2.08.2009

Third year...

Being a third year is kind of like being a chameleon. You have to quickly adapt to your service and blend in seamlessly or risk being killed on your evals. You can never get too comfortable though; just as soon as you get used to catching babies, you have to go talk to crazy people in another hospital with a different group of people judging you on a completely different standard. Different ancillary services, different nurses, different charts, different abbreviations, different living conditions...very little carries over. But then again, you're a chameleon...you change your colors and fit in.

In the midst of this constant, whirlwind of change, you're forced to decide on where you'd like to direct your life and all you get is a short exposure to one service in one hospital. All it takes is a couple of miserable residents or a really bad day, and you've cut a career choice out of the picture permanently. Or maybe you have two options in front of you that you like equally in your experience, but you not enough information to choose between the two. Or maybe you liked nothing. Whatever the case, you have to make a career choice pretty soon.

I was fortunate. I had found my niche before third year began, and it still feels right after several months. I feel bad for all of those who have no idea at this point.

1 comment:

Dragonfly said...

I thought I would be dead set on a career choice by this stage, but am not. I do have about 5 I reckon would be perfectly fine to do. Nothing that I feel I could give up things for (except for the usual lack of life and stress involved in medicine).