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Ava Stoddard

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General information

Hobbies & Interests

  • Psychology
  • Biology
  • Graphic Design
  • Education
  • Teaching

Reading

  • Academic

I read books multiple times a week.

Bio

Growing up I had an awful phobia of needles and getting shots. I would have never, ever, considered becoming a health care professional, but when I was fourteen I had to have major knee surgery, and it took me 12 months to recover. However, because of that injury, despite how hard that was for me, I was put in a situation to learn about the medical field. I attended physical therapy for six months post-operation, and I quickly fell in love with every aspect of patient care, human anatomy, and creative problem solving that health care professionals address. It is because of that life experience that I was able to realize my desire to pursue biology and psychology. It is the impossible complexity of cell mitosis, the incredible ability for our body to clean our own blood, and the amazingly instantaneous processing of our brains that fuels my drive to reach my goals. I know that if I want to graduate college with my major, get into medical school, and go into the surgical field I desire, I will have to be nothing less than deeply zealous for learning, and more importantly, helping others. I want to do research with brilliant passionate people. I want to go through all the awful sleep deprived nights to earn the right to help patients. I want to struggle and fight to discover that mysterious diagnosis. I want to fix infuriating problems. I want to pursue areas of study in which I can continuously learn. I want to have the knowledge, mental strength, and clarity to help others in a way that only someone truly passionate about their field could. My ultimate goal and dream career is working as a general surgeon in a trauma center hospital. I enjoy abdominal surgeries and anatomy, and I would like to work in a trauma center hospital because I enjoy fast-paced work. When I think about what a trauma surgeon needs it’s so compelling and exciting to me. A trauma surgeon has to have intellectual strength to have the knowledge required to help patients, he or she has to have emotional strength to not get caught up in the emotions of the patient or family members too much to disturb their quality of work, they have to master calmness yet excellence in moments of chaos, and they have to have perfect technique in order to aid rather than harm patients. This combination of individual challenge and excellence is captivating. I want to do great things, and I need help getting there.

Education

Vance-Granville Community College

High School

2017 – Present

Career

  • Sales Associate

    Retail · Lily Mae's

    Jan 2017 – Jan 2017

  • Barista/Costumer Service

    Food & Beverages · Coffee Lodge

    Jan 2018 – Jan 2018

  • Team Member

    Food · Culver's

    Jan 2018 – Jan 2018

  • Team Member

    Food · Chick-fil-A

    Jan 2018 – Jan 2019

  • Barista/Costumer Service/ Kitchen

    Food & Beverages · Jubala Coffee

    Jan 2019 – Jan 2019

Miscellaneous

Dream career field:
Medical Practice
Dream career goals:
Surgeon
Has nursing license:
No

Future Interests

  • Advocacy
  • Volunteering
  • Philanthropy
  • Entrepreneurship
Bookworm Scholarship
One key lesson I have learned, or topic I have come to learn and understand, is how the humanity of health care professionals effects their work and their spirits. Some key books that have shed light on this for me are Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death, and Brain Surgery by Henry Marsh, Patient Care by Paul Seward, and Confessions of a Surgeon by Paul A. Ruggieri. I have enjoyed learning about and preparing myself emotionally and mentally for the ware that surgeons face, because I want to pursue a career as a general trauma surgeon. It is fascinating to see these writers’ struggles between their own short comings and understanding their jobs and all the baggage that comes with them. For instance, health care professionals have review boards where they have to discuss their cases that contained error and ended with the death of a patient. It is that honest and raw confrontation of human error and fault that is able to keep surgeons honest and, I think overall, humble. The approach to medicine has to be honest and zealous, because anything else is not in the patients’ favor. I was able to see this in real life not too long ago. I was volunteering in a hospital where most cases that came through our unit were related to optometry and urology. One morning, not long after I had clocked in, we had an unusual case come in as a post-operation patient. It was a woman who had just had a miscarriage of her 19 week old baby. I still remember her weeping. She knew it was a girl. For the rest of my four hour shift I listened to her sob uncontrollably, and I fought tears back the entire time. I couldn’t understand how the nurses working in my unit couldn’t even seem as bothered, until I realized they couldn’t afford to. They couldn’t afford to get deeply emotionally involved in heartbreaking cases, or else they would burn out from mental and emotional exhaustion. I realized from further reading that those nurses weren’t weak because they couldn’t empathize without burning out, but in fact were stronger than I could even imagine at the time for being able to keep themselves caring enough to be good nurses, but detached enough to be able to do their jobs at hand. I have learned that a great surgeon must have a tender heart and a genuine desire to help people, but the endurance and clarity to understand that they are in fact human, bound to make mistakes. I have learned that it is a hard field to work in, because of the emotional wear it can have, yet I have never heard a surgeon say they wish they had not gone into the medical field. That’s telling. Beneath the hardships and brokenness, each health care professional just wants to help others. I have to believe that they would not have made it to where they are if they did not genuinely have that desire. That is beautiful to me, and I think that is one of the biggest lessons I have learned from reading. I will face tragedy and will have to confront my own errors, but if I sincerely want to help other people, I will find a way.