She took a winding path to find her passion in medicine, and it took some extra time, but she ended up where she belongs. Indiana Best, a Métis woman, grew up in Calgary and currently lives in Saskatoon. Her ancestors are from White Plains, Manitoba. She got her undergraduate degree from the University of Calgary, then moved to Saskatoon to pursue a Master of Public Health degree. Now, she’s working on a degree in medicine.

In her third year of medical school, Best spends most of her time at the hospital or in the clinic. Third year students complete rotations, or clerkships, in specific areas and Best is currently in a surgery block. She meets with patients before surgery, follows up after and is part of the surgeries when they happen, though she mostly observes. The first two years of the program are mostly classroom learning and she’s happy to now be putting what she’s learned to work with real patients.

As a child, Best wanted to be a doctor though she didn’t really understand what it meant, having no family in the healthcare field. Her undergraduate degree was in health science, a challenging course of study that included a lot of lab-based science, something she didn’t enjoy as much.

Moving into public health, Best hoped to have an impact on society through public policy and healthcare infrastructure development but she found she didn’t get as much community connection or much conversation with patients. Instead, her work focused on broader public health themes. Medicine was a better blend of challenging academics with hands-on connection to community. Where lab-based science and public health wasn’t for her, medicine turned out to be perfect, with opportunities for research, advocacy, and clinical practice.

Her advice for youth considering leaving their home community to go to school would be, “It's absolutely an opportunity that might seem really scary, but any type of education, any type of broadening your horizon, is really going to be beneficial… It's good to take that leap of faith, and you never know where you're going to end up, too.” Best continues to say, “Try not to be scared, although being scared or being fearful is natural, but also just really follow your interests and try to pick somewhere that's not too far from home.” Still being close to Alberta in Saskatoon was helpful for maintaining connection. “Connection to family throughout going to school is really important,” she concludes.

While she’s faced many obstacles so far, Best also recognizes and feels gratitude for the opportunities she’s been afforded. In the first two years of her undergraduate degree, she struggled with academics and also with the size of her classes which included hundreds of students relative to her small high school graduating class of under one hundred people. Trying to keep up in a different learning environment, she didn’t always know who to ask for help.

Given her family didn’t attend post-secondary, Best didn’t have anyone to ask for advice around course planning and other practical advice about balancing her first years. Another challenge she faced was undertaking research with the Metis community in grad school but not having community connections in her new province. Tragically, she also lost her identical twin sister to a cardiac arrhythmia and the accompanying grief was and continues to be both a significant barrier and a chance to show resilience.

To maintain her wellness, Best took time off after her sister passed away, but she returned to school and repeated her first year. What she reminds herself and others of is, “Everyone goes through a different journey, and life doesn't look the same for everyone, everyone's path is different.” She’s learned that she needs rest and time to recharge, time alone reading and journaling. She also likes to collage and bead. Key to balance has been the realization, “It's just about finding something that makes you feel happy, and that's something that you kind of have to force yourself to make the time for.”

With how busy medical school is, she’s also found that there’s only a certain amount of study she can complete without taking time for herself. Beyond that, she’s not at her best as a learner or practitioner. Best advises “to not be afraid to take time for yourself, and whatever that means, whether that means going for walks, connecting with friends, just whatever makes you feel kind of happy.”

Looking back, Best wishes someone had told her, “It's okay that your path isn't linear. It's okay if you take a few extra years to do a degree, it's okay if you take time to work, it's okay if you just try to figure out who you are in this world.” She understands now that sometimes you have to figure out who you are by living and that goals can be achieved through many paths.

When it comes to inspiration, Best is inspired by her twin sister and wanting to make her proud. She also wants to make a difference in people’s lives and brings a sense of respect and understanding to her practice, hoping to treat others the way she would want her loved ones treated. She values empathy and people feeling heard and valued. As a medical student, she has more time to provide care and deep down she just wants to do right by people.

Her tips for coping with identity struggles and community loss would be to reach out to someone to talk to and to give voice to their needs and how they want to be cared for. In a world of social media where people often share the highlight reel, Best believes it’s important to remember that people struggle with challenges and that that experience makes them who they are and builds strength. She shares her own experiences of needing to repeat a year and still being successful to make sure people know, “it’s okay to fail or it’s okay to take a step back.”

Her winding path to find her passion in medicine took some extra time, but ultimately, Indiana Best’s right where she belongs. After personal tragedy struck, she found her way back to school to try again and work towards becoming the kind of doctor she wants most to be. Full of empathy, respect and care, she treats patients the way she would want to be treated, bringing the golden rule into her practice and living it every day.

Thanks to Alison Tedford Seaweed for authoring this article.