Bye Bye Internship

I don't have much time since I've been out celebrating with my fellow ex-interns, but our first year is over. I'm no longer an intern!!! I was nearly skipping into the hospital this morning out of enthusaism to be moving on to the next phase of my training. I am on call July 1st for trauma and my responsibility is going through the roof. People are telling me I'm ready although I am fairly nervous. I am also very excited as I have been wanting more responsibility for the past 6 months or so.

I'll try and sit down and really reflect on intern year sometime soon, but let's just say I am thrilled with how the year went. I could count on one (or two) hands the number of times I have seriously angered an attending and no patient has ever been harmed by a decision I have made or a technical error in the operating room. I have gotten incredibly positive feedback from staff and upper-level residents and really couldn't be much happier.

I never once went over the 80-hour work week rules and feel like I am beginning to understand how to balance my professional and personal lives.

Onwards and upwards! Tomorrow at this time I might be a puddle in the emergency department up to my eyeballs in traumas and consults. I'll keep you posted on how my new role shapes up.

Thank you for all of the encouragement over the past year! I couldn't have survived without the support of family and friends.

Bunnies

Does anyone know how to keep cute little rabbits from eating the nice plants I have laboriously planted in my yard (with my parents help). I thought of rabbit poison but then I would have to deal with rabbit carcasses and that is suboptimal. I could hunt rabbits in the morning before going to the hospital (I do have good aim according to the man at Don's guns), but I would be left with the same rabbit bodies and blood in my yard. Plus I'm sure the neighborhood association would not tolerate gunfire at 3am for very long. Surely there is a repellant of sorts that would deter them without fatally poisoning them. Any suggestions?

In other news... the little "kiddos" (as every person in the hospital outside of surgeons apparently refer to them) at the hospital have now given me a sore throat. It's a good thing those punks are cute or I might be annoyed with them. I don't know how teachers put up with this. I guess the immune system adapts.

I'm sick

So my insides are completely rejecting me right now. It only took the kids on my pediatric surgery rotation one week to get me sick. Actually I have a full differential for why I am sick:

1. Sleep deprivation- I could go on all day about the way my lack of sleep has affected my life. In fact I'm missing time with friends right now because I know I can't safely drive to the other side of Indy. I fell asleep while driving to the dentist (3 miles away) a couple of weeks ago. Don't worry that won't happen again.

2. High caffeine-containing beverage to water ratio. I think that this has amplified my dehydration at the least

3. Pediatrics- kids have a way of spreading germs and I am in contact with them every day. The only time all year that I have been sick until now was when I ate too much fried food at the fair and vomitted my brains out (seriously). Coincidence? I think not.

4. My body completely rejecting intern year. Seriously. 4 weeks!

5. Bad food. I think this should be higher on my list especially since I have eaten more hospital food recently out of desperation.

6. Residual parasites from my fateful trip to India 10 years ago. I doubt it.

Regardless of the cause I hope to bounce back quickly since I'm on call again tomorrow and would rather not have to trade calls.