Uno Mas!

Earlier this week I began what will be my final rotation of medical school.

It sounds weird. My LAST rotation! Yes, in just a few short weeks I will finish medical school. The reality hasn't fully set in yet.

For those who are following along at home, when last we left our hero he was up to his pons in reflex hammers and MRI scans during the Neurology rotation. After 4 weeks of diseases of the brain and nervous system, I began Hematology/Oncology.

This was not a very enjoyable rotation for a few reasons, not least among these was the rather depressing nature of seeing patient after patient in the throes of their terminal illness. It becomes almost surreal after a while. It was interesting to observe how different physicians interacted with the patients. Styles varied but most seemed to deal with the death issue very well. One can learn a great deal just being around people I suppose. From a medical student perspective, the rotation was fairly educational and the attendings were laid-back and focused on teaching. The schedule was rather long and most nights I was there way longer than any self-respecting 4th year with senioritis should have been.

Anyway, that is all behind us now and this week I began ...I'll say it again...my final rotation of medical school- Endocrinology.

So far it is completely enjoyable. There are only a few disorders that make up the lion's share of the patients we see- Diabetes, Thyroid derangements, the occasional pituitary abnormality nothing too exotic so far. The management is pretty straight forward and not too mentally exhausting, even for a medical student. Our attending is quite personable and has an excellent rapport with both his patients and his students. He seems never to be at a loss for a story, ready at a moment's notice, to illustrate a point, or teach a lesson. Most are pretty amusing . Tuesdays are spent at his private office in the heart of Brooklyn- quite an interesting experience.

Each of his patients seemed to come straight out of Central Casting. More caricatures than actual people, I half expected to hear a laugh track begin playing after each question and answer exchange, or perhaps a rimshot.

Some of the actual exchanges between our attending and his patients :

So what brought you in today?
"The bus"

And how do you take your metformin? ( a diabetes pill)
"Orally"

You have diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure; is that right?
"No I don't HAVE high blood pressure- I GIVE high blood pressure, I'm a carrier [points to his wife]

...and so it went.

Each patient seemingly trying to outdo the last in this Vaudevillian banter. I'm not sure if it was just the patient's personalities, or the fact that they had an audience in us [the medical students], but I suspect that this was part of the normal relationship our attending has with his patients. It was nice to see. Quite a refreshing change compared to my last rotation.

I realize I haven't posted in a while and have yet to mention anything about the whole applications/interview process- stay tuned. I apologize to the 3 of you who actually read this and may be interested in such things.

More posts are coming soon. Really. I mean it this time.

Trust me, I'm almost a doctor!