So I recently learn that a local school allows their 4th year med students to take a concentrated number of electives in the area they hope to pursue in residency. And not only that, they will allow you to get a PhD as well. This could mean that if I attended this school, I could get a serious leg up on my residency, however, one slight problem is that this school's pathology program is not well regarded. Now this is the same set up that a school in B'More has as well and seems to be "common" in Path programs, although I've heard of a similar thing in Family Practice as far as unofficially starting residency in the 4th year is concerned. Bottom line is that there's an MD/PhD in my future but I have no idea how/when that is going to happen. But I'd be a fool not to keep ALL my options open!
Now I'm learning that living in metro DC has advantages beyond belief where the study of Pathology is concerned and I've learned enough already to know that I would do myself a serious favor by getting Hopkins somewhere on my CV (I'm thinking of one of 2 ways, either finishing my MPH or doing a 1 year fellowship in Path). Of course, ALL of this is supposition and given how I did on my midterm today, I may have to rethink Hopkins being in my future again, lol. I'm sure blew my "A" average, but what can I say, I'm not in the best frame of mind these days.
In sad news, my StepDad lost his battle with cancer late Monday, then my Mom "disappeared", so I was worried sick about what was going on. I didn't hear from her until 8:00PM today when she finally decided to get around to returning my 2000 phones calls (My Mom is down South). So to say the least I was pretty distracted during my test today, but in reality I'm pretty sure I did OK, and just barely OK. The "A" is definitely gone, but right now I'll take the "B" and run knowing that this is my LAST exam until mid June!
But life must go on and while I could have delayed my test, I decided not to since I'll have to get used to being "under the gun" as a Doc one day. That, and I wanted to just focus on the MCAT and my research from now until June! Yippee!!!
Blog of a 40 something Scientist turned future Doc (again).
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
"Your future goals are not only unrealistic, they're senseless"
What a way to start off a conversation about a joint project I'm scheduled to get training for in 2 weeks,lol!!!
So yesterday, I go to meet with the Prof (who's in my home department) whom my research prof and I are to collaborate on for a new project I'm working on. Of course, it's related to breast cancer and to date there's not a single published paper doing the kinds of studies we've set out to do.
Because this prof is VERY close personal and professional friends with my department advisor (who's different from my research advisor), when he asked me what my long term goals are, I felt compelled to answer truthfully (Usually when/if I'm dealing with someone I either don't know well or feel will be discouraging, I simply say "I'm looking into all my options". However, as I'm getting older, I tend to tell it like it is and ignore the naysayers). Now, I have this prof for 2 classes and he was a lecturer in a class I took last Fall, so he's somewhat familiar with me. So when I told him MD/PhD, he laughed a little and said what I quoted in the title. My response was that not only do I vehemently disagree with you but that I have in place a plan that according to a few med school MD/PhD directors (including 1 MSTP program), believe will work. Now he made this statement after I told him what my undergrad and graduate GPA's were, 2.2 and 3.8 respectively, however this was the ONLY thing he knew about my background. He didn't know that I'd been enrolled in the med school at a university and had done well, he didn't know that I'd been doing research since forever and was published, and he didn't know that my current academic plan was made in conjunction with both a med school and grad school. But truth be told, his point is somewhat well taken. The "average" MD/PhD applicant has a 3.8 GPA, usually from a well known school, and a 35+ MCAT. However, if I had listened every time someone told me something I was doing was "senseless" I would never have attended college in the first place. I would never have become the first minority woman to earn bachelor degrees in a physical science and humanities area, from those 2 very southern universities, and I would not have become the first minority woman to earn a grad degree in my division in the Chemistry department of my former graduate school which happned to be a top 5 program. I would never had become the first black section leader in a band at the University where I earned the humanities degree. OK, I think by now my point is made, lol!!
The bottom line is that my grandmother told me as far back as I can remember that as a black woman I would almost always have to prove myself and this was long before affirmative action became "popular". I fully accept that from the moment I enter a room, I'll be assumed to be a secretary or the one bringing the coffee long before I'm seen as the Scientist I am today or the Scientist/Physician I will become in the future. And you know what, there's nothing I can/should do about judgements made by other people based on 1 or 2 facts because in the end, other people issues are just that. THEIR issues not mine. So in usual fashion, I "walked it off" literally, after our conversation, then preceded to not only plan out my experiments, but when I went back to him at the end of the day, I also planned out the future experiments we could do assuming my hypothesis turns out to be correct(which even he, as the so called expert in this particulate field, never thought about in the context of breast cancer despite having previous looked at another cancer before). And yeah, I guess you could say that I relatively sure based on the many, many papers I've read, that my hypothesis will prove to be correct for at least one of the forms of breast cancer I'm looking at.
This experience is just another reminder that I'm the ONLY person who can keep me from achieving my goals. I know that there will be plenty times when someone will walk up to me at a meeting or at school and say (for the zillionith time) "you don't look like a Scientist". I know that despite the judgements of others I must maintain excellence and be steadfast in everything I do. For example, Dr.X's initial assessment of my chances of becoming an MD/PhD proved to be the perfect impetus for to plan out experiments for the next 6 - 9 months in the hours in between our meetings.
So when I spoke to him again later in the day to discuss more science, trust me when I tell you, I was more than ready and by the time I left, he not only restated his initial position about my chances (he was impressed by my performance in med school although he does still think I should focus on med school only) but has agreed to everything I'm proposing to do on this project. Not only that, he's considering contributing to my stipend support which as a poor grad student, is especially great!!
So I guess the moral of the story is to keep the lemonade maker handy. You never know when you'll need a drink, lol!!!!
So yesterday, I go to meet with the Prof (who's in my home department) whom my research prof and I are to collaborate on for a new project I'm working on. Of course, it's related to breast cancer and to date there's not a single published paper doing the kinds of studies we've set out to do.
Because this prof is VERY close personal and professional friends with my department advisor (who's different from my research advisor), when he asked me what my long term goals are, I felt compelled to answer truthfully (Usually when/if I'm dealing with someone I either don't know well or feel will be discouraging, I simply say "I'm looking into all my options". However, as I'm getting older, I tend to tell it like it is and ignore the naysayers). Now, I have this prof for 2 classes and he was a lecturer in a class I took last Fall, so he's somewhat familiar with me. So when I told him MD/PhD, he laughed a little and said what I quoted in the title. My response was that not only do I vehemently disagree with you but that I have in place a plan that according to a few med school MD/PhD directors (including 1 MSTP program), believe will work. Now he made this statement after I told him what my undergrad and graduate GPA's were, 2.2 and 3.8 respectively, however this was the ONLY thing he knew about my background. He didn't know that I'd been enrolled in the med school at a university and had done well, he didn't know that I'd been doing research since forever and was published, and he didn't know that my current academic plan was made in conjunction with both a med school and grad school. But truth be told, his point is somewhat well taken. The "average" MD/PhD applicant has a 3.8 GPA, usually from a well known school, and a 35+ MCAT. However, if I had listened every time someone told me something I was doing was "senseless" I would never have attended college in the first place. I would never have become the first minority woman to earn bachelor degrees in a physical science and humanities area, from those 2 very southern universities, and I would not have become the first minority woman to earn a grad degree in my division in the Chemistry department of my former graduate school which happned to be a top 5 program. I would never had become the first black section leader in a band at the University where I earned the humanities degree. OK, I think by now my point is made, lol!!
The bottom line is that my grandmother told me as far back as I can remember that as a black woman I would almost always have to prove myself and this was long before affirmative action became "popular". I fully accept that from the moment I enter a room, I'll be assumed to be a secretary or the one bringing the coffee long before I'm seen as the Scientist I am today or the Scientist/Physician I will become in the future. And you know what, there's nothing I can/should do about judgements made by other people based on 1 or 2 facts because in the end, other people issues are just that. THEIR issues not mine. So in usual fashion, I "walked it off" literally, after our conversation, then preceded to not only plan out my experiments, but when I went back to him at the end of the day, I also planned out the future experiments we could do assuming my hypothesis turns out to be correct(which even he, as the so called expert in this particulate field, never thought about in the context of breast cancer despite having previous looked at another cancer before). And yeah, I guess you could say that I relatively sure based on the many, many papers I've read, that my hypothesis will prove to be correct for at least one of the forms of breast cancer I'm looking at.
This experience is just another reminder that I'm the ONLY person who can keep me from achieving my goals. I know that there will be plenty times when someone will walk up to me at a meeting or at school and say (for the zillionith time) "you don't look like a Scientist". I know that despite the judgements of others I must maintain excellence and be steadfast in everything I do. For example, Dr.X's initial assessment of my chances of becoming an MD/PhD proved to be the perfect impetus for to plan out experiments for the next 6 - 9 months in the hours in between our meetings.
So when I spoke to him again later in the day to discuss more science, trust me when I tell you, I was more than ready and by the time I left, he not only restated his initial position about my chances (he was impressed by my performance in med school although he does still think I should focus on med school only) but has agreed to everything I'm proposing to do on this project. Not only that, he's considering contributing to my stipend support which as a poor grad student, is especially great!!
So I guess the moral of the story is to keep the lemonade maker handy. You never know when you'll need a drink, lol!!!!
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Nada Mucho!
Well I don't have much to report this week other than after I take my next exam next week, I'll be DONE with exams for the rest of the semester!Yeah!!!! MCAT studying is still going well, although very slow but I'll pick that back up after my next exam.
Funny thing happened after I was banned from yet another blog, I've decided that it's better for me to avoid majority blogs (and of course I'm reminded of why out of almost ALL of the blacks I know, I'm the ONLY one who blogs regularly on such sites), with the exception old premeds. People seem to be under this illusion that because Obama has attracted the attention of so many nonblacks, racism has disappeared. But just one visit to a political blog shows otherwise. People seem to at will, be able to viciously attack him, his mother, and toss in an affirmative action debate for good measure, call Blacks coons, and not a dam thing is done about it. Derogatory posts stay put and poster is allowed to post another day. It seems that Black bloggers or anyone else who is offended, are expected to smile real big, shuffle their feet, ignore the comments and never respond (or else you get banned, lol). Now I've had a few MRM members talk to me about this over the years and I guess you can say that NOW I get it. "Battling" racists on the Internet is like trying to remove stink from a pig and we all know how impossible that is. Besides the absolute best way to "battle" a racist is with excellence in everything I do.
Labwise, everything is everything. Right now I'm focused on growing up my cells and isolating the proteins then freezing them for later. My next step will be to do a TON Of Western Blots, followed by some immunohistochemistry. Unfortunately, because I'm in class, I can't put the kind of time I'd like to put into getting my work done, but I'll do the best I can. I'll have to present my results at the end of the semester so while I have some time, it's not a lot.
Other things in my mind these days are the 4 people I know personally,including 2 relatives, with cancer or terminally ill with cancer. My cousin is in her mid 30's and has recurring breast cancer. When she was initially diagnosed, I had my boss look over her path report/slides to confirm the diagnosis. That was in 2005. A few months ago, she learned that she had metasisis to the hip, and while she is currently undergoing chemo, the prognosis is not good. Sadly, I knew the moment she was diagnosed that the chances of her making it to the 5 year mark were slim, although I never told her this. Black women have less breast cancer but are far more likely to die from the disease. Knowing this and given her weight, about 50 pounds overweight, I suspected she wouldn't make the nesessary lifestyle changes that could have given her a better shot at surviving the disease. While we aren't particularly close, we both had daughters that are very close and the same age, so it's a tragic situation all around. The other 3 cases are liver cancer, final stage (my stepfather), prostate cancer, and another breast cancer but in an 80+ year old woman. This is just sad on so many levels.
Moving on, as a member of the American Chemical Society I receive a weekly magazine and I was very suprised to learn that China now leads the world in the number of PhD's in the Sciences and in Engineering. Now, I've been saying for YEARS, that China would be the next super power but I guess I never expected it to happen so fast. Since last Fall, my daughter has been taking Chinese and recently told us that she wants to live/work in China as an Engineer. Her interest in Asian culture I believe she inherited from me and culminated in my life in a degree in Eastern Philosophy/Religion. Additonally, I've always had realitively strong Asian influences in my home decor. Still it's so funny to see this manifest in her but I'm proud to know that at the rate she's going, she'll be more than prepared for whatever world changes occur. Unlike the grooves of people who learned Russian during the cold war(Dr. Rice comes to mind) I seriously doubt her training will be a waste of time.
Funny thing happened after I was banned from yet another blog, I've decided that it's better for me to avoid majority blogs (and of course I'm reminded of why out of almost ALL of the blacks I know, I'm the ONLY one who blogs regularly on such sites), with the exception old premeds. People seem to be under this illusion that because Obama has attracted the attention of so many nonblacks, racism has disappeared. But just one visit to a political blog shows otherwise. People seem to at will, be able to viciously attack him, his mother, and toss in an affirmative action debate for good measure, call Blacks coons, and not a dam thing is done about it. Derogatory posts stay put and poster is allowed to post another day. It seems that Black bloggers or anyone else who is offended, are expected to smile real big, shuffle their feet, ignore the comments and never respond (or else you get banned, lol). Now I've had a few MRM members talk to me about this over the years and I guess you can say that NOW I get it. "Battling" racists on the Internet is like trying to remove stink from a pig and we all know how impossible that is. Besides the absolute best way to "battle" a racist is with excellence in everything I do.
Labwise, everything is everything. Right now I'm focused on growing up my cells and isolating the proteins then freezing them for later. My next step will be to do a TON Of Western Blots, followed by some immunohistochemistry. Unfortunately, because I'm in class, I can't put the kind of time I'd like to put into getting my work done, but I'll do the best I can. I'll have to present my results at the end of the semester so while I have some time, it's not a lot.
Other things in my mind these days are the 4 people I know personally,including 2 relatives, with cancer or terminally ill with cancer. My cousin is in her mid 30's and has recurring breast cancer. When she was initially diagnosed, I had my boss look over her path report/slides to confirm the diagnosis. That was in 2005. A few months ago, she learned that she had metasisis to the hip, and while she is currently undergoing chemo, the prognosis is not good. Sadly, I knew the moment she was diagnosed that the chances of her making it to the 5 year mark were slim, although I never told her this. Black women have less breast cancer but are far more likely to die from the disease. Knowing this and given her weight, about 50 pounds overweight, I suspected she wouldn't make the nesessary lifestyle changes that could have given her a better shot at surviving the disease. While we aren't particularly close, we both had daughters that are very close and the same age, so it's a tragic situation all around. The other 3 cases are liver cancer, final stage (my stepfather), prostate cancer, and another breast cancer but in an 80+ year old woman. This is just sad on so many levels.
Moving on, as a member of the American Chemical Society I receive a weekly magazine and I was very suprised to learn that China now leads the world in the number of PhD's in the Sciences and in Engineering. Now, I've been saying for YEARS, that China would be the next super power but I guess I never expected it to happen so fast. Since last Fall, my daughter has been taking Chinese and recently told us that she wants to live/work in China as an Engineer. Her interest in Asian culture I believe she inherited from me and culminated in my life in a degree in Eastern Philosophy/Religion. Additonally, I've always had realitively strong Asian influences in my home decor. Still it's so funny to see this manifest in her but I'm proud to know that at the rate she's going, she'll be more than prepared for whatever world changes occur. Unlike the grooves of people who learned Russian during the cold war(Dr. Rice comes to mind) I seriously doubt her training will be a waste of time.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Did I really dance like that back in the day?
Besides caring for an ill child, working in the lab and studying for the MCAT, I spent my spring break watching the TV show America's Best Dance Crew (ABDC) and I'm loving it! As a rollerskater, I can't decide if my favorite crew is Breakskate or Jabbawockeez, but I came completely out of my chair after watching Breakskate do their thing. Of course, all this dancing reminds me of yet another story from my past as a dancer.
Although I took dance, ballet and tap, I was never what you'd call a real dancer. Yeah, I could do all the latest dances being done at the skating rink on jam nights in high school/college and at the club when I was a young adult. But I wouldn't really consider myself a REAL dancer as in Debbie Allen or Paula Abdul. I'd say I was more like Janet Jackson, with more grace.
Anyhoo, I became a dancer in college quite by accident. Lemme go back a few years, in high school I played in the band but decided to become a Majorette in my junior year ( I did continue to play in the symphonic band and in County bands as well). I was Captian during my senior but not what anyone would call very good at it as in I could only do a 2 turn (throw the baton up into the air, turn around 2 times, and catch it). So I went off to college in the deep south with the idea of being a majorette in the Fall and playing in the band in the Spring. Well, I treid out for the majorette squad 3 years in a row and NEVER made it. That first year I dropped my baton once which is an complete no no, so I was OK with not making the squad that year. But the last 2 years, I was perfect (and a size 6 in case anyone is wondering) so I was highly upset I didn't make the squad. So what did I do? I got together with a few friends/roomates and decided to start the first dance squad at my university. Of course, anyone who knows the history of MRM probably isn't suprised by this, lol!! Not only that, half time at basketball games became the domain of the dance squad, essentially removing the majorette from performing at that time. Talk about sweet revenge!
However, my trying to make the Majortte squad was like making history. In the school's 130 year history, only ONE black woman had ever made the squad. This was also a school which had NEVER had either a black gymnast or cheerleader EVER!!! How this was possible in the early 1980's I sadly still shake my head thinking about especially when I consider the fact that the squad went from being 50% minority in 1990 to 100% white in some recent years. Maybe young minority women have found other things to do, I don't know, I just know that it saddens me to think about it now.
Anyway, I'm enjoying watching ABDC espeically given the fact that the squads are 100% diverse! And since the roller rink near my house closed, I may consider taking a hip hop dance class instead!
Although I took dance, ballet and tap, I was never what you'd call a real dancer. Yeah, I could do all the latest dances being done at the skating rink on jam nights in high school/college and at the club when I was a young adult. But I wouldn't really consider myself a REAL dancer as in Debbie Allen or Paula Abdul. I'd say I was more like Janet Jackson, with more grace.
Anyhoo, I became a dancer in college quite by accident. Lemme go back a few years, in high school I played in the band but decided to become a Majorette in my junior year ( I did continue to play in the symphonic band and in County bands as well). I was Captian during my senior but not what anyone would call very good at it as in I could only do a 2 turn (throw the baton up into the air, turn around 2 times, and catch it). So I went off to college in the deep south with the idea of being a majorette in the Fall and playing in the band in the Spring. Well, I treid out for the majorette squad 3 years in a row and NEVER made it. That first year I dropped my baton once which is an complete no no, so I was OK with not making the squad that year. But the last 2 years, I was perfect (and a size 6 in case anyone is wondering) so I was highly upset I didn't make the squad. So what did I do? I got together with a few friends/roomates and decided to start the first dance squad at my university. Of course, anyone who knows the history of MRM probably isn't suprised by this, lol!! Not only that, half time at basketball games became the domain of the dance squad, essentially removing the majorette from performing at that time. Talk about sweet revenge!
However, my trying to make the Majortte squad was like making history. In the school's 130 year history, only ONE black woman had ever made the squad. This was also a school which had NEVER had either a black gymnast or cheerleader EVER!!! How this was possible in the early 1980's I sadly still shake my head thinking about especially when I consider the fact that the squad went from being 50% minority in 1990 to 100% white in some recent years. Maybe young minority women have found other things to do, I don't know, I just know that it saddens me to think about it now.
Anyway, I'm enjoying watching ABDC espeically given the fact that the squads are 100% diverse! And since the roller rink near my house closed, I may consider taking a hip hop dance class instead!
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
ROTFLMAO!!!!
I had a very interesting discovery today, so I thought I'd share it. For reasons too numerous to name, I EXTREMELY rarely visit the most popular premed site on the web, and was banned from posting after I let some folks over there know just what I thought about all the favoritism and incredibly racist things that are said over there (OK, I said a little more than that, but "others" are allowed to say far worse and of course, get away with it). At any rate, long before I was banned I opened other usernames, including MRM Prez. Well lo and behold, ALL of the names I had registered under were banned. Now after I finished the biggest belly laugh I've had in a while, I said to myself, "well dam, I musta really teed folks off over there", ROTFLMAO!!!
They say you get more flies with honey than with vinegar, a point of view a few MRM members have mentioned to me and I appreciate them looking out. I'm reminded of the last university pageant I competed in, in 1992. I was asked who I most admired and my answer was Vanessa Williams, as in the first black Miss America (I was competing in a Miss America Preliminary pageant). One of the judges on the panel asked me how could I represent this university when I admired her (this was not long after sexually suggestive pictures of her were published). My response was that I admired her strength in the face of tremendous adversity and that perhaps my admiration of her makes me unsuitable to be the university's title winner. With that, I thanked them for their time, politely walked out of the room, and dropped out of the pageant. Now I could have named someone that would have appealed to my all white panel of judges, but for what purpose? So I could wear beautiful crown, ride around on a few floats, and garner a couple thousand dollars in scholarship money? No thanks, I'll keep my dignity and integrity in tact by saying how I really feel and dealing with the consequences.
*** After speaking with my DH not long ago, I decided to edit this post. As a 18 year Network Engineer and "special forces dude in the Navy", he has some concerns about just how far people will to "get back" at someone who said something they didn't like on the net. Now when I was 14 years old, my best friend was killed and apparently it was supposed to be a double murder (it was a coincidence I wasn't with her the night she was killed). For me, I guess an experience like this embolden me a bit not to the point where I would for example, go into Crip territory wearing a Red bandanna on my head, but I guess on a certain level you learn to live your life to the fullest despite whatever may happen. Besides that, I don't think I could really check out before God's time for me and the same thing goes for my current and future blessings. But when he mentioned that I was likely that since all my usernames had been cancelled that someone over there likely knows who I am by name, I had to take another thought. And quite frankly my first thought was of self protection, and of getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon (residue from having married a special forces guy and my 'hood). My second thought was of going to Law school to become a defender of free speech. But my 3rd thought was that no man has EVER been able to take away from me that which God intended for me. Lemme say that again, NO MAN HAS EVER BEEN ABLE TO TAKE AWAY FROM ME THAT WHICH GOD INTENDED FOR ME!!!! It didn't work in undergrad, it didn't work in grad school, and it isn't going to work now. You see the beauty of being blessed with a certain income is that if need be, I could move ANYWHERE in the US or abroad to become a doctor and if that were to happen, then as far as I'm concerned, it must have been a part of God's plan in the first place! Sipping on Mohito's on some beach in the Caribbean after a hard day in class could work very well for me and mine!
They say you get more flies with honey than with vinegar, a point of view a few MRM members have mentioned to me and I appreciate them looking out. I'm reminded of the last university pageant I competed in, in 1992. I was asked who I most admired and my answer was Vanessa Williams, as in the first black Miss America (I was competing in a Miss America Preliminary pageant). One of the judges on the panel asked me how could I represent this university when I admired her (this was not long after sexually suggestive pictures of her were published). My response was that I admired her strength in the face of tremendous adversity and that perhaps my admiration of her makes me unsuitable to be the university's title winner. With that, I thanked them for their time, politely walked out of the room, and dropped out of the pageant. Now I could have named someone that would have appealed to my all white panel of judges, but for what purpose? So I could wear beautiful crown, ride around on a few floats, and garner a couple thousand dollars in scholarship money? No thanks, I'll keep my dignity and integrity in tact by saying how I really feel and dealing with the consequences.
*** After speaking with my DH not long ago, I decided to edit this post. As a 18 year Network Engineer and "special forces dude in the Navy", he has some concerns about just how far people will to "get back" at someone who said something they didn't like on the net. Now when I was 14 years old, my best friend was killed and apparently it was supposed to be a double murder (it was a coincidence I wasn't with her the night she was killed). For me, I guess an experience like this embolden me a bit not to the point where I would for example, go into Crip territory wearing a Red bandanna on my head, but I guess on a certain level you learn to live your life to the fullest despite whatever may happen. Besides that, I don't think I could really check out before God's time for me and the same thing goes for my current and future blessings. But when he mentioned that I was likely that since all my usernames had been cancelled that someone over there likely knows who I am by name, I had to take another thought. And quite frankly my first thought was of self protection, and of getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon (residue from having married a special forces guy and my 'hood). My second thought was of going to Law school to become a defender of free speech. But my 3rd thought was that no man has EVER been able to take away from me that which God intended for me. Lemme say that again, NO MAN HAS EVER BEEN ABLE TO TAKE AWAY FROM ME THAT WHICH GOD INTENDED FOR ME!!!! It didn't work in undergrad, it didn't work in grad school, and it isn't going to work now. You see the beauty of being blessed with a certain income is that if need be, I could move ANYWHERE in the US or abroad to become a doctor and if that were to happen, then as far as I'm concerned, it must have been a part of God's plan in the first place! Sipping on Mohito's on some beach in the Caribbean after a hard day in class could work very well for me and mine!
Monday, March 3, 2008
Gotta love sign out!
So I visited a local Path department today where I was invited to sit in on the Resident's meeting and in Surgical Pathology, where they sign out specimans from the hospital. Well what can I say, I LOVE it! I was even able to answer a few questions too which is really great given that some days I question why I'm doing this in the first place.
The Resident's meeting was pimarily a highlight of what happened over the weekend, but was also a teaching meeting as well. The Path director put some slides up (I've gotta review my path and histo since I've forgotten a LOT) and then asked the Residents questions. GREAT learning opportunity for board prep, I just wish things were broken down into organ systems.
The most interesting case I saw today was a yolk sac tumor in a man, which apprentely isn't very uncommon. Another intriguing case from both a personal and professinal point of view, was the case of the 40 something year old double mastectomy patient. That is PROPHYLACTIC mastectomy patient. YIKES!!!!! I'm guessing she had a strong family history and was also a likely BRCA1 mutation carrier (I don't know for sure because I had to leave early).
The Chief pathologist at the scope asked us (all women) how we would feel about having such a procedure only to discover that we had no abnormalities. One young resident said just fine and despite my family history, I said I would have to think about it. There are a TON of potential side affects to having such a procedure but for some, I guess the benefits outweigh the risks.
At any rate, it dawned on me that by the time I actually get to the residency portion of my training, I will have been reading slides for over 10 years. And hopefully, all that experience will help me become the best Pathologist I can be!
The Resident's meeting was pimarily a highlight of what happened over the weekend, but was also a teaching meeting as well. The Path director put some slides up (I've gotta review my path and histo since I've forgotten a LOT) and then asked the Residents questions. GREAT learning opportunity for board prep, I just wish things were broken down into organ systems.
The most interesting case I saw today was a yolk sac tumor in a man, which apprentely isn't very uncommon. Another intriguing case from both a personal and professinal point of view, was the case of the 40 something year old double mastectomy patient. That is PROPHYLACTIC mastectomy patient. YIKES!!!!! I'm guessing she had a strong family history and was also a likely BRCA1 mutation carrier (I don't know for sure because I had to leave early).
The Chief pathologist at the scope asked us (all women) how we would feel about having such a procedure only to discover that we had no abnormalities. One young resident said just fine and despite my family history, I said I would have to think about it. There are a TON of potential side affects to having such a procedure but for some, I guess the benefits outweigh the risks.
At any rate, it dawned on me that by the time I actually get to the residency portion of my training, I will have been reading slides for over 10 years. And hopefully, all that experience will help me become the best Pathologist I can be!
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