“WHEN I WAS A STUDENT” WITH D-R NENAD LAZAROV: “I SLEPT WITH A SKELETON UNDER THE BED TO STUDY ANATOMY”

Nenad Lazarov is a representative of a young generation of doctors who in the past ten years have brought freshness to our healthcare, above all, when it comes to the patient-doctor relationship. Known for always directly and publicly expressing his opinion about what is good and what lacks in our country’s healthcare, Dr. Lazarov practices medicine in the same way, transparently posting on social networks about his daily professional activities.

Dr. Lazarov is the owner of the practice “Vera”, and for some time he has also been working at the hospital “Sante Plus” as an obstetrician/gynecologist.

In the column “When I was a student”, which we create in cooperation with “Pivara Skopje”, we revisited the university lectures, social gatherings, challenges.

I always knew I loved medicine

Even though in elementary school he was into technology, he always wanted to repair devices, even in those early educational years, Dr. Lazarov had a burning desire to one day enroll in medicine and become a doctor.

– The tech attracted me a lot. Then CDs, computers, etc. started to appear. I have also won an award for energy at the level of the city of Skopje. But I always knew I wanted medicine. Only one of my grandfathers was a medical person. He was among the first anesthesiologists in our country. I grew up with him. Before enrolling in secondary medical school, I knew exactly that I wanted to work in gynecology, i.e. midwifery, and at the same time I was studying for a medical degree in secondary school – says Dr. Lazarov.

Enrollment was a hit

When it came time to enroll in the Faculty of Medicine, in 2003, the struggle was to enter the first 65 candidates who would study in the state quota. The reason was finances, which even in that period was a fairly important element to push a challenging faculty such as the Medical Faculty.

– The enrollment was a hit. There was an entrance exam. First we took chemistry, then biology. Both tests carried 30 points each. Back then, it was taken in the Universal Hall and 65 to 65 were accepted, and there were 700 candidates. I remember we were asked to draw a hemoglobin molecule. And imagine, us sitting on those audience chairs with the paper on our feet. Very awkward. They made a healthy selection here. When they announced the results, I was 66th. My whole world fell apart because I had no money for college. We managed somehow for the state quota, but the private one was more expensive. I had the same score as the 65th, but only that one high four I had made the difference. In the end, I started in a private quota. At home, we told each other to start the first semester, then we will manage – recalls Dr. Lazarov.

Without talent there is no medicine

Dr. Lazarov enrolled in general medicine and claims that the first 3 years of studies gave a clear picture of who will be able to withstand the pace to graduate, and who will drop out. He did not enter with the ambition of some high average, but it was more important for him to master the material.

– The first 3 years are institute, there is a lot of theory and here is the real selection of students. Chemistry gave me a lot of trouble. From the aspect that it is something you have to master, and you have an aversion to it. We had general chemistry, I had to learn about gasoline, octane, and that has no contact point with medicine. In my opinion, it is unnecessary to chase a high average because in medicine you have to assess the situation and if you don’t know something, know where to ask. You need to master the basics, see if you have a talent for medicine because without talent, there is no medicine – adds Dr. Lazarov.

The Union of Medical Students changed my life

The highlight of his time spent at the Faculty of Medicine is the Union of Medical Students of Macedonia. He spent 3.5 years as the president of this organization, which is the oldest of its kind in our country and the main bulwark that stands in defense of students.

– In the fourth year, I ran for president of the Union and won. I made amazing friendships there. Not only locally, but twice we had the opportunity to organize an international convention with 1,500 students from all over the world. It was taking up all our time. The Union has existed since 1947 and is one of the founders of the WHO. We had 250 exchange students a year. A whole university didn’t have that many. Traditionally in May and summer when we had congresses, people from all over the Balkans came to us, and that was the most beautiful period for us – says Dr. Lazarov.

We studied 8-9 hours a day

Dr. Lazarov finished the faculty in the regular 6 years. Although he was born and raised in Skopje, he spent most of the day with the students who were housed in Medicinar. The reason for that is that he used the reading room there to prepare for the exams, often in the company of his colleagues.

– I had about 8.5 average and I am proud that these are my grades. Medicine entails extensive study for exams. I could not study on my own for a long time because it was difficult for me, I lost concentration, and therefore I finished almost the entire university studying at Medicinar. That reading room worked non-stop. Anatomy is a more traumatic experience for me because it was 7-8 months of continuous learning the same thing. 3,500 pages is the core material and we had the practice of studying for 8-9 hours a day. I slept with a skeleton under my bed to study anatomy. I don’t even know how I found it – he says.

– Medicine is not for people with a weak character because it will have a bad effect. You will either “shoot” at a patient or at yourself. The competition is great – says Dr. Lazarov, who after four years of graduation, in 2009, enrolled in a specialization, namely gynecology, and his desire to learn has not yet faded, so now he is thinking about postgraduate studies.

Prepared by: Nikola Petrovski