Currently,
I’m on a plane to a secret destination for my next rotation. Well, it’ll stay
secret until my next post a couple weeks from now, or until I post a cryptic
Instagram photo (although I’m tempted to post one of the gentleman next to me
who is clearly having some apneic episodes). Since my rotation is an Internal
Medicine Selective, you can choose any IM subspecialty, and I chose
Gastroenterology. I’m excited for the
next month to hopefully be more hands-on than the last one; while Family Medicine
is a wonderful field, I don’t think I’m cut out for the counseling aspect of
it. I do give mad props to family docs,
though, because they’re the front lines of medicine. Behind any exam room door could be an
end-stage COPDer, a 2-month-old coming in for a well visit, or someone that
hasn’t seen a doctor in 10 years and wants a complete checkup. You have to know a little bit about
everything, plus stay on top of medical issues, because you’re the first
medical authority people turn to when they see an ad on television, or when a
loved one is suffering from a disease and they want more information.
Anyways,
here’s this month’s installment of “Words from the Wards”:
"I loved my OBGYN rotation! I thought I would
like it, but I really loved it. My rotation site opened my eyes up to the
possibility of working at a smaller community hospital. The attending
physicians were great to work with- they were very interested in teaching and
approachable to any questions. I really had a great experience overall!"
"Internal Medicine is
truly a field of teamwork and understanding your limits for helping the
patient. The hours are long, but the results are rewarding. The work ethic of
the team and knowing when to consult a specialist is undervalued
and under-appreciated, yet it can drastically improve the patient's
outcome. My experiences throughout this rotation showed that it is the
responsibility of the primary team to ask the medical opinions of many for the
well-being of the patient."
"I'm currently on my cardiology rotation, and
the days have started early and go long. Today I started on a different
team and got three fist pounds from the attending, so I think he doesn't think
I'm a complete idiot, though one was for introducing myself, so we'll see what
happens tomorrow. My intern is probably the nicest person I have ever met
and my resident, though quiet, has gone out of his way to teach me and answer
my never-ending questions. We have rounds in the morning and afternoon
and noon lectures daily on various topics. We had a fascinating lecture
today on plagues through the ages from a doctor from Ireland. Overall, a
great rotation so far!"
