Man, I am hating this latest essay-hoop that the med school are making us jump through...I left the basic science essay till last, thinking I would be able to spend more time on it, which I have been - I started it on monday, and it's due on friday, so I started a full 4 days earlier than usual.
Unfortunately, I had the bright idea of writing an essay on something I'm not very good at in the hope of understanding it better. Enter the dreaded acid-base balance. Septic patient in metabolic acidosis with dodgy arterial blood gases, and I have to write a 2000 word discussion on it. So far I have written 729 words. D'oh.
I kind of am understanding it better, but I'm so used to the last minute bashing-out of essays on wednesday/thursday nights (it sounds sloppy but I get B's so no criticising!) that I'm frustrated at the amount of work I'm having to do in order to understand enough to write one paragraph.
Tomorrow, I have 2 lectures, then a meeting with my group about an ATLS presentation we have to give on friday. Then in the evening my flatmates and I are having some people round for dinner, and bizarrely, without even offering, I have taken it upon myself to do the cooking. So tomorrow is going to be tight, and I forsee a late night getting this stupid essay done.
Oh, I can't wait for the time when essays will be a thing of the past and there are only 13-hour acute receiving shifts to worry about...
Procrastination time over, back to the grindstone.
Wednesday, 28 February 2007
MDM, MFG
Another lecture from the military bloke from the first week yesterday - this time on major incidents. All about organisation and contingency planning. Was pretty interesting, although I was struggling a little bit to believe that the Tay Bridge is a potentially major terrorist target!
The main 'take-home' message (why do people call it that? it makes me think of party bags I used to get as a kid, but they are nowhere near as interesting!) was that attention to detail is extremely important in dealing with major incidents. It was neatly summarised by our lecturer in the mnemonic, 'MDM MFG' - 'Minor Detail Missed, Major F*ckup Guaranteed'.
Again, nice. At least I'll remember it.
The main 'take-home' message (why do people call it that? it makes me think of party bags I used to get as a kid, but they are nowhere near as interesting!) was that attention to detail is extremely important in dealing with major incidents. It was neatly summarised by our lecturer in the mnemonic, 'MDM MFG' - 'Minor Detail Missed, Major F*ckup Guaranteed'.
Again, nice. At least I'll remember it.
Tuesday, 27 February 2007
Freaky Friday
Apologies for lack of posts over the weekend, it was a tough one.
Friday was a bit mental - was in A&E in the afternoon. It started off really quietly, so much so that I considered calling it a day and going home, but then it picked up in a BIG way. First was a known alcohol enthusiast who jumped out of a window and broke her pelvis, ribs, tib and fib, both ankles...nice. Then came an elderly lady found unconscious who seemed to have had a massive stroke or brain haemorrage or something - it was just a case of keeping her comfortable, not much could be done. Then came another elderly lady who collapsed in a shop - she was a full resuscitation case, so I got to do some CPR (first time on a real person, I was scared), but sadly she died. So a bit depressing all in all.
Saturday was good - went to see The Last King of Scotland with some friends. It was really well-acted and well-shot, I was very impressed. Not for the faint-hearted though, it's pretty gorey.
Sunday was a crazy day too - am having some family issues, with my grandparents needing support - my grandmother is going into hospital for some surgery tomorrow, and my grandfather is developing dementia and can't really cope on his own. Since my parents are abroad, I feel quite responsible for it all, but my uncle is going to go down and take care of my grandfather for the few days when he would have been on his own, so it's all working out. Pretty stressful though.
This week is full of essays and wrapping-up of this block, so posts may not be too interesting, but I'll do my best!
That's all folks, got another lecture.
Friday was a bit mental - was in A&E in the afternoon. It started off really quietly, so much so that I considered calling it a day and going home, but then it picked up in a BIG way. First was a known alcohol enthusiast who jumped out of a window and broke her pelvis, ribs, tib and fib, both ankles...nice. Then came an elderly lady found unconscious who seemed to have had a massive stroke or brain haemorrage or something - it was just a case of keeping her comfortable, not much could be done. Then came another elderly lady who collapsed in a shop - she was a full resuscitation case, so I got to do some CPR (first time on a real person, I was scared), but sadly she died. So a bit depressing all in all.
Saturday was good - went to see The Last King of Scotland with some friends. It was really well-acted and well-shot, I was very impressed. Not for the faint-hearted though, it's pretty gorey.
Sunday was a crazy day too - am having some family issues, with my grandparents needing support - my grandmother is going into hospital for some surgery tomorrow, and my grandfather is developing dementia and can't really cope on his own. Since my parents are abroad, I feel quite responsible for it all, but my uncle is going to go down and take care of my grandfather for the few days when he would have been on his own, so it's all working out. Pretty stressful though.
This week is full of essays and wrapping-up of this block, so posts may not be too interesting, but I'll do my best!
That's all folks, got another lecture.
Friday, 23 February 2007
Affirmative, SAH!!
Just got out of a lecture with the blood transfusion dude - he's the guy we call in a panic when our patients are bleeding all over the place and we really really need blood and we really really needed it five minutes ago but we wasted the time panicking! He's magic.
And he's a soldier, has been placed in Bazra and has seen A LOT of stuff. So he was teaching us how not to let your patient exsanguinate, how and what blood to give, how to get hold of it, etc., all very useful because soon this will be us, as we are eternally reminded by gleeful physicians who I think just like to watch the fear creep over our features.
We are listening intently and trying to make notes and take it all in when, breaking the silence, his phone rings with this tune...
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/freewebman/war/ww2/great-escape.mp3
...nice!
And he's a soldier, has been placed in Bazra and has seen A LOT of stuff. So he was teaching us how not to let your patient exsanguinate, how and what blood to give, how to get hold of it, etc., all very useful because soon this will be us, as we are eternally reminded by gleeful physicians who I think just like to watch the fear creep over our features.
We are listening intently and trying to make notes and take it all in when, breaking the silence, his phone rings with this tune...
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/freewebman/war/ww2/great-escape.mp3
...nice!
Thursday, 22 February 2007
Blatant plagarism
Copied mercilessly from Elaine. Must work on Southern Hemisphere...
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Brain Fog
Some days, you just don't know enough. Today, for me, was one of those days.
This morning I was in the high dependency unit for the ward round - only 5 patients but still took nearly 2 hours. So it was long, but it was okay, not too many difficult questions.
However, this afternoon I was in the intensive care unit being taught about acid-base balance (yes, non-medical people, it is about as interesting as it sounds) which, I'll be the first to admit, I'm not very good at. Basically we were taught about this kind of stuff years ago and I didn't get it, so I asked for help, but I still didn't get it, and then people got bored of me asking, so I stopped. And now it's not so much a case of failing exams if I don't understand it, it's more a case of people dying. D'oh. It is a fairly confusing subject, but my tiny brain just doesn't seem to be able to figure it out. A trip to the library ensued, and I am nearly at my book-loan limit.
Guess what I'll be doing tonight?!
This morning I was in the high dependency unit for the ward round - only 5 patients but still took nearly 2 hours. So it was long, but it was okay, not too many difficult questions.
However, this afternoon I was in the intensive care unit being taught about acid-base balance (yes, non-medical people, it is about as interesting as it sounds) which, I'll be the first to admit, I'm not very good at. Basically we were taught about this kind of stuff years ago and I didn't get it, so I asked for help, but I still didn't get it, and then people got bored of me asking, so I stopped. And now it's not so much a case of failing exams if I don't understand it, it's more a case of people dying. D'oh. It is a fairly confusing subject, but my tiny brain just doesn't seem to be able to figure it out. A trip to the library ensued, and I am nearly at my book-loan limit.
Guess what I'll be doing tonight?!
Wednesday, 21 February 2007
Jump on board
At last, I join the realm of bloggers everywhere.
A bit about me...I am just polishing off medical school after six long years of study (I didn't flunk one, I did an extra degree in the middle. I am a self-confessed geek) and will soon be starting work as a foundation doctor. I have no idea where.
I love medicine, but I'm still undecided about the doctoring side of things! I also love travelling, music, photography, and sleeping when I can. I love my family, my lovely friends, and I love God. I'm a Christian, and a very imperfect one at that, but I hope that God likes me anyway.
I am currently studying acute care - a nice module of lectures, the occasional stint in theatre and most of all, long-lies and the wearing of denim rather than smart clothes. Tomorrow I am going to the high dependency unit in the morning and intensive care in the afternoon.
I think that's all for my first post. So long for now!
A bit about me...I am just polishing off medical school after six long years of study (I didn't flunk one, I did an extra degree in the middle. I am a self-confessed geek) and will soon be starting work as a foundation doctor. I have no idea where.
I love medicine, but I'm still undecided about the doctoring side of things! I also love travelling, music, photography, and sleeping when I can. I love my family, my lovely friends, and I love God. I'm a Christian, and a very imperfect one at that, but I hope that God likes me anyway.
I am currently studying acute care - a nice module of lectures, the occasional stint in theatre and most of all, long-lies and the wearing of denim rather than smart clothes. Tomorrow I am going to the high dependency unit in the morning and intensive care in the afternoon.
I think that's all for my first post. So long for now!
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