At NUHS, we take great pride in our students’ dedication to learning and their willingness to embrace new challenges in real-world settings. Liza Marszalek, student in the Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine program at NUHS-Florida, exemplifies this commitment. Her participation as a student volunteer at the Boston Marathon showcased her ability to adapt in high-pressure situations while providing exceptional patient care. We are honored to share her reflections on this transformative experience and the profound impact it has had on her journey as a future health care provider.
I’ve worked numerous events throughout my academic and professional career, including time as a strength coach before beginning at NUHS. I hold a master’s degree in Exercise and Sports Science with a concentration in Strength and Conditioning, along with being a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS).
The Boston Marathon exposed me to a completely new level of patient care and pushed me outside my comfort zone. Prior to this, my responsibilities at events focused mainly on soft tissue work with low-risk patients who voluntarily sought care.
At the marathon, I assisted at the finish line, helping identify distressed runners, conducting quick assessments and transporting them by wheelchair to the medical tent. There, we delivered a brief report on the patient’s condition to the medical team. It was a fast-paced, high-stakes environment that demanded quick thinking, teamwork and adaptability.
This experience ignited a new passion and helped me envision a different direction for my career. It also broadened my understanding of patient care in high-pressure environments and reinforced the importance of adaptability, communication and teamwork. It was a defining moment in my clinical journey and one that has deeply shaped my approach as a future health care provider.
In class, we spend countless hours evaluating standardized patients, analyzing mock clinical scenarios, a choosing from multiple-choice answers to assess situations. However, the real world is far more complex. Our decisions carry weight beyond a missed point an assignment or a delayed realization that we could have taken a better clinical approach.
Similarly, working the marathon was a world apart from the controlled environment of a clinic or classroom. Many runners required rapid, clear-headed decision-making under pressure. The margin for error felt razor-thin, and the consequences were much more immediate. The choices we made in those crucial two to four minutes truly mattered.
This was an experience unlike anything a classroom lecture or standardized patient encounter could provide. It was also the first time chiropractic students had the opportunity to participate in an emergency medical event of this scale. The event was truly one of a kind– and it profoundly reshaped how I plan to practice, how I will evaluate future patients and the overall direction of my career.
