For my senior project, I am shadowing a good friend of mine - an Emergency Room doctor - named Dr. Rose. I am following him around on his shifts and getting a feel for the career as I try to determine whether or not this is what I want to be.
Having already worked a total of about 11 hours, my exposure has been remarkable already. After twice acting as the model for an ultrasound - on which we got a clear view of my spleen, liver, kidney, bladder, uterus, and heart - I learned how to effectively use the high tech machine to search for internal bleeding or other internal injuries. In doing so, I got a very valuable anatomy lesson on my own body. It was fascinating. After the lesson concluded and as we emerged from the room we used, a trauma patient was being rolled into the ER on a gurney, only an hour into my project.
A man, age of 23, was barely conscious, had his lip split completely open, and was braced and strapped down to a board, which was clearly aiding a back injury. The paramedics began quickly spurting out information to the ER doctors as they transferred the patient onto the hospital bed. I stood silently in the corner of the room observing. I found it difficult to focus on the paramedics' banter while I looked at the blank expression on the patient's face. I couldn't help but feel a rush of compassion, wanting to walk over to him and comfort him. However, I knew his health and safety needed to be assessed first.
We learned that he was found in his wrecked truck off on the side of the road. The truck was severely damaged, the airbag had been deployed, and they needed to cut the young man out of the car. As he recovered a bit of consciousness, he continually made eye contact with me as he slowly told his story of how a tan van was driving on the wrong side of the road, and in trying to avoid hitting the van, the patient lost control and spun off the road. After checking for internal injuries and getting an X-ray on his back, the patient's lip was stitched up and cleaned. I quickly realized that a problem of mine being in the ER will be having the ability to first focus on their physical needs without letting emotion take a toll.
Majority of the rest of my project will consist of me shadowing Dr. Rose in the ER on his overnight shifts - which is when more traumatic injuries come in. I am so excited to keep this amazing project going!
Hey Cami! This sounds like a really deep, difficult project. I can't even imagine standing in the ER and watching trauma patients being wheeled in. I love to watch crime-related shows like Law and Order SVU, Chicago PD, and Chicago Fire... I think it would be SO cool to actually be there. But I don't think I could ever stomach actually doing it....so props to you! I think its a really critical issue to separate emotional sympathy and stuff from medically saving and helping patinents. For me personally, that's why I would love to be on the other side as a chaplain rabbi instead of having to deal with the gory parts... I hope you enjoy observing such dramatic, intense shifts! I look forward to following your posts and hearing more about your experiences!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like such an exciting on your feet experience. I agree that this will further determine whether or not you want to be a doctor. If you can handle these types of situations, which I'm sure you can, then you will be able to handle anything. These types of situations are the most difficult with the pressure and the unknown. I can't imagine the excitement though of what might come through the door next, not that someone being injured is something to be happy about. But this will be a great experiance for you and I''m sure you will be amazing and have such an awesome time.
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