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2 0 1 3 S P ECIAL HOO D IN G CE R E M ONY Peoria graduates gather to celebrate their regional convocation ceremony on May 4. is to a human soul," she said, adding in her own words, "Your mastery of a body of scientific and professional knowledge, your analytic skills and your passion to improve health and to advance and enhance the human condition have been shaped and reshaped by your time here on this campus and in this college. As you leave this facility this afternoon, please keep a relentless commitment to innovation and scientific discovery. Resolve to bring the same intelligence, diligence and energy we celebrate today to your profession, to your personal lives and to your communities." One of the day's highlights was the address by American Medical Association President Jeremy Lazarus, MD '68 (see related story, page 30). Clearly affected by the powerful words of this distinguished alumnus, the medical students and postgraduate degree candidates prepared for the final, and most emotional, part of the day. Cheers erupted as the last of the students collected their diplomas and the members of the graduating class switched the tassels on their caps from right to left in unison. "It is still so surreal. It hasn't really sunk in yet," said Heather Belcher, MD '13, who is heading on to Kaiser Permanente in Woodland Hills, Calif., to begin her residency in family medicine. "This is a dream I've had forever." "I am excited and relieved," added Kasim Ali, MD '13, who will be starting a residency in radiology at Rush. "I feel like we have all of the skills we need to succeed as doctors —clinically and humanistically. We have been prepared to work in many different environments with many different people." As the members of the Class of 2013 filed out of the UIC Pavilion with their families and friends, they carried this parting advice from Class President Dempsey Hughes into the next chapters of their medical careers and their lives: "Hippocrates once wrote: `Wherever the art of medicine is loved, there is also a love of humanity.' Each of us, at our very core, has a fundamental desire to help others, or else we wouldn't be here. When patients show up at your door, they are coming to you because they need help, and they believe that you are the person with the knowledge and the skills to help them. "Listen to them," Hughes implored. "Understand why they are coming to you, so that you can figure out how best to help them. And when the appointments or procedures are completed, care that your patients have safe shelter to return to, care that they have support outside of the hospital, care that they have access to continued medical care. It won't make you a good doctor — it will make you a great one." Graduate Ana Sisson is congratulated by Dean Dimitri T. Azar after receiving her hood from her father, Dr. George Sisson, during the pre-commencement ceremony. A Moment of Gravitas and Gratitude C ommencement Day at the College of Medicine is an event steeped in tradition and time-honored rituals. One of these rituals — the hooding of graduating medical students — dates to the Middle Ages. Held on the morning of Commencement Day, the ceremony gives graduates an opportunity to receive their Doctorate of Medicine hoods from a mentor, family member or friend who has played a significant role in their lives or academic careers. "Today's ceremony is rich in tradition," Dean Dimitri T. Azar, MD, MBA, told the graduates and guests. "It is an opportunity to celebrate and share your achievements with those individuals who have supported and guided you." Keynote speaker Anjuli S. Nayak, MD, Res '81, an associate professor of pediatrics at the College of Medicine, urged the young doctors to think holistically. "If you wish to provide health, you must keep the individual, the family, the community and society whole," she advised. "If you can do this, yours will be a truly holy pursuit." After Nayak's address, 58 graduates were called up to the stage one by one to be hooded, as more than 400 guests looked on. The solemnity that prevailed as each hood was draped over a graduate's shoulders frequently gave way to smiles, a warm handshake and an emotional embrace. "The individuals who have hooded you today will remain forever at the center of your intellectual compass," Azar said. "As you begin your careers as physicians, our challenge to you is to share your knowledge with your students as your mentors have shared their knowledge with you." — Susan Reich illinois medicine | 27