eponymous

"swapped my penguin suit for scrubs", well, not entirely.

count my blessings to be in a forward-thinking medical school with an integrated program and early patient contact. how many other first term freshmen can say they've taken patient histories and ran them by consultants?! and, i'm not-so-secretly thrilled to be able to break out that lovingly acquired corporate wardrobe again. well, what's left of it anyway, having gifted a good chunk to friends who were starting work as i was leaving, and my baby sister who's just gotten into lawsch.

on these fantastic ward days, i get to dress my age! no more hoodie and jeans. look ma, skirt and heels! speaking of which, i struggled to walk in a skirt after all these months. wow. some things there are simply no muscle memory for. 

on a less frivolous note, can i just say that i love hospital visits? being trusted with a patient, all of whom volunteer to share their history with us hapless first yearers, and listening to their presenting complaint, history of presenting complaint, past medical history etc is nothing short of humbling. despite being poorly (ooh! local slang!) they muster up sufficient energy to "give something back". their altruism amazes me and i appreciate their giving nature. if i were ill, i'd probably be sulking in a corner and binging on ice cream. trust me, talking to eager students would be very low on my list. 

and it was the same with the year long study we'd to do. a pregnant mum let us into her home and life to follow her journey to motherhood and beyond. hey, mine even welcomed us into the birthing room had the uni allowed us to share the experience. thinking about my pre-conceived notion of the stiff english upper lip, i'm stunned by how unreserved my "mum" was about it. 

back to the hospital visit, it's inevitably an eye opener and each session leaves me with much food for thought. case in point: i had to deal with my inherent apprehension when dealing with a patient who intimidated me. he was nothing but cooperative and happy to share his story, but when he started telling me how he was on long term medication for his depression, bipolar disorder and anger management issues, i literally started plotting my escape route should he suddenly go berserk. didn't help that he had the build of a professional wrestler and tattooed from wrists to ears... ran this little wobble by the consultant after and he assured me that it's only in casualty where i've to watch my back haha. good guidance, good teaching and good learning. 

can't believe i get to spend the rest of my life doing this :) oh wow.