Week in Review (Oct 28 2007)

It's been a pretty interesting week.

1) Clinical exams: I was hit with a patient with multiple problems, with a history that has multiple versions, depending on who she was talking to (sheesh). One of the lecturers said that I passed, but not with any satisfactory marks. She was pretty upset. From now on I'm gonna keep myself at a low profile among lecturers. High expectations can bring unwanted pressure during exams a mind free of stress is probably (from this small experience so far) the best asset during clinical exams. Another thing is that I need to see more of these "difficult" patients. Lecturers don't care whether or not you get an easy patient or one who'd rather stay in the toilet for an hour rather than seeing you; they just want the results. Seeing these difficult patients allows for more intensive training, and thus get more in the 20 minutes you should spend (on maximum) on asking the patient's history. Another 10 for examination, and another 30 minutes for revising the history and examination findings. Finding discrepancy in a patient's history is something I've yet to master, very practical, and is very much sought by lecturers in their students (aka needed in order to pass). And the lessons of the preclinical years still stand true: aim for distinction, and you will almost always get at least a pass. Next challenge: Pediatrics.

2) 1st MSC Meeting: Hm, I got the secretary post. Not something that I looked forward to. I'm lazy, and already suffering from occasional symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. Even more (compulsory) typing is not something I looked forward to. On the other hand, typing and language is something which is a bit of a strength for me. And the job doesn't call for a lot of thinking/creativity. Less pressure means that I can provide ideas for other people in MSC to consider. No real specialization means that I can help the other bureaus when they ask for help, or I may decide to offer my services voluntarily to the other bureaus when I think that I can contribute. Let's wait and see.

3) My Braces: Had a new set installed on my lower set of teeth. They're painful. But I love pain. And so I decided to chew some chewing gum to really feel the pain.

4) Installed Mac OS 10.5 Leopard on my Mac. No regrets. It's not a must-have like how Tiger was, but this is really a big improvement over the previous version. Killer features so far have been Spaces and the better networking capabilities. Currently trying out Time Machine. Wesnoth works just fine on it, and thus has the potential to disturb my studies for this posting. That's a good thing, considering that a few more weeks of O & G could've made me psychotic...