Hello, I'm your medical student

I survived my first week. I don't think I stepped on anyone's toes (although I did have to excuse myself from an operation because I almost passed out at the smell of burning flesh) and I managed not to kill my patient while operating a laparoscopic camera (a tiny camera on a flexible stick they poke into your belly button in laparoscopic surgery; this is to visualize the inside of the abdomen).

Third year is pretty awesome so far, but my body has to get used to the work hours. Surgeons in hospitals work /hard/. In addition to the emotional drain, it's a huge physical strain. Hours of standing, precious minutes of sitting. My back and feet ache by the end of the day. Surgeons also never just walk; their slowest gait is at least a power-walk, and when they really get going I am half-running to keep up. If I turn my back for a moment they will be out of my line of vision and I will lose them. I get the sense that they are always going places, always busy, always thinking about the next thing to get done.

Presentations are EXTREMELY brief and to the point: How's the wound site look? Did they die overnight? No? Good. Next patient.

I am going in tomorrow (we are starting very late: 8 o'clock. Which means I'll be getting there at 6 a.m., a welcome change from my previous 5 a.m. start-times).

I decided to sum up the rest of my experience in pictures. Enjoy.

MS3, First Week, Surgery: