Snickers + Water = Med School Survival

[leadzeplane]

Wow. I really am a lazy sod. I haven't updated this since February and I am nearly at the date to heading back for third year!


*Makes record scratching noises* "REWIND!"

I seem to have a lot to cover so I will probably not do it justice. I probably wouldn't have done anyway.

I passed all my January exams and I did especially well in the MCQs (probably due to the high concentration of neurosciences which I thoroughly enjoyed). Anatomy, microanatomy and OSCEs also went well (and it is worth noting that I got 100% in the Anal Examinaton.....go me.)

I enjoyed the week or so off where I layed about watching the Wire in my dressing gown eating cheesy puffs. Artist reconstruction below.



During this period I also met up with an old school friend who is now my girlfriend!! We have going strong since then so my usual self depricating comments at the end of my posts will have to be stopped for the time being....

For the second and final semester of year two we were studying the skeletal and endocrine systems. Pretty good but not as good as neuro. Is anything?

As for my SSC this semester I had a module on the anatomy of the back which I enjoyed but I believe that this particular SSC was the SSC for the smarter individuals in my class. As a result I felt like a big dunce the majority of the time. Not much craic.

At least next semester my SSC involves neuroscience! (YEAAAA!)

But it ain't clinical. (BOOOO!)

At the end of my year, there was the usual exams (they were ok!) and then the big EXIT EXAM which is the exam which encompasses the previous three semesters. In the end it appeared ok and I felt that my result was pretty good although I am never really satisfied with any exam result in honesty (Type A personality you see).

There fore I am finally out of my Pre clinical years and the day after my brother's birthday (28th September) I begin my clinical work in the Erne hospital which is as far away from my house as possible. Thank you Queens!



(best image of the Erne on google images I could find)


For my music tip of the moment, I suggest you head back to the 1980s and dig out some Prince. He may have looked a tad poncey but this hunk a love was a bonafided ladies (or laddddassss) man. Try Purple Rain or Sign O'The Times. He is so cool that once upon a time he used to go into strip clubs and pay the strippers to put their clothes on. Legend.

Therefore Prince, I salute you.

[leadzeplane]

"You ain't a looker, but hey, you're alright!"

How awesome is Bruce Springsteen?



And Firefox too? I just got a new beautiful Dell laptop (first I have ever owned) and I have made the big leap to Firefox though I still don't have enough courage (or MONEY) to get an Apple. Can't digest their price. At the moment I have copied a significant amount of my CD collection unto the computer and it only comes to 15gb! I know that may appear alot but I have a 180gb iPod! What am I to fill it with? The Wire? I would love to in honesty.

In the medical world, I am currently in my SSC/SSM of which it is 'The History of Neuroscience' and it is an interesting subject although I have basically been at home for the previous two/three weeks. Great fun. The topic of my research is the 1906 Nobel Prize for Medicine/Physiology which was shared by the scientists Golgi and Cajal who both had different views of the structures of nerves! In the end Cajal was right by using Golgi's chemical solution. They had a right bitch at each other at the prize ceremony like a couple of irate grans. The bitchy kind of grans. Not like mine (love you nan!).

For the end of this week I have to give in my dissertation and then do a 15 minute presentation although I may admit that I seem to be ahead of schedule which is worryingly good! Dissertation is done so just need to fix it up and do the presentation, on my new laptop. Feels good man.

Girlfriend is great. Nuff said.

After this week, I head into my surgical attachment and I am shitting it a bit in honesty. How much physiology to know? How much detail?!!? Can I cook for myself??? Do they have electricity in Enniskillen?
Should be fun I think!

QUB has also given us a DVD which only works on Windows it seems (haha at the Macs!) and I am really enjoing this method of learning! I find that I am concentrating more when using this DVD as I can go at my own pace and do my own notes! I also seem to be ahead of schedule for it - fan-ta-bu-lous.


Music suggestion has to be "Born to Run" by the Boss a.k.a. Bruce Springsteen.

Or attempt to listen to "Trout Mask Replica" by Captain Beefheart. Insane.

[leadzeplane]

General surgery is over!

I thoroughly enjoyed it but I am not sure whether it will be the career path for me! None the less, the surgeons we were placed with were generally friendly and I am pretty sure that due to our hospital being very peripheral and due to the small number of students, we got to do alot. I have sutured, rectal examined, palpated scrotums, seen endoscopy and taken alot of blood to my hearts content.

Since I am lazy and this is my first post in the entire 6 weeks of attachment (at the end of it to my shame!) I can't really remember all of the cases I have seen. Being general surgery, the greatest problem seemed to be gallstones and associated problems (cholecystitis, pancreatitis). Two of my cases had this problem in mind whereas my other case was thrombophlebitis. It was an interesting patient where he had developed some quite large swellings with the thrombophlebitis on his left leg. I enjoyed that case the most as the farmer was a friendly enough chap who seemed very bemused by the fact that he was getting extra attention in comparison to other patients!

During my time in the hospital I was also mistaken for a F1/F2/proper doctor a shocking of number of times. Most of the time I either looked bemused or responded by quickly grabbing my lanyard and flashing it up. Kardex? What I am meant to do!

The fun we had in the hospital accomodation was also lovely. Getting to know the years above us and their sage wisdom with future exams and MTAS forms!


Hippocrates chillin' yesterday

Now I have a week off of Self directed learning where I should be learning from the DVD provided by Queens. I will but I am also going to buy some Christmas presents! And see some friends. Fun fun!

Then it is general medicine. I must lower my expectations for this I have heard.

Music suggestion? Get "Graceland" by Paul Simon. It's fan-bloody-tastic.







(I promised I will post more interesting, informative posts during my General Medicine placement......sorry)

[leadzeplane]

And now my specialties are nearly over too!

So far I have done

• Ophthalmology
• Neurology
• Dermatology
• Haematology
• Musculoskeletal

and accordingly I haven't posted a thing about it on this wonderful site. Ophthalmology was good particularly due to the specialist I had been attached to who was fantastic. Laid back and very good at teaching (a bit of a change from those surgeons I had met previously!). I was looking forward to Neuro and I found it to be pretty interesting but I would have liked to have seen more patients rather than uncomfortable lecture theatres (one in particular which is in the basement of the Royal Victoria Hospital which has the leg room of a Ryanair flight). Derm was surprisingly good aswell was haematology! Finally, I had three lonnggggggggggg drawn out weeks of Musculo-skeletal at Musgrave. The rheumatology I can give or take but the orthopaedic surgery (particularly the paeds!) WAS interesting. Once again, probably due to the wonderful surgeons I encountered. How much of difference does a positive consultant make? ALOT. Really makes me want to consider their career.

At the moment, I am in my SDL week (self directed lazying) which I am using to revise for my impending exams/doom. Like a potential wallop to my scrotal sacs, I am not looking forward to this and it will probably make me want to vomit. Great fun!

Between then and now I have endocrine, nephrology and ENT to do, and I must learn those subjects in that time.......................grim.


a Liverpool fan this season

In my non-student life it is going well. Girlfriend is great as is my cat (BTW those two things are the same....................smart arse). All these week the police are investigating a murder in my area. It is the most gangsta my area has been and I do feel slightly 'Wire-ish'. I am sad, I know.


As for music? I am going to Glastonbury after my exams. WOOT! Therefore, in line with this, check out Toots and the Maytals!




I will post soon............promise!

[leadzeplane]

Summer is here (and has been for a bit.)

Exams are over and all PASSED therefore meaning I am now a fully functioning fourth year. Fab. The exams were tough enough but I do feel (hopefully in a modest way) that I put adequate enough work to deserve passing. I will now run through what I remember from the exams..............

The first paper I undertook was the written Clinical paper which was 50% MCQs and 50% short answer questions. For obvious reasons, I don't really remember many specific MCQs but I can recall some of the short answer questions.

• One of the questions was a picture of a limb with redness which had been unresponsive to antibiotics so therefore was probably a DVT
• a lesion on a patient's lip which turned out to be Steven Johnstons Syndrome (with 'target' lesions on the patient's arm too)
• a goitre question which I did mess up (I wrote Graves' disease when in reality it was a tumour!)
• a musculoskeletal question which was to do with a hip problem (can't actually recall this one well........)

I know there are some more but I have forgotten.........forgive me.

The next paper was the MCQs of the Scientific Basis of Clinical Practice which was not fun. This was followed by the short answer paper of this module. It was a bit nicer as it had a question on Hepatitis B - heaven!!



Then came the OCSEs which were ok..........some examples include

• PVD exam with Beurger's test
• Otoscope with glue ear
• Homonymous Hemianopia found on visual fields exam
• Explaining PEFR (oh, that was a duff one)
• Assessing whether to give a patient with gastritis a NSAID for his arthritis
• Explaining warfarin to a lady who just had a DVT
• Explaining C. diff to a simulated patient's son (the guy enjoyed the acting a bit too much I think particulary when he shouted "SUPERBUG!!!!???" at me.

The following day wasn't so bad.

• Lower limb motor exam (OH YEH!)
• Explaining eczema
• Breast exam with no lump found
• Abdominal exam with suspected cholecystitis.
• Treating hyperkalaemia
• Changing a lady's diabetes treatment to prevent her recurring hypos.

There was another one........but I have forgotten it. Sorry.

Anyway, they were all passed. I actually found out the day before I went to Glastonbury and oh my sweet buns, it was a fabulous festival. The only problem was the heat which must have been close to 30 degrees celsius every day and all the shade was taking up. None the less, I had an absolute ball and my highlights of this wonderful festival where the Gorillaz (even if the crowd were poor), Scissor Sisters, Two Door Cinema Club, big Stevie Wonder (the crowd for him was unbelievably big) and finally the Drums. So accordingly, here is a sample of the Drums.




At the mo, I am now applying (unsuccessfully I might add!) for jobs. Not much time left though as I start back on my birthday.........can you believe that???


Me when I found out where my placements are and when I begin.

[Yixian]

Congrats on passing the year dude, have fun in 4th year! Youll be a 5th year before you know it, and then.. a Jr doc :O