This coming week, I'm in anaesthetics. It's a part of the Critical Care rotation which, thus far, hasn't exactly set my heart on fire. However, in the spirit of avoiding negativity or 'letting the man get me down', I'm going to share my top ten songs for Med School.

Not necessarily my favourite songs of all time, just ones that remind me of certain parts of Med School. The ones that refresh and conjure up some salient moments burned deep into the brain, the kind that both shape and describe what, for me, Med School is all about.

10. For You - Sarah Blasko. The first track on her album, "What the Sea wants, the Sea will have" went hand-in-hand with Curry nights. As Batman, Wonderwoman discussed Politics, Medicine and Literature as I tried to whip up creations that would both inflame and satisfy tongues and stomachs.

9. Fireflies - Owl City's catchy and absurdly over-played hit reminds me of Birth. Not mine, obviously, but the half-dozen catches and many more I watched whilst Obstetrics and Gynae earlier this year. The optimistic child-like tinkling electronica crosses between medical devices and babytoys.

8. Someone Else's Town - Josh Pyke. Sitting on a park bench in Sa Pa, Viet Nam during my first year Med elective, I watched the cool night encompass the valley. The 2007 Australian Election Night raged, on some far-off frequency. Aware of the occasion, but not the details, I instead observed evening life in Sa Pa. Ensconsed in Pyke's Memories and Dusk and relative serentiy of rural Viet Nam, I was truly watching someone else's town.

7. Three MCs and One DJ - Beastie Boys. It's only since I've been in Med School I've begun to truly appreciate the Granddaddies of Rap. After taking the time to actually listen to the lyrics, combined with their B-boy beats, my taste for the New York trio just flourished. Their 'To the Five Boroughs" album was on regular rotate through first year, when Med School was all about wading through large amounts of input to make sense and get the underlying vibe, not unlike the music itself.

6. Life In Technicolour II - Coldplay. The Prospekt's March EP featured heavily on my morning commute last year. Chris Martin's dominating and uplifting opening bars made driving through dew-covered cane fields half an hour after sunrise the best substitute for morning coffee one could wish for.

5. Please Forgive Me - David Gray. Remeber that scene from the Scrubs pilot, with JD standing in the Emergency Department at midnight, just out on his feet with everything rushing around him. It's supposed to engender a sense of exhaustion, of being overwhelmed. Watching that scene sets my heart on fire. It stirs something that makes me think, every time that I watch it, how much I'm looking forward to life in Medicine.

4. I am the Highway - Audioslave. For most of the last four years, I've worked some long, long shifts at the Pharmacy. This song, on a late night drive home, reminds me to pace myself both mentally and physically. Chances are, I'll have an early start the next morning and with the bare minimum of sleep, I'll be okay. And the riffs are epic.

3. Spirit - Moby. The entire B-Sides of Play appeared on my iPod at the end of Med1. The mix of deep, soulful melodies and swelling & inspiring surges make this an ideal travelling album. Spirit is one of those tracks that just makes my heart soar; it was playing when I checked my first year marks in a dingy Indian internet cafe, and the sensation of achievement and promise still hits me each time I hear it.

2. It's a long way to the top - AC/DC. This February, a visit to Fremantle Gaol re-introduced Bon Scott et al. to my eardrums. A Hospital Variety night on the eve of Pediatrics saw several department heads 'rocking out' to the bagpipes and a room full of moshing healthworkers. Seeing the consultants, at the top and enjoying it, refreshed that yeah, it's a long way to the top of a chosen specialty, but getting there (and staying there) is rewarding and fun. Are you ready to rock?!

1. Teardrop - Newton Faulkner's cover of Massive Attack. Most Medicals TV aficionados well know Massive Attack's Teardrop as the House MD theme song, but where the original is slick, shiny and a bit high-fa-looting, Faulkner's spin is raw and basic. A fine balance of cautious inspiration, the song lets us know we're both "stumbling in the dark" and "fearless on my breath". As the music swells, where Massive Attack's original is sad, Faulkner's Teardrop inspires and rejuvenates, without hiding the message. This song is, for me, what Med School is all about;