Residency Fair

Founder's Hall was packed with first, second, and third year medical students this morning to check out the booths at the annual Residency Fair.
I'm interested in several specialties that weren't represented, so I moved fairly quickly through the crowd and managed to avoid eye contact with people from programs in which I couldn't be less interested (poor Psychiatry - everyone else had the same opinion as me).
Hopefully by this time next year rotations will have narrowed my interests down to 1. And Aaron will have picked a different one. :)

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

The weather this week has been absolutely gorgeous. It seems we skipped the winter season entirely, and now spring is in full bloom.
Aaron and I took advantage of the sunshine and went on a nice long walk along Riverside after dinner a few nights ago. People were gathered on the park lawns, sprawled across blankets and beach towels, taking in the sights and sounds of the evening. Before I knew it, we'd made a 3 mile trip. I'm hoping it will become a regular occurrence - what a wonderful way to get out from behind a desk and the books!

Despite a flash flood in our school parking lot (thank you, construction across the street!), the beautiful orange tulips made campus a pretty sight today. I failed to grab a picture last year of Dr. Pete in all his glory at this time of year. (Can you imagine carving him out of a whole log?!)
Hope you're taking advantage of the forecast this week. We could all use a little fresh air boost after last week's never-ending rain!

How to Become a Doctor

It happens nearly every time Aaron and I respond to the question, "What do you do?" with "We're in medical school."
Confusion or misconceptions.
Commonly, the follow-up question is, "So you're going to be a nurse?" This happens more frequently when I'm alone, and probably because I'm female (Really? It's 2012!).
It even happens within our own families. My grandmother thought medical school consisted of only one year after college, and then we'd be practicing physicians. Aaron's dad asked us if we were going to maintain jobs during medical school. In our dreams, both are possible.
I don't blame anyone, because unless you've had a close friend or family member go through the process, it's not common knowledge.
For those of you who aren't sure what becoming a doctor entails, the following is a brief summary.

• College: students generally apply during their senior year for matriculation into medical school the following year
• Medical School: 4 years
• 2 years of "academic" work
• 2 years of "rotations," or our clinical clerkship, under attendings, residents, and physicians in both primary care and specialties
• Applications and interviews for residency positions take place during the 4th and final year of medical school
• Officially a Doctor after graduation, but must complete a residency in order to obtain license to practice
• Residency: 3-5 years
• Primary care residencies are typically shorter in duration, whereas specialties generally require 5 years of training
• Fellowship (Optional): 1-3 years
• More focused study and training within a specialty; "sub-specialty"
• Cardiologists, Plastic Surgeons, Nephrologists, etc.

There you have it! 3 rounds of boards (4 if you choose a fellowship) must also be passed at various stages, such as this June, when Aaron and I take Step 1.
Hopefully that clears up any questions for those of you who follow my posts but are unsure of the "big picture." I'm only a fraction of the way there, but one day at a time, practicing draws nearer!

Spring (Break?)

This is officially the last Spring Break of our lives.
Instead of taking a trip, Aaron and I are spending the week intensely studying for Step 1 boards and paying some much needed attention to our house, which has been neglected for over a month.
After 2 exams and a quiz this past week, lunch with the Normans and their too-adorable-for-words daughter, Hadley, and a double date with my parents on Friday were just the ticket before tackling our to-do list.
That, and 14 hours of sleep total Friday evening and Saturday afternoon. Besides the fact that I had my first dream about boards, my mind finally got the rest it needed.
Today is all about Biochemistry. Big thumbs down. Between First Aid, board review videos, and Poppie's supplemental notes (thank you, Poppie!), it might extend into tomorrow. And maybe Tuesday. Can somebody rescue me?
To break it up, I'm tackling our bedroom during breaks. As my dad used to say to teenage me, "It looks like a hurricane tore through here!" Sadly, that phrase still applies to adult me. Before you judge, go to medical school.
I would post before and after pictures, especially now that my floor is visible, but I fear some of you may never look at me the same again after the sight of the "before."
While I'd much rather be on the slopes or a gorgeous beach, this week is an investment in our future. I hope the dividends are worth it!
If nothing else, our house will no longer qualify for an episode on "Hoarders." Just kidding, y'all, it's not that bad.

D.C. Favorites

Aside from the true purpose of our visit to Washington D.C., we also had most of the afternoon and all evening on Thursday as well as all of Friday to do whatever we pleased.
We could have stayed for several weeks and not have had time to see all of the historic sites, museums and attractions on our "list."
With so little time in the city, we chose to concentrate on the Smithsonian, the Holocaust Museum, and a little sightseeing in between.
Here are some of our favorite moments:

 The weather was beautiful, which made the walk to the Holocaust Museum from the American History Museum quite pleasant. The Washington Monument was in sight the entire way.

 The dinosaurs at the Museum of Natural History were amazing! I had high expectations going in, and they were met.

 The exhibit starring the Hope Diamond (which I didn't get a good picture of) was stunning - this crown and an emerald necklace caught my eye.

 My developing blisters required a rest Thursday afternoon after descending from Capitol Hill, so I gave my feet a break while Aaron perused the Air and Space Museum.

We had a fantastic breakfast at a French bistro Friday morning, and after a light lunch were ready for a good dinner. We chose Hank's Oyster Bar (also a restaurant) which served FABULOUS seafood. Since the special was oysters, Aaron made the brave decision to give them a go. He ordered a sampler of 2, was told it was best to chew them rather than swallow (yuck!), and down the hatchet they went! While he enjoyed them, the fried oysters he ordered for dinner were the highlight, hands down.

Our favorite exhibit in the Mall? X-rays taken of a variety of species of fish and aquatic organisms. The medical students/nerds in us were fascinated and spent time pointing out the similarities and differences between fish skeletons and those of humans. Good times, indeed.

We weren't allowed to take pictures at the Holocaust Museum, so I don't have anything to share besides the recommendation that you not miss it if given the opportunity to visit. We spent the majority of our time in the special exhibit over Nazi propaganda, which was superb, but did not have the time to make it all of the way through the permanent portion. I'm eager to go back, hopefully more emotionally prepared, with adequate time to reflect and take it all in. 

Thanks for a great time, Washington D.C.! We hope to see you again soon!

D.O. Day on the Hill

 

 D.O. Day on the Hill took place last Thursday in Washington, D.C., and Aaron and I were privileged to be able to attend the event. Osteopathic medical students and physicians from across the country gather on Capitol Hill to advocate issues pertinent to the continued success of our profession and healthcare provision.

My eyes are closed in this and nearly every picture - the sun was so bright! It was a beautiful day on Capitol Hill.

Roll call occurred early Thursday morning, and Oklahoma State had one of the largest student groups present, especially considering our geographic location. I was proud to be associated with our school and group. :)

 Two advocates from Oklahoma State met us at the morning meeting and served as our guides throughout the day. We traveled back and forth between the "Senate" side and the "House" side to meet with our elected officials. It was quite a trek in total, but you couldn't beat the scenery! Note to self: new flats are just as painful as high heels.

 Representative John Sullivan and Senator Jim Inhoffe took time out of their busy schedules to personally meet with our group. The effort made us feel as though our issues and opinions are important and heard, and was much appreciated. Both were very personable and made us feel welcome in their offices, which each exhibited items paying homage to our state.

Two fourth year students were selected as our spokespersons, and gave a brief overview of our opinions and requests concerning upcoming legislation, such as possible devastating impending cuts to medical education, and an Act that would increase residency positions and training by 15% over the next 3 years. The latter is direly needed to address the growing physician shortage, particularly in primary care. While approval is taking place for additional medical student slots, the number of residency training programs is static or declining. Every student must complete a residency in order to practice; therefore, more positions are a must!

Senator Inhoffe addressing our group

 Senator Inhoffe was scheduled to speak about Invisible Children, which he created, and invited us to attend. Unfortunately, we had another upcoming meeting and were unable to make it. I wish we would have had the opportunity to see him in action! I was impressed by his honesty and unapologetic, firm stand behind his beliefs. Even if you disagree with him, those traits are still admirable in today's political atmosphere.
The day was an amazing experience, and one I would encourage students to attend if possible in the future. It's important to be able to meet face-to-face with our legislators if we desire change, and D.O. Day on the Hill provided the perfect opportunity to do so.

Skeet Shooting

This weekend was a no good, horrible, very bad weekend (anyone remember that children's book?). Why? It was entirely spent studying Pharmacology.
I stared at 16 pages of drug tables for hours-on-end. Yuck. Thank goodness for Epocrates and other apps available to me in the future, because I'm not sure how much of this information I actually retain.

After our exam Monday, a friend took Aaron and I shooting in Sand Springs. It was the perfect way to relieve some pent-up stress.

It was very windy and cold that morning, which made shooting skeet even more difficult. However, I was impressed by both Aaron and myself. I blew the "girl" record out of the water!

 Our instructor

I am officially addicted. I've now added a gun range to the list of must-haves for our future homestead. And maybe a rifle to my Christmas list.