Today was, unsurprisingly, an extremely fun day! For starters, we got our first check today! The stipend is $600 dollars total, and we all received the first part today. There was a massive line, and the TAs almost lost their heads because of how loud and unorganized everyone was due to the excitement!
I woke up early (like I do every day) to get started on job shadowing. I shadowed a radiologist. Although I can't include too many details, I'll admit that I began to truly appreciate the wonderful things that a radiologist does. Contrary to popular belief, radiologists who have a MD are not like radiology technicians! A radiologist can write prescriptions, but that is not something they do routinely or daily like other doctors may, according to the radiologist I shadowed. The important thing to remember is that there are many diferent types of radiologists. The two main groups are invasive and noninvasive. We pretty much looked at diagrams, located organs, and we were shown how to spot suspicious looking tumors or other important things to note.
Although I appreciated the job shadowing, I'm not quite so sure I want to be a radiologist from what I saw today. I like more hands-on patient interaction, and I'm not quite so sure radiology can fulfill that desire. Nonetheless, I recognized the importance radiology plays in the health team. The radiologist I shadowed told me that not many other doctors know how to read some diagrams and communication is key when it comes to interpreting diagrams for other doctors.
After that...we did suture! We got pig feets with cuts that we practiced stitching. I was so terrible at first, but it takes time to learn to do properly. Also, some of the tools we used were not particularly great. The TAs were helpful. I was actually very surprised that they didn't lose their heads due to the number of times they had to show us techniques before we actually learned. See pictures below!!
I also checked out an MCAT practice book, which I'm really psyched to open and explore. I've only completed general biology and chemistry, but I truly feel that I can start at least a little review to get to know the practice questions. Plus, according to Dr. Hill, one should do as many practice problems as possible!
We then proceeded to the anatomy lab. WOW. I have never had anatomy before, so this was a real eye opener into medical school. The first ten weeks of med school at UNMC are all about anatomy. There's so much to memorize; it's just outstanding and frightening at the same time! We focused on the nervous system.While being bombarded with all these terms, I almost felt incompetent...I had to remind myself I had just finished my freshman year!
Overall, the day was long, amazing, and full of so much learning. Each day, I truly learn a lot about medicine in a way I never have before. I'm so thankful that I'm here! Enjoy the pics:
I woke up early (like I do every day) to get started on job shadowing. I shadowed a radiologist. Although I can't include too many details, I'll admit that I began to truly appreciate the wonderful things that a radiologist does. Contrary to popular belief, radiologists who have a MD are not like radiology technicians! A radiologist can write prescriptions, but that is not something they do routinely or daily like other doctors may, according to the radiologist I shadowed. The important thing to remember is that there are many diferent types of radiologists. The two main groups are invasive and noninvasive. We pretty much looked at diagrams, located organs, and we were shown how to spot suspicious looking tumors or other important things to note.
Although I appreciated the job shadowing, I'm not quite so sure I want to be a radiologist from what I saw today. I like more hands-on patient interaction, and I'm not quite so sure radiology can fulfill that desire. Nonetheless, I recognized the importance radiology plays in the health team. The radiologist I shadowed told me that not many other doctors know how to read some diagrams and communication is key when it comes to interpreting diagrams for other doctors.
After that...we did suture! We got pig feets with cuts that we practiced stitching. I was so terrible at first, but it takes time to learn to do properly. Also, some of the tools we used were not particularly great. The TAs were helpful. I was actually very surprised that they didn't lose their heads due to the number of times they had to show us techniques before we actually learned. See pictures below!!
I also checked out an MCAT practice book, which I'm really psyched to open and explore. I've only completed general biology and chemistry, but I truly feel that I can start at least a little review to get to know the practice questions. Plus, according to Dr. Hill, one should do as many practice problems as possible!
We then proceeded to the anatomy lab. WOW. I have never had anatomy before, so this was a real eye opener into medical school. The first ten weeks of med school at UNMC are all about anatomy. There's so much to memorize; it's just outstanding and frightening at the same time! We focused on the nervous system.While being bombarded with all these terms, I almost felt incompetent...I had to remind myself I had just finished my freshman year!
Overall, the day was long, amazing, and full of so much learning. Each day, I truly learn a lot about medicine in a way I never have before. I'm so thankful that I'm here! Enjoy the pics:
Practicing doing stitches on the pig's foot (suture). It took a while to practice, and I had to use my hand to hold the string rather than tweezers because 1) I was just starting out as a beginner and 2) The tweezers were terrible! I bet if we do this again, however, I'll get better at it! It was definitely one of my favorite parts of the day.