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Anatomical Gift Program recognizes precious donors

Students remember their ‘first patients’ at this moving memorial

Each year, when new medical students arrive on campus to begin their long journey to become physicians, one of their first experiences with human patients is in the anatomy lab during their first few days of classes. There, each student is introduced to a special, essential gift—a donor who has given his or her body to science. As a way of expressing their gratitude for the incredible gift they’ve been given, the students participate in a memorial service at the end of each year to meet the families and friends of their human donors and thank them for their sacrifice.

Watch moments from the 2011 memorial service in this video.