Sweet Sixteen

I honestly thought I was going to hate it.  I thought I was going to be completely miserable for a whole month.  Then I did it, and it wasn't so bad.  I enjoyed my patients, spending time with them while they labored, and then seeing them over the next couple of mornings before they went home.  I continued to master my ultrasound skills as I scanned every belly I came across.  I set a challenge to perfect my "cervix feeling" skills, and I think during this last week I gained a lot of confidence in my exam.  And, I got a taste of my formal life when I scrubbed in for the C-section yesterday.   My hands still feel the tingle of being well-scrubbed.

I caught my sixteenth baby today.  Here's a picture of the first and last ones:

And, I delivered the last one all on my own.  A boy.  Almost at the end of my shift today.  So, as the totals stand:
Baby Counter:
Births witnessed:  9
Babies delivered:  16
C-sections witnessed:  3
C-section first assist: 1
That's the end of my OB rotation.  On Tuesday I move onto the Pediatric Emergency Department;  actually, just down the stairs from L&D in the same hospital.  I did a rotation in Pediatric EM when I was a 3rd year in medical school.  At that time it was interesting to see the unusual cases that come into a tertiary medical center.  From what I've heard, here will be no different.  We'll see.

I have the weekend off to attend a Natural Disaster in Small Communities training seminar.  My focus in Emergency Medicine is Emergency Medical Systems and Pre-Hospital Care.  As part of my studies, I have to attend a number of disaster planning and EMS meetings, both on the local and national levels.  This will be my first meeting, so we'll see how it goes. 

I have Monday off for several meetings I need to attend for EMS.  During some down time, I will continue to work on my scrapbook pages and get caught up on some laundry.  You have no idea how many pairs of scrubs I go through during a rotation.

Someone told me it was spring, but this is what I woke up to in Buffalo this morning:

So much for throwing open the windows and doing some spring cleaning this weekend.  Maybe next week?

Here's today's Seal Picture:  the hunt has started and the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans stalled in giving the Humane Society their permits to film and document the hunt.  You can read the latest at: Live From the Ice

Continue to support the efforts to ban the hunt by clicking on my side-link or at the HSUS.org/protect_seals.html website.

Tags: OB, labor and delivery, multiple sclerosis, disaster planning, humane society, protect seals