LIFE IN THE ER

First, an addendum to my post about General Surgery...to everyone, I know your mother probably taught you to wash behind your ears, but apparently some mothers have been failing to teach their children to wash their belly buttons. The deal is, when you go into surgery, especially anything to do with the abdominal or pelvic areas, the team will clean the area, and it often includes cleaning the belly button. Now, I saw some terrifying things come out of some of my patients' belly buttons. So almost as a PSA, please clean out your freaking belly button when you bathe!

So now ER business...I'm not sure this is quite my cup of tea. I have enjoyed some aspects-mainly the fast pace makes the time go by fast and working 12-hour shifts means I have to work less shifts. Plus, I really have gotten to see and do a lot. However, 12 hour days are really quite long. I'm not sure I'm cut out for that. I work with new staff each day, so each day is essentially Day 1 of a rotation, which wrecks my nerves and I always feel out of place and awkward. I also feel that once I get to know a preceptor, they help me with my weaknesses. In this scenario, I don't quite get that opportunity, so I feel like I've grown in a few small areas, but no significant areas like I did in some of my other rotations. Also being in a very urban ER is much different than my small-town ER where I got my first ER experience. I preferred the small-town vibe :) Now, don't get me wrong, the staff I've worked with here has been quite helpful and generally friendly, but I like to develop relationships and work with people on a more personal and less formal level. Regarding big lessons to pass on to yall...I'm still working on thinking about that one. The cool stories I can't really share for privacy reasons and the rest you'd probably find boring. But I'll keep thinking about it... I've actually finished my days in the ER and am now switching to nights for a few shifts. For those of you who know how much I love my sleep, pray for me and this transition!