The medical SIP could be called the ‘Slogging In Progress’ programme; on the contrary, the surgical SIP might be called the ‘Slacking In Progress’ programme…
Ironically, I’ve been assigned to the team which we were discussing that day… I’d forgotten the name of the head of that team, thinking it was Phillip, Peter or something like that… Haha… Now I’m never ever likely to be forgetting his name…
The team list this week will be quite depleted… unless the A&E suddenly gets overcrowded during our ‘taking’ day. Hope not, doubt it too, since it’s such a festive week. (Less people get admitted over the festive season.) Plus, we’re not having any pre-ops the whole week! YIPPEEE!!! On the contrary, my brudders in the B part of my team are having a tougher time, by virtue of you-know-who…
Today’s timetable was as such…
715-730am: Briefing by the SIP tutor-in-charge, who opened the session by implying that SIP is something of a f**ce as compared to the medical SIP.
730-830am: Super quick ward round, my team list is pathetic…
830am-9am: Kopi round (tip: it’s useful to add in what your seniors prefer on the team list… beats having to memorise kopi orders like you memorise your patients test results)
9am… 12nn: Did changes real slowly… Only one blood, one plug, 2 referrals and off-ed a drain and a CVP line! Langa-ed into the TPN team and suffered from bad memories of year 3 elective. :S Followed the HO to personally porter a form down to radiology…
My plug setting was disgusting…
torpedo torpedo torpedo…
Me: Uncle, your houseman vein! No blood! FAKE VEIN AH!
(looks around at his other hand… damn, no more veins liao… and the other houseman vein was sore, probably thrombophlebitis… and might be another pseudo vein…)
Uncle: Don’t worry, don’t worry… Man man lai… I know my veins very troublesome one, cuz I got go for chemo…
Me: (oh drats ONCO pt!) Sorry uncle, I put it higher up for you ok?
HO: Ok manz, you put a pink one in! (size 14 I think)
Me: (wicked…) Ok…
(plug goes in damn smooth)
Uncle: Thanks… next time I scold my veins for you…
Me: Ok, can can… hahaha…
12nn-1pm: Early lunch. (Pls, do not eat at the new cafeteria, you’ll get chest pain, one from the food there, two from the price of the food there… *ouch*)
1pm-4pm: SIP students oozed/floated/drifted from one ward to another, trying to clerk the patients we have to clerk… Pts just keep disappearing for scopes/chemo and scans. Sian. Finally we made some osce notes and retired to rot in the students’ lounge where we held a consensus meeting with other SIP students regarding post-OSSE plans.
4pm: Received a panicky sounding call from HO.
HO: Hello ah, where are you two ah? We exit round now leh, meet me at the houseman canteen!
Me: Yes, hi, exit now?!?! Houseman canteen?!?!
Couldn’t believe our ears, we went to scout the ward before finally heading down to the canteen… to find them having Kopi round part 2.
Close to 5pm: Exit done. Everyone mostly hale and hearty.
Cheers!
But of course, things are far from this if it were the HO programme. Expect 37.5-hour shifts, arriving as early as 630am and knocking off around 8pm seven days a week… Expect your MO to leave you to work very independently too.
And by virtue of this blog, I’ve become one with all the other no-lifers aka MS (final yr ones especially).
