Rotations Update

I know it has been a while. I am currently in the on-call room at St Francis Hospital in Hartford, CT. Since I am still a bit amped up, I will write a bit before calling it a short night to sleep for a few hours before classes in the morning.

This has been a roller coaster few weeks. I have loved almost every second of it!! In September we had two weeks of transition, where we took some procedural classes, learned our suture knots and practiced them on anesthetized rats, and finished off the details of the classroom portion of the program. (I know that sounds really bizarre, but it was really good practice to do stitches on something living, and we are grateful for their sacrifice. Better on our table than in your basement, right?) The highlight of the week was the needle workshop, where we used each other as pincushions to practice placing IVs, drawing blood and giving shots. You can click here to see pictures (just skip the dinner ones – I will delete them from this album soon). I was the smart one and hid behind my camera for most of the time I wasn’t torturing somebody else!

My first rotation was psychiatry, and I was working in a community-sponsored in-patient setting with the sickest of the sick and poorest of the poor. In the beginning I was convinced that before long I was going to be hearing their voices in MY head. In reality I learned that even psych patients are just people with issues that they have to deal with, and I really bonded with the two people I was assigned to. Don’t get me wrong, I also learned that you have to laugh in order to stay sane yourself. Here are some of the doozies (all names changed):
--Mr. Smith is convinced that he is the supervisor to the White House and is dating a prominent TV newscaster. As such, he was making frequent calls to the secret service and giving them the code word (“Signal” if you are interested in trying) to talk to the President. He was also sending copious love letters to his network love. The TV station issued a restraining order and the feds threatened arrest if he didn’t get on some more effective meds.
--Mrs. Jones is implicated in the murder of her mother. Her aunt and uncle were killed in the Charles Manson murders (true story) and she was convinced her mom was in on the plot (not a true story) and never forgave her (true story). One day Mrs. Jones drove home in here mom’s car, parked it in the driveway, switched into her own car, and fled town. Her mom’s purse was in the car and no personal belongings were missing from the apartment. While Mrs. Jones has been located her mother has not, and therefore no official charges have been filed against her!
Wow!! Bottom line is that psychiatry feels more like voodoo to me. I have heard it compared to antibiotics of the 1950’s. We only have a few, they are used for everything, and while they work we are not totally sure why, and the way they work with different people can vary so widely that you just try until you get the right fit. I know people are helped, so I don’t disparage the profession, but I am not sure I could do it!!

Anyhow, I am off to bed. More info on my OB/Gyn rotation coming soon!