Following a different path…together

For the first 26 years of their lives, fraternal twins Kim and April Barnum, of Cherry Hill, have followed a nearly identical path together. Now that they've graduated from Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine (RowanSOM), however, that path will diverge.

According to Kim, who by seven minutes is the older of the two, the Barnum family tree in America dates to the arrival of Thomas Barnum in 1620. One of the branches of that tree led to circus impresario P.T. Barnum, while another led to April and Kim, who are about to become part of America’s newest generation of physicians.

For April and Kim, the days leading up to graduation have been “pretty exciting” as they complete their final clinical rotations and prepare for life as family medicine residents. Growing up, they attended the same schools—both graduated from Cherry Hill High School East-- and then followed that by both enrolling as pre-medical students at Fordham University in New York City. After graduating from Fordham, they were both accepted into Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine, their first choice of medical schools.

'It's been a benefit to us to always have someone there to support you'

A shared academic experience has benefited both sisters, who played competitive soccer for 18 years and who are also accomplished musicians.

“We’re not competitive with each other. It’s more that we motivate each other,” says Kim. “We both look about the same on paper – it turned out we both got the same grades in school – but that’s coincidental.”

April agrees. “It’s been a benefit to us to always have someone there to support you.”

Kim says being able to live at home with their parents and younger brother, Rick, who is currently a second-year student at RowanSOM, also has helped…especially during the academically rigorous first years of medical school.

“It was really nice coming home from studying. And seeing our family was a nice supportive environment, especially during that really stressful first and second year of medical school,” Kim says.

But medical school was not always on their shared horizon. As teenagers, April was already determined to become a physician, but Kim was considering a career in veterinary medicine. A human anatomy course in high school helped steer both toward RowanSOM.

“That human anatomy course had us go to RowanSOM where we also shadowed medical students,” April says. The experience helped convince them both that medical school was their ideal career path and they both subsequently enrolled in the pre-med program at Fordham.

There, their interests stretched far beyond the science and math courses that dominate a pre-med curriculum. Their musical talents – Kim is a violinist and April plays the cello – earned them a partial music scholarship in college where they performed with the university’s orchestra.   

April jokes that their musical talent may be connected to their Barnum ancestry. “We do like to entertain with our music, so maybe the circus does run in our family,” she said.

 “I can’t go a day without music,” she adds. “The only time I don’t listen to music is when I’m studying. Music has definitely been a stress reliever and a source of happiness for me.” 

Kim says that their musical tastes are different from a lot of people their age.

“Our parents taught us to appreciate the Beatles and the music of the ’70s and ’80s,” she says, noting that she and April are knowledgeable fans of blues and jazz music.

In fact, music is a big part in the lives of the entire Barnum family. Their mother is a former piano teacher, brother Rick plays saxophone, and their father plays keyboard and harmonica in a classic rock cover band.

At RowanSOM, Kim and April were able to combine their love of music and medicine in a unique program for patients who are coping with chronic pain.

The Chateau Gardot Music Medicine program is a student-run organization under the guidance of the NeuroMusculoskeletal Institute at RowanSOM. Named for Melody Gardot, an acclaimed international jazz musician who donated start-up funds, the program provides free music therapy, including individual instructions to patients.

“We both loved being involved in the Music Medicine program,” Kim says. “It has been a great experience, influencing the lives of patients and seeing how happy music has made them.”

April was able to see the program through the eyes of others as she interviewed around the country for residency positions. “Music medicine came up during every single interview. People were really amazed by our program.”

As they approached their final year of medical school, April and Kim decided it was time to continue their careers on separate paths.

“We both knew that going in different directions would come eventually,” Kim says. “We didn’t apply to the same residencies on purpose, so we’ve been acknowledging this for a while.”

Futures in Family Medicine

Although they will be separated geographically – Kim’s residency will be at Overlook Medical Center in Summit, NJ, while April will be at Brown University in Providence, RI – they will continue to share similar experiences as both are specializing in Family Medicine.

“I really fell in love with family medicine after my clinical rotation during the third year of medical school,” Kim says. “I love that it is so all encompassing and enables you to work with patients of all ages. Plus there are so many fellowships and opportunities with family medicine. Family docs can work in ERs, in hospitals, in outpatient offices, or in urgent care facilities."

April was attracted to family medicine because it offers a broad spectrum of opportunities for further specialization. “You can narrow family medicine down to what interests you and, for me, that is sports medicine,” she says. “But I want to be able to work with all ages of the general patient population, too. Family Medicine is a way that I can combine all those interests.”

Life beyond residency, including whether or not to eventually practice medicine together, is still to be determined. Aside from preparing for graduation, they are both busy getting ready to move into their respective apartments before starting residency next month. 

“Residency is only three years,” April notes. “If, after that, we wanted to move closer we could.”

They plan to remain in close contact, however. “I’m sure we will continue to talk and text every day,” Kim says.

Twins often are asked what it’s like to be so closely connected to a sibling, but the Barnums see that connection through a different lens.

“When people ask what it’s like being a twin, we say we don’t know what it’s like not being a twin,” April says.

The Barnums accepted their degrees during the RowanSOM Commencement ceremony on Wednesday, May 13, on the University Green in Glassboro.