Ob-Gyn Orientation

I woke up at 6am all excited (and a little bit nervous) about the first day of rotations. It was our first day on the wards!

It was basically a full day of Ob-Gyn orientation (we already had 4 days of basic orientation last week which covered ACLS stuff and us learning procedures such as inserting IVs, taking Arterial Blood Gases, learning how to suture...). The clerkship directors seem to be fantastic and very supportive - which is always a good start!

There was an overwhelming flow of information especially with regards to scheduling and locations in the hospital. Basically almost every day is a different schedule with pre-rounds, rounds, lectures, clinic etc etc and we need to stay on top of our schedules else it'll all be a big mess! Figuring out the hospital will definitely take a few days but my motto is - as soon as you don't know where you are, ask someone instead of spending half an hour trying to figure it out. At least we get lockers to put all our stuff in :)

We had a long intro on how to use the Electronic Medical Records system, after which a resident came and talked to us about expectations (a lot of common sense such as show up on time, don't whine about the long hours, be enthusiastic etc) and then gave us a very useful intro on knot-tying. She also took us to the Operating Room (my first time in one!) and after putting on the surgery cap and gown, she showed us how to scrub in for surgery - which was a neat experience - I am definitely excited about seeing my first surgery at some point soon!

We also had a nice intro lecture on pregnancy and different positioning of the baby in the mother's abdomen - refresher's are definitely needed at this point!

I am on Clinic Service this week, which basically means I get to go in and work with either a resident, nurse practitioner or in a specialty clinic, and have the opportunity to talk to patients, do physical exams and learn a plethora of different skills - which should be a really nice intro to Ob-Gyn I hope!\

So, morning clinic with a 2nd year resident and afternoon clinic at the Colposcopy Clinic tomorrow - Definitely looking forward to those!

3rd year clinical rotations start!

It is a weird feeling. Once you decide you want to go into medicine, you picture yourself in a hospital saving lives. You picture yourself helping someone and trying to heal sick patients.

But, before you get there, you have to get through Undergrad, get through the first 2 years of medical school learning all the basic science information, get through the Boards (Step 1) and finally some day, you will actually start going to the hospitals. (I will write about my step 1 experience in a future post)

Well, that day is here.

Tomorrow is the first day of my clinical years of medical school. 3rd year is finally here. This is where all the learning is done in the hospitals. Everyone says that the clinical years are better than the first 2 years. There is no doubt that I am extremely excited about this new beginning. Yet, there is no doubt that nervousness has also surrounded me.

People will expect me to know stuff. Patients will see me in my white coat and think that I will be able to help them. (Little to they know about how little I know at this point). What if I make a mistake? What if I don't know what to do?

The good news is that we are at the bottom of the medical hierarchy and so it is ok to not know stuff. (of course, as long as we find out about it).

I start with Ob-Gyn, and after surgery, this 6-week rotation is the 2nd most time-intensive. Ahh, sleep will be extremely valuable!

I am thrilled to be starting tomorrow. 3rd year will be a fantastic opportunity to learn a lot of different medical skills. I am excited. I am honored to have this opportunity.

And with that...

Here's to hoping for an enjoyable clinical career!