{"id":132293,"date":"2022-11-08T16:33:46","date_gmt":"2022-11-08T21:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=132293"},"modified":"2026-03-24T18:45:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T22:45:49","slug":"humbled-and-honored-to-serve-veterans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/humbled-and-honored-to-serve-veterans\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Medical Students Are Humbled and Honored to Serve Veterans"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every UCF medical student spends part of their education caring for military veterans \u2014 an experience they say helps them better understand and appreciate the sacrifices of our nation\u2019s heroes.<\/p>\n

During their third-year clerkships and fourth-year electives, medical students receive training in specialties including surgery, internal medicine, neurology and psychiatry at the Orlando VA Medical Center next door to the College of Medicine in Lake Nona and Bay Pines VA Healthcare system in St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n

Third-year medical student Gary Saloman did his four-week general surgery rotation at the Orlando VA. He observed surgeries, learned laparoscopic surgery techniques and helped with sutures and incisions in the operating room. But he said the interactions with his patients taught him more.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a really humbling experience serving men and women vets with such interesting stories, and to be able to give back to those who have done so much for our country,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

One of the patients he followed came in with abdominal pain and was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. Surgeons performed a palliative procedure to remove a tumor to relieve the patient\u2019s pain. Saloman says the intense experience showed him how medicine and empathy can affect a patient\u2019s condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou learn not to just focus on diseases but how to improve the quality of life as you get to know the patient and what is important to them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The Orlando VA Medical Center opened in 2015 and is one of the nation\u2019s largest VA hospitals, serving the region\u2019s 400,000 veterans. It also houses the VA\u2019s state-of-the-art SimLEARN National Simulation Center, where physicians can train using simulated robotic patients.<\/p>\n

Students say they are particularly struck by how willing veterans are to share their medical and life experiences to help the learners become better physicians. Andrew Taitano, a surgeon at the Orlando VA and associate professor of surgery at the College of Medicine, says he isn\u2019t surprised.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt speaks to the character of the veterans,\u201d he says. \u201cThey are happy to be getting care and want to help students learn to help others in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n