After 3+ years of studying pretty much every day, my last test of med school is officially over! I got my step 2 CK score back this past wednesday and now I really don't know what to do with my days!
I'm in the process of working on my application...Mid september will be coming soon enough, but really other than that...so much time and so little to really do.
As of yesterday I finished my internal med sub-I and can say it's official that I'll be applying for Internal Med come this fall. It's nice to know what I want to do with my life...I can't imagine the people who are still unsure this late in the game.
During 3rd year it was hard to get out and really enjoy much outside of the hospital. There was always a test, or an eval or something to be working on. As a 4th year, especially now that my Sub I is over, most of those worries are over. Obviously you still want to do well and impress, but the worry of a test is no longer there. As a 3rd yr I promised I would do more come 4th year and it's already starting to look that way. I just booked my ticket home for a wedding mid-september and i'm heading back to Indy in October for the colts/broncos football game....probably the last time manning will play in indy...should be a good time.
Hopefully I can get a few more things under my belt before interview season starts, but regardless, now that there are no more tests, I have no reason not to get out and enjoy the area.
Noxolo
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Friday, June 28, 2013
Step 2 CK is in the books....
Today was my last test of med school *fingers crossed* !! After spending 9 hours sitting at a computer doing hundreds of questions it feels good to be done with tests...but it was kind of anti climatic. One, we don't get scores for 3 weeks or so...so although it feels good to be done-ish...the real fun comes once you find out what your score comes in.
I guess this signifies my transition into my last year of med school....only 26 weeks of rotations left! Pretty crazy.
Just as one thing ends, something else always starts. 1. I need to get my butt in gear for application season! I paid for my token today and i'll consider that my first step in the right direction but I have a long way to go. 2. My internal med Sub I starts on monday...and since that is what I'm applying for I should try not to suck at it too much.
This small transition kind of sums up life for someone in medicine. To the outside world this was a big deal...and to me it is as well...however, at the end of the day it's just another step down the path. The further I go, the more I realize that there really isn't an end point. There is always something more. I guess that could go for life too...and it's good to never be content.
I'll post more about what I did for CK once I get my score back and depending on if what I did paid off.
I'll also try and get a post out there for the application process/general match time line once I get my feet on the ground and get moving on it myself.
Cheers
I guess this signifies my transition into my last year of med school....only 26 weeks of rotations left! Pretty crazy.
Just as one thing ends, something else always starts. 1. I need to get my butt in gear for application season! I paid for my token today and i'll consider that my first step in the right direction but I have a long way to go. 2. My internal med Sub I starts on monday...and since that is what I'm applying for I should try not to suck at it too much.
This small transition kind of sums up life for someone in medicine. To the outside world this was a big deal...and to me it is as well...however, at the end of the day it's just another step down the path. The further I go, the more I realize that there really isn't an end point. There is always something more. I guess that could go for life too...and it's good to never be content.
I'll post more about what I did for CK once I get my score back and depending on if what I did paid off.
I'll also try and get a post out there for the application process/general match time line once I get my feet on the ground and get moving on it myself.
Cheers
Sunday, April 14, 2013
UW
No matter where you go to med school...I think everyone can agree that doing UsmleWorld (UW) Questions is a must.
They were great for step 1 and are hopefully pointing me in the right direction for step 2. I think i'm going to make a final push and finish the final 150 Qs on my first time through UW for CK today. Now if I can only make it through the 2000+ Qs again in the next 60ish days...plus finish USMLE Rx...and keep reading and reading and reading.
Can't wait til CK is over!
Cheers
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Okay...blogging on a regular basis is harder than it seems...but I really should be better at it than I am...
After some pushes from family members saying I havent posted in a while..here we go.
Overall, life is good and I don't have anything to complain about.
Since my last post....I finished up OBGYN, took the shelf, started peds and ramped up my CK/CS studying.
OB= lots of fun...loved delivering babies.
GYN= meh, the OR is always interesting to me but GYN problems are not my cup of tea.
Shelf exams and I really don't see eye to eye. I have yet to find a good way to study for them so now I choose to just wing it and hope I learned enough on the rotation to pull through...and so far so good.
When I started med school I thought for sure I would want to do pediatrics. I love kids, kids usually love me...this would be perfect....then I started peds.
My first 4 weeks I was on outpatient...it was interesting/repetitive. Luckily I was in an office that saw a TON of patients...I mean >300 a day! So...not only did I get to see my share of ear infections, upper respiratory infections, flu, strep throat, etc....I was also able to see a few interesting/more rare things. HSP (Henoch-Schonlein purpura), post viral myositis, and PFAPA (periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis and adenitis) to name a few.
Next up I did 2 weeks of inpatient and actually really liked it. I had some really cool kids and great attendings that really made the experience.
Now i'm finishing on NICU and it's been good so far....but I'm only a week in.
I love dealing with the kids but hate dealing with the parents. I also really don't like that a lot of the time, especially in outpatient there really isn't anything for a Dr to do. If a pt comes in with a URI...all you can do is treat symptomatically and really, the parents could have done that at home to begin with. If anything, this has further solidified my desire for IM.
In other news....70ish days until I'm done with tests for med school! (hopefully!)
I scheduled my CK for the end of June and CS is in early May...hopefully the first and last time I take either of them
Cheers for now
Overall, life is good and I don't have anything to complain about.
Since my last post....I finished up OBGYN, took the shelf, started peds and ramped up my CK/CS studying.
OB= lots of fun...loved delivering babies.
GYN= meh, the OR is always interesting to me but GYN problems are not my cup of tea.
Shelf exams and I really don't see eye to eye. I have yet to find a good way to study for them so now I choose to just wing it and hope I learned enough on the rotation to pull through...and so far so good.
When I started med school I thought for sure I would want to do pediatrics. I love kids, kids usually love me...this would be perfect....then I started peds.
My first 4 weeks I was on outpatient...it was interesting/repetitive. Luckily I was in an office that saw a TON of patients...I mean >300 a day! So...not only did I get to see my share of ear infections, upper respiratory infections, flu, strep throat, etc....I was also able to see a few interesting/more rare things. HSP (Henoch-Schonlein purpura), post viral myositis, and PFAPA (periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis and adenitis) to name a few.
Next up I did 2 weeks of inpatient and actually really liked it. I had some really cool kids and great attendings that really made the experience.
Now i'm finishing on NICU and it's been good so far....but I'm only a week in.
I love dealing with the kids but hate dealing with the parents. I also really don't like that a lot of the time, especially in outpatient there really isn't anything for a Dr to do. If a pt comes in with a URI...all you can do is treat symptomatically and really, the parents could have done that at home to begin with. If anything, this has further solidified my desire for IM.
In other news....70ish days until I'm done with tests for med school! (hopefully!)
I scheduled my CK for the end of June and CS is in early May...hopefully the first and last time I take either of them
Cheers for now
Monday, January 21, 2013
It has been a while...
So...I realize I havent posted in quite a while.
1. Surgery finished strong...all in all it was a good time. The residents were great, the attendings were helpful, but by no means would I ever choose to go into surgery simply because of the lifestyle. The OR time was rewarding and so was the floor medicine...but the lack of life outside of the hospital for the next 6+ yrs of my life at least is enough for me not to pursue it.
2. Spending 2 weeks at home over xmas break was exactly what I needed after 3 months of surgery.
3. Getting to see some of my best friends from undergrad in milwaukee, some of which I havent seen in years was a great time. I can really appreciate our friendships more and am thankful to have met such great people. It always amazes me that even if we havent seen/talked in a while, the minute we get back together it's as if we were back on campus and nothing has changed.
4. I'm currently on my last of 4 weeks on OB...soon to be followed by 4 weeks of GYN. OB has been great so far...there is something amazing about bringing another life into this world...especially when you're allowed to actually be that person who brings them in and not just a bystander. Ive been in on a few dozen deliveries so far, and have even gotten to deliver by myself, with the attending and resident right next to me, a couple of times now...pretty awesome.
5. The other night when I was on nights I had the final confirmation that the OR is not for me. One of the OBGYN attendings was talking with me the other day and the Q of what do you want to do inevitably came up. I said IM, but tossed in that I liked the OR so who knows. He brought up the great divide....are you a cutter?...because you're either a cutter or you're not...and I couldn't agree more. I enjoy the OR, I really do, but I simply enjoy doing procedures. So...as of now, i've officially ruled out Surg and OB/GYN and am 99.5% sure I will be applying to IM come this fall....plenty of time to change that though.
6. I've always said cardiology, cardiology, cardiology....I think that goal may have changed as well. GI has always interested me and even more so lately...plus they get to do a lot of procedures. BUT, pulm/critical care has also jumped way up on my list. It's always new and exciting, you get to do procedures and you get to have a huge impact.
7. I got signed up for my 4th yr electives...kind of scary! As of now I'm doing an I'M sub I, GI, neurology, radiology, Family med, ICU and CVICU
I think that's about it for now....
Cheers
1. Surgery finished strong...all in all it was a good time. The residents were great, the attendings were helpful, but by no means would I ever choose to go into surgery simply because of the lifestyle. The OR time was rewarding and so was the floor medicine...but the lack of life outside of the hospital for the next 6+ yrs of my life at least is enough for me not to pursue it.
2. Spending 2 weeks at home over xmas break was exactly what I needed after 3 months of surgery.
3. Getting to see some of my best friends from undergrad in milwaukee, some of which I havent seen in years was a great time. I can really appreciate our friendships more and am thankful to have met such great people. It always amazes me that even if we havent seen/talked in a while, the minute we get back together it's as if we were back on campus and nothing has changed.
4. I'm currently on my last of 4 weeks on OB...soon to be followed by 4 weeks of GYN. OB has been great so far...there is something amazing about bringing another life into this world...especially when you're allowed to actually be that person who brings them in and not just a bystander. Ive been in on a few dozen deliveries so far, and have even gotten to deliver by myself, with the attending and resident right next to me, a couple of times now...pretty awesome.
5. The other night when I was on nights I had the final confirmation that the OR is not for me. One of the OBGYN attendings was talking with me the other day and the Q of what do you want to do inevitably came up. I said IM, but tossed in that I liked the OR so who knows. He brought up the great divide....are you a cutter?...because you're either a cutter or you're not...and I couldn't agree more. I enjoy the OR, I really do, but I simply enjoy doing procedures. So...as of now, i've officially ruled out Surg and OB/GYN and am 99.5% sure I will be applying to IM come this fall....plenty of time to change that though.
6. I've always said cardiology, cardiology, cardiology....I think that goal may have changed as well. GI has always interested me and even more so lately...plus they get to do a lot of procedures. BUT, pulm/critical care has also jumped way up on my list. It's always new and exciting, you get to do procedures and you get to have a huge impact.
7. I got signed up for my 4th yr electives...kind of scary! As of now I'm doing an I'M sub I, GI, neurology, radiology, Family med, ICU and CVICU
I think that's about it for now....
Cheers
Sunday, December 2, 2012
2 weeks to go...
Final 2 weeks of surgery anddddd I'm ready for the 2 week break that follows finishing! Kind of crazy to have been going every day since early July with no real break. Is this what real life is like? Everyone said clinicals was a lot better than basic sciences and on one hand I do agree. In clinicals at least we get to apply what we've learned to real situations, however, I think you're even more busy (or should be). Not only do you spend 8-12+ hours at the hospital each day, you're still expected to study outside...and needless to say...there is just as much, if not more to study now than in basic sci. These past 10 weeks have been pretty much a joke for studying..the last thing I want to do after being at the hospital for 12+ hours is go home and read or do Qs. Most of my studying comes on the weekends and even that can be a struggle at times. I finally put together a little study schedule for these last 2 weeks so hopefully I can get a good amount done. Time will tell...surgery shelf is in 11 days and then hopefully home in 12 or 13 days...crazy how fast it has gone!
In other news, I signed up for step 2 CK and CS....$2165 later of course! Ill be heading to Chicago in mid march for CS and most likely take CK at the end of June depending on how I'm feeling/how much studying I can get done in March/April.
These chairs are starbucks are not so comfy today so...off to the groc store before some more Qs this afternoon.
Cheers
In other news, I signed up for step 2 CK and CS....$2165 later of course! Ill be heading to Chicago in mid march for CS and most likely take CK at the end of June depending on how I'm feeling/how much studying I can get done in March/April.
These chairs are starbucks are not so comfy today so...off to the groc store before some more Qs this afternoon.
Cheers
Monday, November 19, 2012
3 weeks and 2 days left!
Who would have thought that surgery would fly by as much as it has!? It's crazy that I only have 2 more days of colorectal and then 3 final weeks on vascular! No joke, I think I'm going to miss it a little. The OR keeps growing on me. Even doing simple bed side procedures are more and more enjoyable....but still no way I would want to do 5+ years of surgery residency! I think a lot of it has to do with how great the residents are. I don't know if i've just been lucky or what the deal is but the residents I've gotten to work with have all been amazing. They're always there to teach and have fun doing whatever we are up to. I never feel pressured or over worked. I really couldn't as for a better experience, especially given that coming into surgery I thought I would hate it for sure.
Noxolo
Noxolo
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