Looking back...3 year journey through residency

When I think back to my first day of my intern year I remember the obvious thing...starting day 1 on my birthday (boo for July 1st birthday).  Luckily I wasn't on call, but starting off on the Pediatric Wards for my first-ever inpatient Pediatric rotation...that wasn't exactly easy.  I can officially say, "back when I was an intern, we had 30-hour call (no intern can say that now, or ever again because of the new ACGME duty hour restrictions)".  I can't remember how many patients we admitted my first call, but it wasn't light.  Actually I think the whole month we admitted anywhere from 12-17 patients per night, and when you're a brand new intern...that's a lot!  My upper-level resident was Stephanie Hunt, the most bubbly and awesome resident I have ever met...I don't know how she did it, but her upbeat attitude helped us get through many a rough call.  I mean, what a role-model, she had 1-year old triplets at home and she had to go home completely exhausted and be a mommy (kind of inspirational actually...not that I wanted triplets - no thank you).  What I admired most about her was her faith, because honestly, I know I couldn't be where I am today without God holding my hand the whole way, and I think He put Stephanie there that first month just for me.  So I made it through that first July with a few tears shed (something about being sleep-deprived, hungry, and nervous for morning post-call rounds that just made me fall-apart a couple times).  The rest of my intern year flew by.  In April we found out we were going to have a baby and I had nightmares my whole first trimester thanks to my NICU rotation.  Speaking of NICU, I seemed like the blackest cloud most places I went...I was the only team-member who had a baby die my first NICU rotation, granted the baby had a severe rare syndrome, but it happened right in front of me - and it wasn't the only time I experienced that.

As June of intern year rolls around, everyone is exhausted and worn out, but come July first again we move up and the new interns begin and we do it all over again from a totally different perspective.  I was on Wards again my 2nd year in July and I had an awesome intern - John Colquitt.  We still had call every 4th night and because I was pretty pregnant by this time, I taught John the value of 3am french fries and frozen yogurt...you have to ask for the fries "extra-crispy" to get them fresh, but "hey", what's a good upper-level resident for if not to teach you the ins & outs of the hospital - food included.  I had a "front-loaded schedule" that summer because I was trying to get some of my hard months out of the way before Weston was born.  My schedule was: Wards, PICU, Hem/Onc, PICU and boy did it wear me out...by the time I finished my 2nd PICU month my growing baby didn't know if I was awake or sleeping from all the crazy night shifts I had to do, and I started to have nightmares again from some of the scary things I had seen in the unit.  I'll never forget a young boy who came in with a self-inflicted gun shot wound to his head, reportedly he had autism and had been playing with GI Joes before someone heard the gun go off.  You don't forget these patients - especially the ones that don't survive.  I realized quickly I was not made for critical care!  Weston came a few weeks early my 2nd year because I had to be induced due to pre-eclampsia, and with that our whole world changed again.  After returning from maternity leave, the months few by, mostly out-patient which suited my new mommy lifestyle.  I ended my 2nd year with ER in June, which was kind of fun, but a whole lot of crazy. The ER is a busy place during baseball season - thank God I'm not an Ortho resident!

Me with Stitches, our KCH mascot

Finally July of my 3rd year...PICU again.  We had a good team and mostly what I remember is a string of non-accidental traumas (shaken and beaten babies), 3 of which died in 2 weeks time.  Once again, these are the things you never forget...the whole year I was checking to see if the parents were convicted, in Jail, out on bail, whatever.  Such a messed up system sometimes, and so frustrating to Pediatricians everywhere.  Kentucky is one of the highest states for pediatric non-accidental trauma.  On a happier note, as you progress in years of residency, the time goes by even more quickly.  I don't remember as many details from my 3rd year.  The new interns were limited to no more than 16-hour shifts and some of our curriculum was re-vamped with our new Residency Director - Jenna Ross.  Basically the ACGME/RRC dictated our every scheduling move over the last year which made for some meticulous scheduling on the part of the Chief.  All-in-all, I'm glad I am finished.  I can't wait for my experience in the "real world" of Pediatrics, although I will miss some of my continuity clinic patients dearly.  For 3 years this was my favorite part of every week.  One half-day a week I had my own patients, I remembered  their faces, their freckles, their mom's crazy concerns, and I knew I wanted to do General Pediatrics...so here's to starting my own continuity clinic for the rest of my life.  I hope I love it just as much if not more as an attending.  I am so grateful for all of the attendings who have shaped me along the way, the nurses who kept me in line (and kept me up all night with pages), and the ones who let me sleep while I was on call (thank you!), and I am going to miss my resident colleagues, you all are amazing and I really do consider you my family.  You were there when my baby was born (Danielle and Lindsay) and you ordered LA Gourmet with me in the late hours of the night.  You all are awesome, and you will be greatly missed!