EPISODE 2: PATRICIA CURTIN

JANUARY 10, 2026

INTERVIEW BY Srinidhi Gadula

Edited by Priyanka Gera and Amar Gopal

Photo by Liora Rafailova

So tell me a little bit more about your hometown. Where are you from?

I grew up 5 minutes away in Hawthorne, New York and I still live at home. So today, the ride just took me five minutes. Technically, I lived in the Bronx until I was 1.5 years old and then moved to Westchester with stints in the Midwest for college! 

You lived in the Bronx for a little bit.  Does that mean you consider yourself a NYC girl or do you claim Westchester more?

So, I have a lot of cousins in the Bronx and in Staten Island. And my grandparents are from Ireland. Everyone kind of moved from Ireland and settled in the city. You can't say that you're a city girl if you’ve only lived there for 2 years. My cousins have made that very clear!

Since we're so close to your hometown, what's one thing that you recommend all NYMC students should do, if they haven’t already?

Recently, I've been enjoying the live music here a lot more. I love finding either a restaurant or even a place outdoors, like a farmer’s market, where they have live music. It’s been a new hobby of mine, and it's been very nice. Definitely something I would recommend! In Westchester especially, I feel like you can always find a good activity paired with live music.

So I’m guessing you’re a big music fan?

I am. Don't ask me my favorite type though. I like a very wide range of music, so I never have an answer to that question whenever someone asks me. But if you give me any genre, I can name a song that I like. 

That’s awesome. Now, I want to ask you a few rapid-fire random questions to help everyone get to know you better. How do you take your coffee?

I have a Breville that I bought for myself off of Facebook Marketplace as my treat for getting into medical school. So I use that to do two espresso shots either Americano style, or as an almond milk latte!

Cats or dogs?

Dogs, but I've actually never had a pet, besides an annual fish in a plastic bag and water from the parish fair that would die after a few weeks. My mom was bit by a pitbull growing up in the Bronx, and that has deterred her from wanting a pet. Since I still live with my parents, there's been no dogs, sadly. 

Introvert or an extrovert?

Honestly, growing up I was extremely shy, so I was extremely introverted. Now I'm more extroverted. I love to get my energy from other people but after a long period of extroversion, I will need a deep, deep introversion period.

Favorite holiday growing up?  

I would say Christmas, but also leading up to Christmas, and then also the week after Christmas. So, honestly, just all of the Christmas break season. It's my favorite time of the year! 

I have a controversial question for you, when does the Christmas tree come down?

So last year, my family's Christmas tree was up until mid-January, but sometimes we've hit February by accident. That wasn't on purpose. People were just too busy to take it down. Probably also because we have a massive Christmas tree with a lot of ornaments that my family has collected throughout the years. So everyone always loves putting it up, but we all drag our feet when it comes to taking it down.

It sounds like your family's very close knit. Do you have a favorite tradition that your family does?

I just came back from one of them! My mom's extended family has three generations in the US, and mostly everyone is in the tri-state area. Every year we reunite at Long Beach Island at the Jersey shore and do what we call the “family party” for a week. Even if you're not living in the tri-state, there'll be one night where everyone tries their best to be there. As a kid, there were so many cousins that sometimes my siblings and I would see someone for 10 years and still have no idea who they were. There were so many of us that it felt like the house just became one big hug.

What about your dad’s side?

It's also the same on my dad’s side in Ireland. My dad is one of about 44 cousins in his generation!

Oh my god, that’s a lot of cousins!

Yeah and I thought that was normal growing up, but later I realized that's not the case.

You mentioned siblings earlier. How many siblings do you have? 

I have a twin sister and I have a younger sister.

I did not know you had a twin sister. What is it like, being a twin?

It's good! I think most people tend to label twins as a package deal, and growing up, that was kind of the case. Then, I went to college in the Midwest at Notre Dame, and she went to Villanova outside Philly. It was the first time that I didn't always have someone to go to. Looking back, I think it's good that we had that experience. Now, it’s more like I have my individuality, but I always have someone who can kind of read my mind.

Don’t hate me but I have to ask, do you think that twin telepathy is real?

That’s funny you ask. So, on the way to the Jersey Shore for my 16th birthday, my sister and I did a test with my friends. Our friends would say a word and then we would immediately say the first thing that came to mind to test our twin telepathy. For example, they said “fast food” and we both said “Wendy’s.” Or they said “sport” and we both said “soccer.” I think we got around, six out of 10 right.

Are you fraternal or identical twins?

We're very fraternal. She's 5'10. I'm 5’6. Actually, she is an accountant, but she also models!

So your sister is an accountant. Are there any doctors in the family?

No, I'm the first one, which is exciting. 

That’s amazing, congratulations!

Thanks. So, on my dad’s side, my great grandparents are both farmers. On my mom's side, my grandparents both grew up in Harlem and Brooklyn and their parents, my great grandparents, were also farmers from Ireland. So they're really excited for me. 

What drew you to medicine, coming from a family of farmers?

Growing up, I always liked science and so career-wise I was split between engineering or healthcare. Then in college, once I shadowed and really reflected on what I wanted out of a career, I realized medicine was unique. In the sense that you can take the problem solving aspect of something like detective work, and then incorporate parts of engineering to help someone in a very personal way. And, yes, I liked engineering because you can design buildings and that is really cool, but medicine is so much more! It is humanistic and meaningful. My little sister and aunts are nurses, and I love nerding out with them about different cases. 

And so now that we're on the topic of school, I think my first impression of you was that you are so organized and always on top of things. Have you always been like this? 

No, actually in high school, my sister had to always remind me of our homework assignments. Then in my freshman year of college, I took a class called “How to Get an A.” They made me get a Google Calendar and essentially made me get my act together. So that really kind of kick-started my organization skills. All my homework assignments were written down for the first time ever in college- at the ripe age of 18. Then after graduating, I worked in consulting which really honed my organization skills because everything in consulting is done in a step-wise manner. Everything has to be tracked and you need to show your rationale from point A to point C. So, I brought that along with me here in medical school.

Wow, so lesson to learn here is use your Google Calendar! Tell me more about consulting and your gap year before medical school.   

I graduated in May 2023 with a severe concussion, after I fell down a flight of stairs. So I actually started my consulting job three weeks after I graduated, with post concussion syndrome. Fun fact, I also worked with Gabi and Abby who are also M2s. None of us said anything about coming here, because you can't do that in consulting. That's taboo. You don't want to say that you have an exit opportunity, but I did. 

And so, how did you like the job?

It was super interesting! I learned so much about finance, and reading the markets. I did two due diligences, which is where you predict the profits for certain products. In my case, I predicted profits for certain drugs, up to 10 years out, and I had never done anything like that before. It gave me a very different perspective of the healthcare system, which I really appreciate. That being said, it was definitely challenging to learn, especially because I had injured brain cells going into it. And although the golden handcuffs were real (it was nice to be a consultant and make money) I wanted to do medicine more.

Moving on, tell me more about what you did outside of work and school. What do you do for fun?

Before my concussion, playing soccer used to be my go-to. But now I am no longer allowed to do contact sports, so I run a lot. Typically I pick two half marathons a year and I actually have my sixth one coming up: the South Hampton Half Marathon on September 27. Sometimes though, Styliana, Ali and I will go play a very non-contact version of soccer in front of the alumni house.

Any other hobbies?

Besides running, I also like to cook a little bit. I used to cook a lot before medical school and I had a food instagram too.

Oh, really?

Yeah, @curtinkitchen, but I haven't posted in a while. Nowadays I usually delete Instagram to lock in during the week, but Instagram used to be my creative outlet. All throughout college and postgrad, I would take photos and post them on it. I also really like art and going to museums. I studied abroad in Spain, so I had a lot of free time there to visit every museum I could. It was amazing!

Would you say, like you're a big future planner, or do you try to live in the moment?

I'm a planner, but at the same time, I really appreciate the lulls where I have absolutely no plans and I can enjoy myself as I want. 

So then I have to ask you; what are your long term goals, let’s say about five years out from now?

That's a good question. Well, five years from now, I want to be in a residency program in the tri-state area. I think career-wise, I am still exploring my options, but, besides hopefully staying in the tri-state area, nothing is set in stone. 

Now that we’re back on the topic of medical school, why NYMC? 

I was in between here and USF in Florida. And honestly the support system I had here and the finances just worked out. Since I'm covering my own medical school, I wanted to make sure that I didn’t short change myself. And so New York Med, besides, obviously the culture and the people, was the best decision by far.

And how has your experience been so far?

It has been really great! I'm very lucky to be surrounded by college friends in the city, my family, and then also make such great friends here. So my support system, my safety net, is very wide and strong, which I really appreciate. In Florida, I would have never had that.

And so, as this interview comes to an end, any words of advice for incoming M1s?

Medical school is meant to challenge us, and challenges beget growth. So whenever you're discouraged (and it happens to me a lot) remind yourself that your brain cells are talking to each other and they're making stronger friendships. And that is something not everyone can say that they're doing.

Contact Patricia at pcurtin@student.nymc.edu.

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