I will say that I very much enjoy some of the patient encounters on internal medicine. Compared to primary care or some of the other populations I’ve worked with so far, with in-patient medicine some of the patients are reckoning with their mortality in real-time which I find to be a fascinating and special experience. Being able to sit with people in their most vulnerable moments and having the opportunity to listen to their reflections in the face of acute illness is part of what brought me to medicine in the first place.
I some of the conversations I had with patients today were good examples of that, the contents of which I would like to keep suspended in the time at which they occurred. And even if I don’t remember what those conversations were far enough into the future I’d like to think they played a role somehow in my future development.
Another thought I had is that almost none of these experiences are taken to account in our evaluations. Most of our encounters with patient go completely unseen by our residents and attendings. And all they see are our awkward presentations as we fumble over our words.
TTITF:
Melty cheese, clear expectations, exceptionally large bunches of kale
nANIMOv 