The primary care clinic was stressful. The way I see it, the 3rd year of medical school is all about refining our history and physical skills and improving our differential diagnoses. In this block, I was thrown into the deep end of the swimming pool and I was forced to learn how to swim. My attending treated me like an intern: I saw the patients, wrote their visit note, ordered their prescriptions and any tests or consults they might need, and scheduled the follow-up visit. All the while being hammered with questions and criticism by the attending. Needless to say, I grew some thicker skin on this rotation. But in the end, I appreciate the experience because this is how things are going to be: am I going to sink or swim...the answer is definitely swim!
Next I moved over the world of emergency medicine. And I LOVE it! The thing I was missing in the primary care clinics was being able to DO things for my patients. If they have a pre-cancerous skin lesion, I want to freeze it off. If they come in with a laceration, I want to sew it. If someone has a possible AAA (abdominal aortic aneurysm) or ascites (fluid in the abdomen due to a failing liver), I can wheel the ultrasound into the room and look for myself! And I have been getting more and more freedom in the ER. The attendings and residents have gotten more confident in my abilities (or maybe it's just that I am more confident) and I find I am getting to drive more. It's like having that learner's permit all over again. I am in the driver's seat but thank goodness the instructor has his own set of breaks just in case I muck things up. I finally feel like an almost-doc!
Next up: inpatient wards!!
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