Class of 2023 celebrates annual white coat ceremony
First-year UF medical students celebrate a milestone, receiving their first white coats in a ceremony Nov. 24
Nov. 26, 2019 — For Taylor Rouviere, one of the most valuable lessons she learned during her 20 years as an actress and model was how to feel at ease when meeting unfamiliar faces and how to form new relationships. As she crossed the stage of the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts on Sunday, the first-year UF College of Medicine student thought about the patients she would soon get to care for during a preceptorship in her hometown of Miami.
“When we take histories on our patients, I’m very comfortable talking to people,” said Rouviere, who played a recurring character on the Netflix series “Bloodline” with Sissy Spacek while an undergraduate student at UF. “That is one of the things that really excited me about medical school and the field of medicine — learning about people and their stories in life.”
Rouviere was one of 137 students from the class of 2023 who were recognized Nov. 24 during the 23rd annual Mark S. Gold, M.D. ’75, Distinguished Professor and Alumnus White Coat Ceremony, which marks a gradual transition from classroom-based learning to clinical experience for students. While the class comprises a diverse group of individuals, from military veterans and college professors to acrobats and musicians, the students all shared the same look of excitement and gratitude as they celebrated the milestone.
First-year UF medical student Taylor Rouviere's family traveled to Gainesville from Miami to celebrate the annual white coat ceremony. From left: Koby, Zack, Andre, Jodi, Taylor and Sydney.
Photo by Louis Brems
Interim Dean Joseph A. Tyndall, M.D., M.P.H., provided opening remarks, imploring the future physicians in the audience to remember the impact they will soon have on patients as they prepare not only for their upcoming preceptorships but also for their lifelong commitment to medicine.
“When you put on that white coat, you gain access to people’s lives in a most intimate way,” he said. “You get to hear about their journeys and their sorrows, you get to hold their hands, you get to heal, you get to help to calm them during their suffering. You gain an access that comes with a high moral obligation to do absolutely the right thing every time.”
The ceremony continued with a special recognition of 1963 graduates and Wall of Fame honorees Drs. Nell and Jim Potter and remarks by class of 2023 academic chair Michelot Michel. The 12-person medical student ensemble then took the stage for a heartfelt performance of “You Raise Me Up,” which received a standing ovation from the crowd, and associate dean for student affairs Patrick Duff, M.D., shared insightful lessons.
“Be persistent, determined and have quiet courage,” Duff said. “Intellect and technical skill are not enough to make a good physician. Treat patients as you would your family — with kindness, sensitivity and a compassionate heart.”
After each student donned his or her new coat and stopped to shake Tyndall’s hand, the student ensemble closed out the event with a rendition of the UF alma mater.
Outside in the crisp autumn air, classmates clustered around their loved ones, embracing relatives, chatting excitedly and snapping selfies. Rouviere posed for a photo with her siblings and parents, grinning as she rested her head against her mother’s and wrapped her arm around her sister.
“Medicine is where her true heart has been, and she’s never taken her eye off the ball,” said her father, Andre Rouviere. “We are so proud and we expect great things from her.”
