I am finished with my OB rotation...W-O-W it went fast! The most frustrating/annoying/difficult thing about 3rd year is that just as soon as you start to feel comfortable on a rotation (you know where everything is, you get along with your residents, the attendings remember your name, you know what is expected of you and can stop worrying about doing something wrong and start actually thinking critically about the patients and their problems) you switch to a new one. And the cycle starts all over again. Naturally, that is what has just happened with OB.
I had a hard time on this rotation in the beginning, but it had gotten much better by the end. I still didn't feel as comfortable on the rotation and with the patients and the diagnoses that I was seeing as I had on some other rotations, but I was getting the hang of it. I am sad to leave this rotation as there were things about it I had come to really like. I actually liked the clinic part of this rotation; there were a couple of patients that I saw in the clinic multiple times and that was pretty cool.
I did not get my wish of doing things in the OR this past week...we had a really huge team (an attending, an intern, a 3rd year and a 4th year resident) and since they all take preference over me for doing procedures I didn't get to do ANYTHING. I literally only scrubbed in for 1 case all week. The others were all laparoscopic or robotic cases, and so there is really only room for 2 people to be scrubbed in and around the patient. It was disappointing. It was also a little annoying to be there from 5:30am-10pm some days where I literally did not do a single thing. On the other hand, the attending was SO fun to be in the OR with, and was really apologetic about me not getting to do anything, so I guess I'm not that upset.
Three day weekend (YAY!!) and then surgery on Tuesday. I didn't get a whole lot of practice on OB for my surgery tasks, but hopefully I'm ready!
5.29.2010
5.22.2010
Home Stretch
I have one week left on OB and then onto 5 weeks of surgery...after that and 1 week of b-o-r-i-n-g lectures I will be a 4th year!!
My last week of OB is on Gyn Surgery, so hysterectomies, ectopic removals, cancer resection, etc. Basically I have 6 weeks of surgery. I am alright with this, as long as I get to do SOMETHING in the OR. Even if it is just holding the suction thing and sucking away the smoke that the bovy makes (bovy= metal wand thing that burns/cauterizes vessels and burns through fat). If I am not doing anything I am SO bored and get really tired of standing there with noone saying anything and me not doing anything. Some of these gyn surgeries can go 6, 7, 8 hours or more if they are big cancer resections. That is a long time to stand, not touch anything (because I'm scrubbed in and sterile), not eat or pee or drink anything and not talk. So I am going to be aggressive about doing something, anything. Hopefully I can help stitch someone up at the end of the surgery. The surgeons have to like you and trust your skills for that to happen, so I need to really bust my butt and show off.
I can't believe 3rd year is almost over. This is probably the hardest year (as a whole) in med school. It was difficult, but I have had a GREAT time. The next hardest year will be my intern year after graduation. Interview season will be difficult, but as a whole 4th year should be really fun...easier schedules, no tests, way less pressure. It is hard to wrap my head around the fact that all these years of working hard at school are almost over. I am almost to the point where I will have a job that requires no additional work outside of work hours.
Lately I have been really looking forward to having a life outside of school. I really feel like I have been missing that for the last few years. Outside of school I have nothing; no house to really spruce up, no vacations to plan, no one to take care of, no real consistent hobbies. I think it is really sad that by the time this is all over, my 20's will be almost entirely over and all I will have to show for it is a career. Now don't get me wrong, that is a huge deal, and it will give me so many opportunities for the rest of my life. But I want more than a career. As soon as surgery is over (I know, another delay, but seriously it is NOT possible until after that 5 weeks is over) I am going to start doing things to round out my life. When I was in high school I was so proud of the fact that I was so well rounded. I have totally lost that and I need to get it back. More specific plans to come later.
My last week of OB is on Gyn Surgery, so hysterectomies, ectopic removals, cancer resection, etc. Basically I have 6 weeks of surgery. I am alright with this, as long as I get to do SOMETHING in the OR. Even if it is just holding the suction thing and sucking away the smoke that the bovy makes (bovy= metal wand thing that burns/cauterizes vessels and burns through fat). If I am not doing anything I am SO bored and get really tired of standing there with noone saying anything and me not doing anything. Some of these gyn surgeries can go 6, 7, 8 hours or more if they are big cancer resections. That is a long time to stand, not touch anything (because I'm scrubbed in and sterile), not eat or pee or drink anything and not talk. So I am going to be aggressive about doing something, anything. Hopefully I can help stitch someone up at the end of the surgery. The surgeons have to like you and trust your skills for that to happen, so I need to really bust my butt and show off.
I can't believe 3rd year is almost over. This is probably the hardest year (as a whole) in med school. It was difficult, but I have had a GREAT time. The next hardest year will be my intern year after graduation. Interview season will be difficult, but as a whole 4th year should be really fun...easier schedules, no tests, way less pressure. It is hard to wrap my head around the fact that all these years of working hard at school are almost over. I am almost to the point where I will have a job that requires no additional work outside of work hours.
Lately I have been really looking forward to having a life outside of school. I really feel like I have been missing that for the last few years. Outside of school I have nothing; no house to really spruce up, no vacations to plan, no one to take care of, no real consistent hobbies. I think it is really sad that by the time this is all over, my 20's will be almost entirely over and all I will have to show for it is a career. Now don't get me wrong, that is a huge deal, and it will give me so many opportunities for the rest of my life. But I want more than a career. As soon as surgery is over (I know, another delay, but seriously it is NOT possible until after that 5 weeks is over) I am going to start doing things to round out my life. When I was in high school I was so proud of the fact that I was so well rounded. I have totally lost that and I need to get it back. More specific plans to come later.
5.06.2010
In Brief
Um, it's been a while! Here's a summary:
Finished Neuro. Had a GREAT experience. Don't think I can do it as a career because neuro diseases are so devastating and usually there is no cure and in a lot of cases no great treatment. But that is hard for me to say. I really liked it.
Spring Break. Such a nice break.
Emergency Department (ED) rotation. Rocked. My. World. I loved every second of it from day one. The traumas, the routine people coming in (women miscarrying, asthma exacerbations, chest pain, cellulitis), my interactions with the residents, how much everyone really cared about the patients, how BUSY everything was, how quick decisions were made and how quick results were obtained, getting to DO things (stitches, pelvic exams, ultrasound, re-locating joints), etc. I could rave on and on about it.
Anesthesia rotation. It was alright. I learned a lot about physiology that I forgot, saw some cool surgeries, but talk about a lot of down time. Wow.
Started my OB rotation. Not stellar. I don't hate it, but I definitely don't love it. I have not really been getting that overwhelming feeling of awe when a baby is born that I was expecting to. And the rotation is hard...the residents and attendings are very critical and judging everything you do it feels like. Haven't had that in a while, so glad that is almost over. Very long hours...13 hour days at work at least, 30 hour calls once a week. Literally I get up at 4am, work 5am-6pm, get home at 6:30pm, go to bed at 8pm. Since I'm supposed to be studying everyday when I'm not at work, that really cuts down on the other things I can do (laundry, grocery shop, cook)!
Planning my 4th year is still an issue. Now that I've 98% decided on Emergency Medicine my schedule needs some tweaking. A work in progress.
So that's it in a nutshell. My life is consumed by school. This will continue until at least July 4th because after OB I go onto Surgery, where the hours are even worse and the attendings even harsher (or so I hear). Wish me luck!
Finished Neuro. Had a GREAT experience. Don't think I can do it as a career because neuro diseases are so devastating and usually there is no cure and in a lot of cases no great treatment. But that is hard for me to say. I really liked it.
Spring Break. Such a nice break.
Emergency Department (ED) rotation. Rocked. My. World. I loved every second of it from day one. The traumas, the routine people coming in (women miscarrying, asthma exacerbations, chest pain, cellulitis), my interactions with the residents, how much everyone really cared about the patients, how BUSY everything was, how quick decisions were made and how quick results were obtained, getting to DO things (stitches, pelvic exams, ultrasound, re-locating joints), etc. I could rave on and on about it.
Anesthesia rotation. It was alright. I learned a lot about physiology that I forgot, saw some cool surgeries, but talk about a lot of down time. Wow.
Started my OB rotation. Not stellar. I don't hate it, but I definitely don't love it. I have not really been getting that overwhelming feeling of awe when a baby is born that I was expecting to. And the rotation is hard...the residents and attendings are very critical and judging everything you do it feels like. Haven't had that in a while, so glad that is almost over. Very long hours...13 hour days at work at least, 30 hour calls once a week. Literally I get up at 4am, work 5am-6pm, get home at 6:30pm, go to bed at 8pm. Since I'm supposed to be studying everyday when I'm not at work, that really cuts down on the other things I can do (laundry, grocery shop, cook)!
Planning my 4th year is still an issue. Now that I've 98% decided on Emergency Medicine my schedule needs some tweaking. A work in progress.
So that's it in a nutshell. My life is consumed by school. This will continue until at least July 4th because after OB I go onto Surgery, where the hours are even worse and the attendings even harsher (or so I hear). Wish me luck!
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