Better late than even later but worse than not late at all.

Its funny how memory works.

I forget where I was going with that line.

Anyway, its been weeks since my last post. Because of that, I"ve decided to ramble for a bit. Bear with me (or not, none of this would be particularly interesting...)



So since my last post, quite a lot has happened.
The New Year for the world ticked over at the usual time.
The New Year for Asians  (because we always need our own reason to eat more dumplings...) ticked over at the not quite so usual and often very random time.

5 weeks are down for the first term of hopefully my final year in university.
Hopefully.

In the last 5 weeks, I have learnt that the TA pub gets very cold, Adelaide gets very hot, and that eating a large pack of chips for breakfast may make you feel ill.

With the last 3 years, we were often encouraged to go to the wards, to practice our clinical skills and learn what we could. Of course, the main educational point was the lectures, PBLs and tutorials that we got, so ward work was always a little bit of a bonus thing, whenever we could find the time.
The funny thing about fourth year is that all our learning is meant to really be from the wards. Despite the whole purpose of fourth year being for us to actually be on the ward doing things in hospital, learning on the ward itself, I"ve found that I"m busier with things outside the ward.

This is probably made worse by the fact that the school hasn"t given us very much guidance or assistance at all with necessary things.

Of course, that could come down to trying to make us more independent and that sort of thing...

But anyway, exciting year 2011, if only I can get everything organised...

On things to come...

Because everybody else is doing it, I thought I might as well too.

So most people in my year have just found out their rotations (well, "just" being 2 days ago) but I"ve been one of the totally lucky ones who knew over a week ago. I was one of many who was left with a missing term 1 due to the totally fair and perfect algorithm the magical School of Medicine computer uses to allocation rotations. Working fast, I managed to get what I thought was the best of the worst, but others were not so lucky. My heart weeps for the two people who had to do Chronic Condition Self Management, and my Respected Associate who had to do Neurological Rehabilitation.

Outlined below is what I like to call (for the first time) The Grand Plan:

Term 1: Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation
Location: Repatriation General Hospital
Probable job description: Fractured hips, femurs (heads, necks) and knee replacements I should think.
Personal thoughts: Could be hit or miss but its ok, I have company for this term and we"ll make the most of it. *sigh* At least the year can only get better...
Career opportunities: Physiotherapist, Masseuse

Term 2: Urban (Legend) General Practice
Location: My new favourite GP's practice. 
Probable job description: Being Awesome!
Personal thoughts: Very excited about this one, I"ve been having my GP placement here and from previous posts, you can probably tell I enjoy it very much.
Career opportunities: GP, Batman

Term 3: Critical Care Medicine
Location: Flinders Medical Centre Intensive Care Unit
Probable job description: Watching and waiting. Then waiting more. Also watching. 
Personal thoughts: Should get some good physiology and medicine knowledge here. Maybe do some management things.
Career opportunities: Intensive Care Specialist, Dr Robert Chase

Term 4: Emergency Medicine
Location: Flinders Medical Centre Emergency Department
Probable job description: Running around like a headless chicken.
Personal thoughts: If rotation quality was proportional to number of people wanting to do it, this would probably be the best rotation ever. It should hopefully be exciting. Alternatively, this could be so much work I might lose my mind. We"ll see.
Career opportunities: Alcoholic, George Clooney

Term 5: Unconfirmed
Location: Hopefully, Singapore General Hospital
Probable job description: Messenger boy
Personal thoughts: Hopefully I"ll be doing anaesthetics and general surgery.
Career opportunities: National Service, Ending sentences with "la"... la.

Term 6: Cambodia
Location: National Pediatric Hospital
Probable job description: Picking on little kids, stealing pocket money, etc.
Personal thoughts: This one should be fun! I like paediatrics :)
Career opportunities: Paediatrician, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

Term 7: Vacation
Location: Asia
Probable job description: Being on holiday
Personal thoughts: This will be a lot of fun, aiming to go to China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan.
Career opportunities: Dumpling King, Communist

Term 8: General Surgery
Location: Mt Gambier
Probable job description: Generally surgerising. Some surgery on generals?
Personal thoughts: Surgery is the topic I"m least excited about, but who knows, rural general surgery may be more exciting than urban general surgery (which consists of hernia, hernia, laparoscopic cholecystectomy, hernia, colonoscopy, colonoscopy, colonoscopy, colonoscopy, endoscopy, endoscopy AND colonoscopy).
Career opportunities: Obnoxious Pretentious Twat Surgeon

There we go. The plan is out.

So who"s excited?