Long awaited 100th post

Well here it is. The long awaited 100th post. I say long awaited, because its been forever since I have updated. I am pretty sure that none of you actually knew this was the 100th post. I'm also pretty sure that everyone has pretty much stopped reading this because it's been so long since I decided to write anything.

In the intervening time between posts, lots has happened. If I recall correctly (which I can by going back and reading) the last thing I talked about was how much of an idiot I was on the Metro. But more importantly, was the fact that we had just finished the first block of exams. And as I write today, we have just finished the 2nd block of exams. As far as grades go, I said I wasn't ever going to post numbers, and I'm going to stick to that... but I am going to say that I am doing pretty well. I was happy with the first set of exams, and we got back our 2nd set of Gross Anatomy grades today, and I was pleasantly surprised yet again.

One of the main reasons I hadn't posted was because I hung out a lot after the first set of exams was over, and then all of the sudden I looked up, and we had so much material and I was stunned when I realized that after a week of class, we had essentially received all of the material about the chest (thorax in medical-speak).

So now we have finished the thorax and the abdomen, meaning the only part of the body that we have left is the pelvis area and the head and neck. In lab today, we definitely had a day that I probably won't ever forget. While I started the day taking skin off of my cadaver's face, an hour or so later, things got a little more intense. We read the instructions, and were informed that we needed to take the handsaw from the box, and cut the body between the 3rd and 4th Lumbar vertebrae. See picture. This was pretty intense. I completed the cut through the body separating it into an upper, and lower half.

After reading the instructions further, we found out that we needed to bisect (cut in 1/2) the lower half of the body that we had just separated. We were told that we needed to use the scalpel for the soft tissue and the saw for the bone. So the three girls of our group decided they did not want to hemisect the penis. (I had to just say it. Hopefully I don't get hits on Google...). So the three guys took over. One took the scalpel, and I just stood there, but I soon realized he needed some help as things were moving. So I took my hand, and placed it on either side of the scalpel holding the penis in place as it was bisected.

So that was weird. Not every day that you can say you cut someone in half. Not everyday that you want to say you cut someone in half. Unless you are a magician.

So today I think was one of those days that made me do some introspection on the whole experience of Gross Anatomy. On one hand, we were given this body to learn all about the ins and outs of the human body, from head to ankle (Podiatrists take care of the feet). And on the other, this body that was given to us, once had life in it... blood flowing through all of the arteries that I discovering, muscles moving, air in the lungs, and everything. So I don't know, it's kind of weird. Some days I don't even think about it. I simply head into lab with the scalpel and probe and just go at it. And then there are days like today when I am taking the skin off the face, or cutting him in half, and I think about what kind of life he lived.

They say we go through stages when becoming a doctor. This is from an article that the librarian for my PBL group sent us:
"When young whippersnappers arrive at medical school in the fall of their first year, it'’s not uncommon to hear them declare, in a voice giddy with idealism, that they want to cure cancer or save babies or dedicate their careers to small inner-city clinics. But check back in with them four years later —after they've racked up $200,000 in debt, contemplated having kiddies and been scared witless by the prospect of piddling reimbursements —and many of them will say they want nothing so much as good pay, flexible hours and few midnight emergencies. Your future lifesaver wants, in a word, a nice lifestyle." (http://www.observer.com/20061030/20061030_Lizzy_Ratner_pageone_featurebox.asp)

And maybe I am starting to see a different stage now... the dissassociation that many doctors have when interacting with patients. I guess it's my hope that I don't become as disassociated with my patients as I feel I am with my cadaver, where I just kind of suppress everything, even though I wouldn't ever admit that to anyone (please note the irony here).

still waiting,
-wait