So I definitely fell off of updating the Med School Diaries toward the end of third year. Things got hectic and crazy, but I’m back. Here’s a quick recap.

OB/GYN: After my peds rotation, I entered my 8 week OB/Gyn rotation. I had the chance to see tons of births and gyn surgeries like hysterectomies and tubal ligations. I even helped deliver a baby. After we delivered the baby, I clamped the cord and obtained an umbilical cord blood sample. After that I delivered the placenta. The rest of the rotation consisted of clinic where we saw mothers for prenatal visits and monitored their progression through the pregnancy. In clinic I got the opportunity to use the ultrasound machines to visualize the fetus and placenta. OB/Gyn definitely deepened my appreciation for what women go through to bring life into the world.

Medicine: After OB/GYN I started my 4 month Internal Medicine rotation. For the first month I was on an inpatient team where I saw patients and rounded daily. I spent the second month on the nephrology team learning about everything urine and electrolytes. The third month consisted of 2 weeks on emergency medicine and 2 weeks of self directed study which is basically an independent study period where I didn’t have to report to the hospital. For self directed study I directed myself to Iceland, haha.. I spent my final month on Ambulatory Medicine clinic, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R), and Neurology clinic. I learned the most on my medicine rotation out of all the rotations. Internal medicine is essentially the foundation of medicine and encompasses all systems of the body. Managing the day to day care of my patients challenged me to think like a doctor and stay on top any changes in my patient’s condition.