Surgery

Today is my first day of surgical rotation in my elective in Malaysia. I loved it. I love helping in surgery, watching surgery and I think I will love doing surgery even more. I learnt so much today I don't even know where to start. I think I will really become a surgeon when I grow up. I know I said that before but it feels so me when I'm in the surgery. And the learning bit, makes me feel that I'm alive, makes me feel that I'm really me. The feeling is amazing. You have to had experience it to know what I'm talking about. I'm so high right now cause I just came out from watching a total thyroid removal and helped in the abscess drainage on a breast. It's awesome.

Anyway, my day start with a code blue. Never seen one before. I stood in a corner with my eyes wide open and trying to see everything while trying to keep out of everyone's way at the same time. It's busy like crazy. That actually rhymed. Haha. Anyway, code blue, as a med student, the best thing to do is to just stay out of people's way unless you get called for. Which you never will. Want to know why? Because you are a med student and you don't know anything. You are like the most useless person in the room. And it's true. Just stand there and learn. And stay out of the way. Oh, and I just realised today that CPR is actually really tiring. I saw them sweating after doing CPR.

Then we have to break a bad news to a patient. Like a really really bad news. I don't think I want to talk about it today. But breaking bad news is like part of being a doctor isn't it. Not everyone can be helped. We have our limits and it is important to acknowledge that.

Then we went to surgery. I watched an thyroid removal. It is a four hours long surgery. But you know what is the magic about it? You don't even realised that you were there for four hours. Its awesome. Then I learnt about anesthesiology things and the importance of looking after the patient even after the surgery. The things to look out for, and the way the patient behaves when they are waking up. Mind blowing. After that, I helped in a breast abscess drainage. It was like a tiny thing but it was still great. Didn't end my day till 9pm though. But totally worth it.

Anyway, I think live and breathe medicine. I don't even know why I was in medicine. It was a gut instinct. But I stepped in, and never looked back ever since.

love,
kathleen