the department of obgyn of pgh is never perfect, but it tries to be.
this is a collective observation by my colleagues from 2 months of rotating in the department:
* the opd clinic is a hotspot for robbery, and the thieves are never caught. many have lost their ipads and mobile devices. it makes us wonder who really is the culprit - might even be an inside job, and how come the security guards are not doing anything significant about it
* the ob admitting section is cramped and tiny, and it does not have its own supplies. interns still buy their own stash - crystalloid fluids, cannulas, macrosets, foley catheters, blood containers, syringes - from bambang for use on patients; where did the 2 billion pgh budget for 2014 go? and where will the 5.1 billion budget for 2015 be spent?
* the labor, delivery, and recovery rooms serve as a humid holdover hotel for pregnant and postpartum women, and when it's filled way over capacity (think 300% the ideal), it's a nasty sight - and a nasty smell as well, the scent of poop, blood, urine, vomitus, and vaginal discharge combined.
* a manong's work of conducting pregnant patients to the ultrasound/perinatology section becomes an intern's responsibility and at times you get to push 2-3 preggies atop the transporter gurney from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor - it gets worse: at times it's already 11 in the evening and you haven't even eaten lunch (have experienced this misery at least 3x this year)
but for all its flaws, the department manages to sell itself well:
* daily summary rounds mean your bound to get called to endorse patients, and you better study your cases well - an effective impetus for the stubborn and the case of lazies
* consultants are scary, and that's a good thing!, 'cause there's no other way to survive preop conferences, gyne onco rounds, and tropho rounds other than by studying
* postduty days are relatively light (you get halfday off most of the time) - that means more time to study!
* the rhythm of duty every 3 days is a blessing to your body clock, as compared to other departments where my nonexistent sleeping pattern is much more messed up.
* some residents get terrible mood swings, probably having menses, and they're occasionally spreading bad vibes, but i can name several whom i am eternally thankful for always being nice to us even when the situation gets ugly.
some of the memorable events i had during ob are:
* when chax & i had to call an acls code for 25mins for god-knows-what kind of cancer in a very young patient at the ward;
* a young primi at the ward who did not know if it's her bag of waters that broke, or if it was just her urine - she seemingly cannot control her bladder;
* a 45-year old young lola squeezing my hand to tell that her apo delivered via CS died after 2 days due to multiple organ failure at the NICU;
* our 12-year old primigravid who had an abortion - i don't know what to make of it.
for 2 months, i've looked at vaginas day in and day out, at the opd, obas, lrdr, and a few times at the ward, so by now i'm pretty oblivious to the sight. i'm also elated to have bid goodbye to the daily toxicity of ob, but here i am, formally saying my earnest thank you to my nice residents and fellows in ob. thank YOU!
this is a collective observation by my colleagues from 2 months of rotating in the department:
* the opd clinic is a hotspot for robbery, and the thieves are never caught. many have lost their ipads and mobile devices. it makes us wonder who really is the culprit - might even be an inside job, and how come the security guards are not doing anything significant about it
* the ob admitting section is cramped and tiny, and it does not have its own supplies. interns still buy their own stash - crystalloid fluids, cannulas, macrosets, foley catheters, blood containers, syringes - from bambang for use on patients; where did the 2 billion pgh budget for 2014 go? and where will the 5.1 billion budget for 2015 be spent?
* the labor, delivery, and recovery rooms serve as a humid holdover hotel for pregnant and postpartum women, and when it's filled way over capacity (think 300% the ideal), it's a nasty sight - and a nasty smell as well, the scent of poop, blood, urine, vomitus, and vaginal discharge combined.
* a manong's work of conducting pregnant patients to the ultrasound/perinatology section becomes an intern's responsibility and at times you get to push 2-3 preggies atop the transporter gurney from the 1st floor to the 2nd floor - it gets worse: at times it's already 11 in the evening and you haven't even eaten lunch (have experienced this misery at least 3x this year)
but for all its flaws, the department manages to sell itself well:
* daily summary rounds mean your bound to get called to endorse patients, and you better study your cases well - an effective impetus for the stubborn and the case of lazies
* consultants are scary, and that's a good thing!, 'cause there's no other way to survive preop conferences, gyne onco rounds, and tropho rounds other than by studying
* postduty days are relatively light (you get halfday off most of the time) - that means more time to study!
* the rhythm of duty every 3 days is a blessing to your body clock, as compared to other departments where my nonexistent sleeping pattern is much more messed up.
* some residents get terrible mood swings, probably having menses, and they're occasionally spreading bad vibes, but i can name several whom i am eternally thankful for always being nice to us even when the situation gets ugly.
some of the memorable events i had during ob are:
* when chax & i had to call an acls code for 25mins for god-knows-what kind of cancer in a very young patient at the ward;
* a young primi at the ward who did not know if it's her bag of waters that broke, or if it was just her urine - she seemingly cannot control her bladder;
* a 45-year old young lola squeezing my hand to tell that her apo delivered via CS died after 2 days due to multiple organ failure at the NICU;
* our 12-year old primigravid who had an abortion - i don't know what to make of it.
for 2 months, i've looked at vaginas day in and day out, at the opd, obas, lrdr, and a few times at the ward, so by now i'm pretty oblivious to the sight. i'm also elated to have bid goodbye to the daily toxicity of ob, but here i am, formally saying my earnest thank you to my nice residents and fellows in ob. thank YOU!
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