Island Med Student

I made some additions to my fire escape garden garden a few weeks ago. The sun has been brutal lately, but I’ve been doing my best to water all the plants every day. A quick thunderstorm just hit my neighborhood, so I will likely not have to water it today.

There is something just so incredibly wonderful and powerful about plants. I’m sure I don’t have to explain it to those of you who feel the same way. Planting a seed, getting dirt underneath your fingernails, keeping it watered, pulling up the weeds, and watching it grow, it’s all just beyond words.

My basil is flourishing, and actually I have been googling basil recipes all week to keep up with its growth. I have a few small tomatoes filling out nicely, some of the flowers are blooming, and I can see the little buds blossoming that will soon be habanero peppers.

It brings me so much joy to have a little garden in the city, outside of my little studio apartment. Who says fire escapes can’t be gardens?! (Okay, probably the fire department, but I swear there is still plenty of room to escape in the event of a fire.)

Today might be the best day EVER!!

I took my USMLE Step 2 CS (clinical skills) test yesterday. It was SOO not that bad. All I really had to do was be myself, and treat patients like I normally would. I can say that there is a high likelihood that I passed. In fact, if I didn’t pass, I will be sorely confused. Actually, I even had one of my patients laughing even though they were supposed to be screaming in pain!

Just now, I sat down at my computer, getting ready to write the above paragraph, and I got that scary email from the ECFMG, “Your Score Report is Now Available.” Of course, I quit everything I was doing and hurriedly logged onto the site to download my report. Nothing else mattered at that point, but reading my freakin report! And then I finally opened the PDF, and…..I PASSED the USMLE STEP 2 CK (clinical knowledge)! And not only did I pass, but I did pretty okay. I think I could have done a heckofalot better if it had not been for the horrible pain that I was in that day, but at this point, I really don’t care!

So, what does this mean? Well, if I am correct (and I think the chances are good), I passed the USMLE Step 2 CS. I have now also passed the USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 CK. So, I have PASSED all the requirements to graduate and become an MD! Basically, I just need to finish up my rotations, and then I will be able to receive my diploma and make my doggies start calling me Dr. Campbell (okay, I doubt they actually will…but it would be cute).

I’m DONE!!!

I am currently drinking my morning coffee. Shortly afterwards I will walk my doggies and then shower and get ready for a trip. I have to travel to Philadelphia today (the closest center) to take my USMLE Step 2 Clinical Skills. For those of you who don’t know, it’s the exam where you have actual actor patients (12 of them). You have to take their histories, do a physical exam, explain to and counsel them, and then write a full SOAP note afterwards, with 5 differential diagnoses and “work-ups.” I’ve been dreading this day for quite sometime. The thing is, I do well with written/computer exams. I don’t get very anxious, and I even kind of like taking them. But this whole people watching my every move and time constraints, etc., get my panties in a bunch. Anyway, it will be over around 10:30 tonight. (I had to get the afternoon session, because that was the only one available.) Here goes!

Also, I promise to actually start posting stuff on here more regularly. With all my exams out of the way, that will be much easier!

PS: Midori, I have John’s photos loaded and ready on my phone!

Check out my post on Medscape to learn some interesting stuff about researching doctors online.

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Some more iPhone photos taken recently in Bushwick. Enjoy.

“Yo Brooklyn, Fuhgeddaboudit” Photo Series

I am what you might call a list-aholic. I obsessively make “to do” lists, “grocery lists,” and just about any other list you can imagine. Whenever I am feeling overwhelmed by the volume of crap I have to get done, writing it all down on a piece of paper, and then crossing each off one by one as I accomplish them never fails to reduce my anxiety.

Several days after moving into my apartment in Brooklyn (which was one year ago), the towel rack in my bathroom broke. Basically, the screws came out of the wall and were just hanging there by a thread. Every time I put a towel on the rack, it would come crashing down and create a huge mess. So, “fix towel rack” has been on my “to do” list for the past year. I would have normally fixed it right away, but I needed a power drill, which I didn’t have with me in Brooklyn, and I didn’t want to buy a new one.

So, today I saw the superintendent for my building and I sweet talked him into letting me borrow his power drill. I raced up to my apartment, and a few minutes, sweat, dust, and loud sounds later I had a working towel rack in my bathroom.

You might be thinking, wow, this is a totally stupid post. And that’s okay, because it is. But there are two points I want to make:

1) After I fixed the towel rack, I went straight to my “to do” list, and scratched out “fix towel rack.” As I crossed it off, a huge wave of relief came over me. I don’t care if this is silly. But it made me happy.

2) I love power drills and fixing crap. Seriously, I can’t wait to move into my own house someday and do all kinds of renovations. I love building stuff. I love power tools. I love dirty, sweaty work. Mad props to my mom and dad. They raised me in a dirty, sweaty, building crap environment. Seriously, my parents do more building than some construction workers. There is nothing more satisfying than using your own two hands, two feet, (or one or none, if you don’t have any), to build, fix, and create. It’s the cat’s meow.

I have a bunch more “stuff learned” in cardiology to post. I will do so soon, I promise! But in the meantime, happy Friday!

Today was the first day of my cardiology rotation. Basically, we learned some quick and dirty ways to read EKGs. Here is an abbreviated synopsis of what I learned (okay, so I really learned all this before, but damn if I don’t keep forgetting it!):

1) Which leads represent which portions of the heart:

AVL + L1 = lateral wall
L2 + L3 + AVF = inferior wall
AVR = right wall
V1 + V2 = septum
V2 + V3 + V4 = inferior wall
V4 + V5 + V6 = Lateral wall

2) What to look at:

a) Rate – 300 / number of boxes = rate
inverted p = ectopic atrial rhythm
upright p = sinus rhythm

b) Rhythm – regular = R intervals the same
if rhythm is irregular, number of QRS X 6 = rate

c) Axis – look at L1 + AVF
if L1 + AVF are both upright = normal
if AVF is down and L1 is up = left axis deviation
if both AVF and L1 are down = left axis deviation

d) P wave and PR interval – p wave represents the depolarization of the atria and it should be less than 110 milliseconds. The PR interval represents conduction through the AV node and should be between 120 and 200 milliseconds.

e) QRS – look at 4 parameters – width (should be less than half a box), presence of Q waves (over 3 mm tall or bigger than 40 milliseconds wide is significant), transition zone (R should equal S), and voltage

f) ST segment

g) T and U waves

h) QT interval

Okay, I left out some stuff there, but you get the gist. Also, please do comment if I missed something important, or wrote something incorrect. I was writing furiously and could have written something down wrong! More to come on this topic soon!

Guest post from Karen Schweitzer, the About.com Guide to Business School. Karen also writes about colleges online for OnlineColleges.net

From medical school planning and financial aid to medical journals and online communities, there are many resources that have been designed with medical students in mind. This article provides a list of 20 free online medical resources worth checking out:

AAMC – The AAMC offers information on applying to med school, MCAT help, ERAS, and medical careers. This site also provides details on financial aid, scholars programs, and medical residencies.

University of Illinois at Chicago – The library at the UIC has many online resources for medical students. Resources include electronic texts, links to medical organizations, residency assistance, study resources, and research help.

StudentDoc – One of the oldest medical education sites, StudentDoc provides information about test prep, financial aid, and med school admissions.

Student Doctor Network – This nonprofit educational site offers forums, medical articles, and interview secrets for medical students and residents. Student Doctor Network also provides resources for dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, podiatry, rehab science, veterinary, and more.

John Hopkins Medical Reference Desk – This online medical reference desk is a great resource for students who are looking for news and information on medical conditions and illnesses. Updates are added daily.

Med-Source – The Med-Source blog was designed to save medical students time. This informative site provides a comprehensive medical index and links to other medical blogs.

American Academy of Pediatrics – This medical site provides pediatric medical students with educational program reviews, information about conditions, and case studies.

Doctor’s Guide – The Doctor’s Guide provides medical news, webcasts, and case studies. This educational site also links to medical sites, hospitals sites, medical journals, reference sites, and associations.

MayoClinic.com – This site offers medical information backed by the world’s leading medical experts. Students can find extensive details on diseases, symptoms, drugs and supplements, and tests.

National Library of Medicine – The National Library of Medicine offers a large collection of material and research information for the public, medical professionals, researchers, and librarians.

MedicalMnemonics – This free non-profit site offers a large database of medical mnemonics created by professors, students, and demonstrators.

MDNG New Media – MDNG New Media offers cutting edge content for the medical community, including blogs, exclusives, videos, podcasts, and publications.

Canadian Medical Association Journal – This medical journal features innovative ideas and research for the medical community. The CMAJ publishes commentaries, news, clinical research, and practical updates.

Medical Students Network – The Medical Students Network is a free online community for med students to connect and socialize. Community features include forums, blogs, and study groups.

MediLexicon – The MediLexicon is an online reference site for medical professionals. The site features abbreviations, dictionaries, codes, drug search engines, and hospital search engines.

Free Medical Journals – This free medical journal site offers 1,214 free journals covering everything from biology to physiology. The site features articles from The New Journal of Medicine, Journal of the American Medical Association, and many other well-respected journals.

Health Affairs – Heath Affairs, a journal of health policy, features online content that is freely available to anyone who wants to read it. Content includes full-text articles published between 2001 and 2009.

The Merck Manuals – This online medical library features information on diseases and drugs as well as resources for diagnosis and therapy.

FreeBooks4Doctors – FreeBooks4Doctors provides 365 free books to the medical community. Book topics range from AIDS to Virology.

DoctorsHangout.com – This social network is an online community for medical students to meet and connect with other students, residents, and doctors. DoctorsHangout.com is an excellent place for students to share knowledge, clinical experience, and review cases.

Just to let everyone know (not that you asked), my clinical rotation has changed a bit. I know what I’m doing for the next month and a half, so here you go:

July 20 – July 31: Cardiology
August 3 – August 28: Infectious Disease
August 31 – October 9: Ob/Gyn
October 26 – November 20: Emergency Psychiatry

The rest is a bit up in the air at the moment. But I promise to update everyone as soon as I nail it down!

Okay, I had to do it. I shaved off all my hair again. I just hate dealing with it, especially during the summer, and I love the smooth feeling on my head! So, now the only question is do I leave it dark brown (my natural color), or dye it blonde?

I just took the above picture to give you an idea of what it looks like now. And below is an old pic of me as an example of what it looks like blonde (and a bit longer, actually). So, what’s the verdict? Shall I go blonde or remain a brunette?