Honorable Mention Runners-Up Vie for Readers' Choice Award via Online Voting
St. Louis, MO, January 16, 2018- PracticeMatch, the company that matches physicians and advanced practice clinicians with top healthcare employers nationwide, announces the winner of its first annual Empowered Physician Scholarship essay contest. Mr. Oliver Sroka, a medical student at the University of Florida, was awarded the $2,000 scholarship when his essay was selected by the judges' panel as the winning entry.
Future physicians applied for the scholarship by submitting an essay about their journey of becoming a doctor, including how they hope to make a positive impact via their medical career. In his winning essay, Sroka candidly shared how his cancer diagnosis as a 19-year-old college student further motivated and inspired him to achieve his goals and continue to pursue a medical career, despite extremely challenging obstacles. Sroka recalls in the essay how, as a patient, his oncologist's optimism and encouragement were a calming presence for him during a difficult time, and he attributes his recovery to his support team of physicians, family, and friends.
"Trying to decide [my] academic future while not knowing if I would actually live through it, is not what I thought college would be like," wrote Sroka, who missed months of school for chemotherapy. In his essay, the future physician went on to describe that post-diagnosis timeframe as some of the worst days of his life, as a "frustrated, and scared" student with an uncertain future. "After [that] experience, I realize that every second of every day is an opportunity to make a difference in the world," Sroka wrote.
"The [scholarship] money I receive from PracticeMatch will go towards my tuition here at the University of Florida College of Medicine," Sroka states. "This award will help me continue my medical education, and learn how to provide the highest quality of care, and become a great physician. The financial burden of a medical education can be stressful at times, but this scholarship will allow me to spend less time worrying about finances, and more time on what truly matters: my patients," he concludes.
"Congratulations to Oliver Sroka and all of the runners-up. The PracticeMatch team is excited to be able to recognize the hard work of these diligent, devoted future physicians, and to assist with the financial burden of medical education, states Mike York, CEO of PracticeMatch. "I think everyone will enjoy reading about these empowered physicians as much as we enjoyed getting to know them from their compelling essays, and learning about their bright futures in medicine. I know these individuals will continue to make a positive impact on many lives in the coming years."