her off: gangrenous limbs, colonoscopies, etc. My son, Daniel, chose another dream—aerospace engineering at NASA. Instead, it was Nichole who stepped forward to follow in my footsteps. Trial by Fire When Nichole said she wanted to go premed in college, I said to myself, “Let’s show her some of the no-glitz and glitter that doctors do and see if she can really cut the mustard.” I set her up to shadow physician friends doing colonoscopies, amputations removing foulsmelling gangrenous limbs and organ transplantation. I thought she might last a day, but instead, she was intrigued. The more she saw the profession, the more her passion grew.
THE BOOMER: David Henkes, MD When my children were in grade school, I wondered how they felt about me being a physician, especially my activities in TMA, AMA and specialty organizations. It meant yearly summer vacations in Chicago or other cities while Dad spent his days in meetings. Would this discourage their interest in pursuing a career in medicine? 22
SAN ANTONIO MEDICINE • June 2021
My Secret Wish Many years ago, I remember talking with colleagues about their children. Some encouraged and were very proud their children followed them into medicine; others were adamant that their children should not. The differences were striking. Secretly, I hoped my children would go into medicine, but
Competition College pre-med was difficult. Professors discouraged students from pursuing medical school. At that time, it seemed inappropriate, but now I can understand why: At Baylor, nearly 30% of freshmen plan to attend medical school after graduation, but of those, less than 25% complete the medical school application process, with about 18% admitted. Collaboration Time passes quickly: Nichole is nearly an MS-III. She has done well, achieving high honors in every course. I feel proud when she calls to ask me a medical question, especially
