Orientation week 1
Today we continued orientation, which we started on Monday. We started off by learning a few abnormal heart sounds, using our simulation dummy HARVEY. In addition to emitting heart sounds from his chest, HARVEY simulates pulses and I’m sure does some other stuff. The instructor was able to place the stethoscope on HARVEY and we all listened in using wireless headphone “stethoscopes.” Hopefully if I encounter any abnormal heart sounds on the wards, they’ll be that obvious, and I’ll be able to catch them.
Later in the day we went over the history and physical exams (H&P’s) we did yesterday on random patients. Though we were assigned to a ward, most of the patients understandably refused an H&P that would take up 90 minutes of their time and have no impact whatsoever on their medical care. Since it was the neuro floor, the rest of the patients had neurological deficits that would impede a nice history (unconscious, speech difficulties, dementia, etc.). I went to another ward, where four patients understandably turned me away. So then I walked over to the VA, where the patients are almost always willing to be poked and prodded by budding medical students. I’ve also found that the veterans are quite pleasant and friendly. Of course, I hate putting these patients through a completely unnecessary history and physical, though it is a pleasure getting to know them. I think once I start my rotations, I’ll be glad to actually have my H&P’s have an effect on the patients’ care.
The end of the day was interesting. Some of us, including yours truly, had male genitourinary and rectal/prostate exam training. It wasn’t as unsettling as you might imagine. Just like when I first put in a foley catheter (to drain urine), when you have a job to do, you tend to block out the apparent awkwardness of the situation.
I'm back!
I’m back! For some reason, I decided to bring this back, but I’m using Blogger on the advice of an expert in the field.
I say “some reason,” but when I visited some undergrad friends over the summer, I realized how out of touch I’ve been, and it’s only going to get worse. Yes, my friends, at DukeMed, the 2nd year is the clinical year, so I decided to restart the blog to let you all know how it goes (and also as a little journal for myself). Of course, updating will be tough given the general lack of time, but I would be more encouraged if comments were left. ;-)
There were a few reasons I abandoned my old blog, and I’ll be sure to avoid those pitfalls this time around:
1. Nothing interesting to write about. This is a likely problem during the first year of medical school, which consists of a steady diet of lecture and studying. Combine that with my normally humdrum life, and it doesn’t make much for blog material. This year will be much more exciting due to the changing nature of what I’m doing each day, and also due to the interaction with actual people!
2. Self-consciousness about blog entries. If you look at my old entries, it’s kind of ridiculous. I tried to infuse as much complex language as possible in order to look smart. I think in doing so, my entries were shorter and less frequent than if I just wrote in a stream-of-consciousness fashion. Also, I avoided the more mundane topics in favor of the occasional intelligent thought. Well, from now on, I’ll just write from the heart, no matter how clichéd (like that last phrase) or cheesy.
So stay tuned, and hope for some interesting stories (I have psych rotation in April).
