Everyday I'm Shufflin #4: hospital visit running diary

 #4

aka hospital visit, aka shadowing a nurse

5:20 PM: Depart home for unnamed hospital. 

5:43 PM: Arrive one hour before hospital visit starts. Open Net Anatomy to get a head start on studying. 

5:45 PM: Instead, research Chris Paul vs Kyrie Irving stats. 

6:28 PM: I should really do something... Back to Net Anatomy.

..what?

6:45 PM: Lost in the hospital, trying to find unnamed hospital unit. That's how often M1's are in the hospital. 

6:47 PM: Arrive at unit. Can't find charge nurse, stand around awkwardly hoping someone will ask me something. 

6:51 PM: A bunch of doctors converge around this one patient's room. Follow them around like a puppy dog. Hope they do something cool. Wait, I hope they don't ask me any questions..

6:58 PM: The doctors stick a tube down this guy's throat. I think that's called an intubation, but, not really sure. Everyone disperses. 

7:11 PM: Still waiting for charge nurse. 

7:16 PM: Watching one of the bitter residents skyping with his son. That must be fun.

7:23 PM: Charge nurse arrives: "I don't have any patients tonight so I can just show you around for a bit, then you're free to leave." 

Ken to self: "Don't screw this up."

7:25 PM: We see a patient that has some high tech catheter contraption running up from the back of his knee into his abdomen that bombards blood clots with radio waves to destroy them. 

modern medicine

7:28 PM: Ken: Do you like your job?

Nurse: Yeah, I used to be a chem major so this is a big change. When I was younger I never thought I'd be a nurse and taking orders, but I really like it here. In the ICU you get to do some thinking as a nurse. The doctors give you a little more autonomy, and it feels like they treat you more like a comrade than their slave.

7:32 PM: Ken: Any complaints about doctors for a med student?

Nurse: Your life is probably going to be hard, you have to listen to nurses bitch at you for the rest of your life. At the same time, you should listen to nurses. Also, don't be afraid to ask for help because you don't know everything. 

7:37 PM: Going around the unit to calibrate instruments while talking more bullshit about working in a hospital. 

7:41 PM: Walking out the door. So clutch.

See you on the other side,

from ken

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