Mar 27 - Apr 7
1) And just like that - I'm back in the UK, and have completed my second rotation as a Foundation Year 1 Doctor. Trauma & Orthopaedics has been interesting to say the least, as it was a medical job in a surgical ward. Essentially, we would provide ward cover (i.e. sort out mostly medical problems) before and after patients underwent surgery. This rotation gave me the opportunity to finally scrub in and assist in theatres, as well as exposure to patients lists and consultants lists. In addition, I learnt about wound care and management, especially in the context of oozing wounds and wound dehiscence. Finally, I learnt how to handle the nerve centre device - basically an old iPhone which lists important jobs e.g. patient review, drug prescribing etc. Overall, it has been a busy but rewarding experience, and I made friends with many of the staff on the different wards - all of whom I will miss as I rotate into emergency medicine.
2) Yesterday, we had our induction for my third and final rotation as an FY1 Doctor - Emergency Medicine. This promises to be yet another busy rotation, but a very interesting one at that. The hospital is a Level 1 Major Trauma Centre, and serves a population of nearly three million people within the North West Midlands and North Wales Trauma Network, supporting five trauma units and three local emergency hospitals. Patients arrive by helicopter or land ambulance and are greeted by a consultant-led trauma team, that includes a consultant in emergency medicine, who works with specialists in orthopaedic and general surgery. Suffice to say, it will be a busy rotation and I am looking forward to it.
3) Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting up with my good friend and fellow doctor Zi Yan - on one of my rare off-days. I used this as an opportunity to explore around Stoke-On-Trent, and we ended up visiting Trentham Gardens, the Potteries Museum, and Hanley. We talked about where our friends were currently working (mostly split between the UK and Malaysia), as well as his experience working in Malaysia. It was very interesting to hear the similarities and differences when working in a completely different healthcare system to the one we are used to back home. In the end, we had dinner at an outrageously crowded buffet spot in Hanley, before he left for the railway station, while I took a nice slow walk back.
4) That has been an update of my life experiences up until now, looking forward to starting the new rotation today, and wishing everyone a great week ahead. Thanks for visiting as always, cheers!
