November 20, 2003
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You know, I don't think it really hit me until today's class...I am really going to be out there taking care of patients in about a year and a half. I mean, I'm seeing patients and doing exams now...but I mean I'll be on my own, making decisions, ordering tests, prescribing drugs, giving diagnoses. For some, I know that is a heady realization. To me, scared me. This is not something I am taking lightly. I want my patients to turn to me just as much as they do their doctor.
I'm in a different kind of curriculum at school. We're following some med schools and doing something called Problem-Based Learning, PBL. So, we work cases and in doing so learn about diseases, tests, drugs, procedures, etc. We just finished a case where a guy fell from a 30' cliff and broke his tibula and fibula...right near his ankle. Bad break, they pinned his ankle and he was in the hospital for 4 days when we "saw" him (where our case opened). Turned out he had something called compression syndrome...it's a bad, nasty thing to have and people looses limbs, develop kidney failure and sometimes die. All because his surgeon didn't take his complaints seriously. All the staff thought this guy was drug seeking. He nearly lost his leg because he was believed to be a druggie (no history supported that).
I guess my rambling is just that I don't want to be the physician assistant (medical provider) who ignores the signs and symptoms because I'm tired, annoyed, or don't care enough to talk. It's not going to ever be an easy job...I guess if I had wanted that, I would have stayed in my comfy job as an audiologist and been bored outta my head for the rest of my life. Well, I've gone on too much. You all stay safe and have a great Friday!
Comments (3)
I trust my P.A. more than my doctor. He is extremely compassionate and listens where my doctor (who he refers to when needed) is quite flippant.
You will do wonderfully!
It does sound like a LOT... but I have no doubt you won't be the best (and most attentive) professional you can be.
I don't know you and can't quite remember how I surfed into this area. In a strange twist of coincidence though, I was just talking to my son's asthma PA about the very same thing you blogged about... the nerves involved in being responsible for someone else's care. She talked to my son a while today about being a doctor because he plans to major in pre-med in college in '05. She said that those PAs and doctors who are scared that they will make a mistake are the ones who usually are more attentive and more thorough than the others who feel rather emotionless about it. They care enough to try to get it right the first time rather than saying, "Heck, if that doesn't work, come back and we'll try something else." If you are scared AND you are excited about your chosen path AND you are anxious to get out and get your hands into it, then I am sure you will be SPLENDID! Best of luck!
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