The next hurdle

During residency, we are constantly moving from one training environment to the next. We have month-long rotations through the different departments in Pediatrics: clinic, ward, nursery, intensive care units, specialties like Cardiology or Heme-Onc, and so forth. My first three rotations this year were pretty easy, despite all my whining about being tired and working hard. I've actually had it kinda nice. But starting next Monday, I will be entering a tougher phase of my intern year. I have three inpatient rotations in a row. First I have my NICU rotation (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), then the pediatric ward, and then nursery. All of these rotations require long hours, sometimes working 2 weeks straight before having a day off. I will be pulling regular call, most likely every three to five nights. I'll be responsible for some very sick kids. I'm a bit nervous about it.

And the thing about these month-long rotations is that by the time you've kinda figured out what you're doing and feel comfortable, that's when it's time to move on to the next rotation. Today was the first day in my clinic month where I felt almost like a doctor. I was relatively on time for all my patients, I made some good management decisions, and I even had time to call some patients at home and follow up on stuff. It was a much-needed ego boost.

Oh, and I found out I passed my boards! So, one hurdle cleared... many more to go. (And yes, that's a picture of me jumping a hurdle - many, many years ago in high school. Ah, my days of track glory. Hahaha.)