Last week I started the “big” rotation….clinical.

I will spend the next 10 weeks in a hospital working with the dietitians.  Starting off, I’ve spent time shadowing them throughout their “typical” day (nothing is ever really typical in a hospital—always changing, always unexpected).  I’m asking ridiculous amounts of questions, because I’m curious and I want to learn as much as I can. I carry around a notebook with me and write down everything I want to remember and everything I think I’ll need to know.  So far my notes include everything from which medications are nutrition related, to commonly used abbreviations (which, in medical terminology, basically means every word. They really love those acronyms.), to what allows a little newborn to be released from the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). 

In college I was so scared of the clinical setting, basically vowing never to work in a hospital.  It just seemed so intimidating; you have to know so much, and constantly interact with very sick patients, and memorize all the lab values, and know all the medical terminology, and remember equations. Ugh, that’s a lot of work. 

To calm my nerves, and see what this clinical business was really about, I applied for the summer internship at the hospital.  Much to my surprise, I loved it. I got to work in a few different areas, and see how everything operates.  I got to shadow one of the dietitians, and received some much appreciated advice on how this year would really feel.  What she told me was straight on, and what I learned there set me up for this rotation.  Had it not been for that experience, I probably would’ve fallen into the group that has been known to, um, freak out on day one. 

Instead, I was ready. It is a much bigger hospital, and I still have no clue where to go when I get off the elevator (on any of the seven floors…..), but it feels strangely comfortable to be back.  I’m learning how to assess charts (online, because we’re all technologically advanced over here), and expanding my medical vocabulary.
 
And I’ve found myself thinking…..this could be the best place to start. All of a sudden, it’s clear that there’s no other job where I’ll learn so much on a daily basis. It’s completely ideal for a first job; something that will consistently test my knowledge and skills, keeping me on my toes with every new patient, developing those problem-solving and leadership skills I’ll later brag about on my resume.

Yup, the college-sophomore mentality is gone; I’m totally up for this challenge.

Posted by Mary Ellen Nunes at 10/15/2008 08:16:11 AM