Ten students from Whiddon College of Medicine match at USA Health
Match Day is an annual event where future physicians at medical schools across the United States and Canada simultaneously learn where they will be completing their residency training
By Lindsay Hughes
lahughes@health.southalabama.edu
On Match Day this past Friday, 10 fourth-year medical students at the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama matched at USA Health to complete their residency training. One of those 10 was Aidan Gilbert.
Gilbert was working for a breast oncologist as a biostatistician when he realized he wanted to pursue medicine. “While working with her, I realized I liked what she was doing more than what I was doing,” he said. “She was interacting with and advocating for her patients, and I wanted to be like her.”
As Match Day neared, Gilbert said he was feeling fortunate and thankful to everyone around him who have been an integral part in shaping him into the man he is. Starting a family has been one of the defining features of his medical school career, and his children have been his inspiration and driving force behind his success, he said.
“My daughter called me 'Dr. Aidan Daddy Gilbert' the other day and tells me she wants to be a surgeon like me,” he said.
As he opened his envelope, he was elated to see that he matched in surgery at USA Health and immediately kissed his wife to celebrate.
Gilbert said the Whiddon College of Medicine trains future physicians to be well-rounded thinkers, clinicians and technicians who are capable of handling almost anything, and he is grateful for each person who took time out of their day to help him become a better provider.
Match Day is an annual event where future physicians at medical schools across the United States and Canada simultaneously learn where they will be completing their residency training. It was the largest Main Residency Match in the National Resident Matching Program’s 70-year history with 48,156 applicants registered, an increase of 481 applicants over last year.
