the beginning

Starting my rotations in Pediatrics has revealed itself to be a real comfort.  Seeing a patient all by yourself for the first time is very nerve-racking, but in Peds I walk into the room and see a little kid!  I got to thinking, "Well I guess it's pretty hard to look dumb in front of a kid." And that helped give me some confidence.  This past week was the week before all the public school districts in DFW start, so the schedule is completely packed full of immunizations, well checkups, sports physicals, and all that stuff.  I've probably done 30 well-child exams since Wednesday, and I'm feeling pretty good about it so far.  Hardest part is looking into teeny little ear canals to check for ear infections.  Especially with the 2 year olds that hate being restrained by 3 people and prodded with the otoscope.  Sticking something into a thrashing kid is scary - I'm just hoping I don't poke too far and gib they bray dablage.

My preceptor is a PA named Tamara, who is pretty much the head honcho at the clinic.  She's been a great teacher so far and very patient with me as far as charting and documentation goes; for that I'm very thankful.  We're actually kinda similar from what I can tell so far.  Caring and big on patient education, but frustrated with ignorant and stubborn parents.  They say in Peds that working with kids is the easy part, it's the parents that you're really treating - 100% true.

There were too many highlights from last week to pick, but if I had to pick three...  The first has to be correctly diagnosing an otitis media with effusion (fluid in the middle ear).  #2 would be the checkup I did Friday on a 3 day old boy.  Which means he was born during my second day on rotations.  Ridiculous!  And only 5 lbs 14 oz too; tiny!  The biggest highlight of the week was seeing my first Down Syndrome patient.  The boy was probably 3 or 4 years old, and I was a little unsure of myself going in for the exam.  But he was so happy and sweet, his mom was the nicest parent I saw all week, and while I listened to his heart he giggled and played with my stethoscope with a huge smile on his face.  I heard the same heartbeat as with any other "healthy" little boy.  It was a really powerful and simple lesson God had for me.  As I left the room, he laughed and waved 'bye-bye' to me like it was going out of style.  Totally made my day. :)

Week 2 starts in the morning, and I'm excited to see and do even more!

grace & peace