From patient to doctor
Medical student, cancer survivor discusses impact of community support and accommodations on reaching her dreams
Second-year medical student Payton Bogert receives her first white coat in a ceremony in April.
Photo by Danielle Ivanov
July 1, 2024 — At the University of Florida College of Medicine, future health care providers are trained in leading-edge medical techniques in the clinic and hospital setting, blending professionalism with humanistic care. Some students, like pediatric cancer survivor and double-Gator Payton Bogert, also bring a deep personal understanding of the patient experience, having faced significant health challenges themselves.
Bogert, who is from Oviedo, Florida, and has high-frequency hearing loss, has thrived at UF, where supportive accommodations and a close-knit community have been instrumental to her success. She credits the Disability Resource Center and the nurturing UF College of Medicine environment for helping her pursue her dream of providing compassionate care to young patients with experiences like her own.
Learn more about Bogert’s story, lessons learned, and the accommodations available to UF students in the Q&A below.
At 1 years old, Bogert undergoes her first round of chemotherapy for Stage 4 neuroblastoma.
Photo courtesy of Payton Bogert
Q: What inspired your passion for medicine?
A: “Medicine is a chance to return to the inception of my journey with pediatric cancer. Diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma at 1, my perspective of the hospital is anything but foreign. I have pledged to try to live not only for myself but for every person who has a life-threatening disease and in honor of those we have lost. I strongly desire to memorialize their legacy in my future career and to leave a lasting impact through patient care. I hope to continue witnessing human perseverance in even the direst situations from the other side of the ward. My hope is that by becoming a physician, I can dedicate my career to individuals who share a similar story to mine.”
Q: How did you know UF Medicine was the right place for you?
A: “As a person with a profound 90-decibel hearing loss in high frequency, picking a medical school that not only supported my ‘this-ability’ but also celebrated it was indispensable. UF is ranked sixth nationally for its disability resource center for people with physical disabilities, according to College Magazine, and the College of Medicine has an established legacy of graduating several hard-of-hearing and deaf students.”
Q: What are some of the accommodations available to hard-of-hearing and deaf students at UF?
A: “When I interviewed at the UF College of Medicine, it was the only medical school to provide me with captioning during my interview process. From the beginning, the college made sure our Learning and Assessment Center encounters and lectures were fully stocked with clear masks to ensure I had the ability to lipread. The college even gave me closed captioning for our White Coat Ceremony. In addition to currently collaborating with me to provide me with closed captioning during my clerkship, I had access to both live and closed captioning during my preclinical years.”
Bogert and classmates on UF's campus.
Photo courtesy of Payton Bogert
For more information on accessibility resources at UF, please visit the link below.
Bogert and her fellow medical students perform Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down" in American Sign Language at the 2024 Gators Got Talent show.
Photo by W. Charles Poulton
Q: Supporting your fellow Gators is a guiding principle at UF. What are some of your favorite memories where your peers at the college have had your back?
A: “My classmates are astounding. Anytime captioning was not on during lecture, someone would gently remind a professor to add the captioning to the screen before I even had a chance to request it. This touched me deeply. I will never be able to express enough gratitude to the peers that made me feel heard. Furthermore, my collaborative learning group learned our cherished UF song, ‘I Won’t Back Down’ by Tom Petty, in American Sign Language with me for our 2024 Gators Got Talent show. The College of Medicine creates a collaborative environment where you can be certain someone will always be rallying for you.”
Bogert, left center, poses for a photograph on stage with College of Medicine leadership during the White Coat Ceremony in April.
Photo by W. Charles Poulton
Q: How did you feel receiving your white coat this spring?
A: “My dream was to go from being a patient to a doctor. This white coat symbolizes that I had a health care team that allowed me to pursue my dreams. I hope that in my career, I get to work with an equally inspiring team and that together, we get to help people get their version of a white coat.”
Q: What are you looking forward to during your clinical years of medical school?
A: “Every individual has a unique perspective to share, wisdom to offer, and passions that are distinctive. Medicine is spectacular because in a single hour, you could go from talking to a ballerina to a zookeeper or even to an aerospace engineer. The constant turnover of interacting with patients is like spending a day reading short stories. It is such a privilege to be part of.”
Q: Where do you hope to see yourself in 10 years?
A: “Nothing motivates me more than the opportunity to give back to my community. It has always been my hope to become a pediatric oncologist and serve the community that offered my family and I unwavering support. It would be a full circle moment if one day, I worked at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, which is the hospital I was treated at. But I know wherever I end up, I can make a lasting impact on someone’s life, and that is what matters most at the end of the day.”
Q: What have you enjoyed most so far about medical school and your time at UF?
A: “The friendships I have built in medical school are the memories I treasure most. The love and support that UF College of Medicine students radiate is unparalleled. We really do highlight that in all kinds of weather, Gators stick together.”
Bogert and her family after the White Coat Ceremony in April.
Photo courtesy of Payton Bogert
Q: What advice would you share with your peers heading into clinical rotations?
A: “Please take the time to eat Jell-O with a patient. My life was saved by a fellow who would take his lunch breaks with my parents and me. He would visit our hospital room and snatch the green Jell-O that came with my meals because no one in my family was willing to touch it. During this time, he forged a friendship with my parents, and they would converse about myriad subjects. In those precious moments, the laughter was louder than the beeping of an IV infusion line. It normalized the day spent in the hospital by granting us a resemblance of life outside of the hospital walls.
“During these interactions, he learned my mother’s concerns about my health were often dismissed by other practitioners. He fortified bonds with my family and gained insight into the life he was saving. After my treatment was completed, I began to experience unexplained pain and fevers. Desperate for an ear to listen, my mother turned to this fellow she trusted even though my care was not under his service. He knew my mother well at this point and participated in an honest and respectful conversation with her. She explained where my pain was originating from, and despite knowing he would get in trouble for breaching his realm of authority, he ordered a CT scan. The doctors discovered a collapsed ureter, and I was rushed into immediate surgery. This simple act of compassion saved my life. So, I implore my peers to take five minutes and eat Jell-O with someone.”
Q: Is there anything else you would like to add?
A: “To any child with a disability and a dream: Keep fighting. There are people out there who believe in you.”
