Hi y'all!
Hope the holidays were just as a-mazing for you as they were for
me! We had a whole four weeks off to spend with family, take a
vacation, visit clinics, or do absolutely nothing for one last
time. Since I'm a third year, I start my clinical rotations in May.
Then after a year of acting like a real doctor, taking boards, and
working really hard, I'm thrown into the real world to finally act
like an adult! Forever! Sure, I guess we get a week off here and
there (spring break, holiday intersession)-but, really, we're full
time from now on. I was a little reluctant to come back to school
with that thought in mind-but even though the thought of growing up
is scary, it's also very exciting.
As a third year, our semester is split into four "blocks."
Though our core classes (like small animal medicine and radiology)
remain constant throughout, we switch between clinics, skills,
surgery, and various electives every four weeks. Thankfully, I
lucked out with an easy schedule for my first couple weeks back.
Most of my electives happened to fall into my other seven blocks,
so I have a few sizable breaks that have helped me ease back into
the routine. The most fun class I currently have is definitely
orthopedic surgery. We started by fixing fractures on bone models
with all kinds of fancy equipment. This included (but was not
limited to) pins made to go through the center of the bone, wire
designed to encircle the bone, and a series of screws and bars made
to function on the outside of an animal's broken leg. All the girls
(and boys, potentially) in my class that were not previously
proficient with power tools should now be able to safely operate a
drill. Ha! It hasn't been all fun and games, however. Our
correlates class, where we're given medical cases to solve, has
gone from being a group effort every other week, to an individual
effort every week. I can safely say that I'm working hard and
learning a lot.
Not only are classes back into full swing, the spring event
planning is well underway. As the marine mammal chair for the zoo,
exotics, and wildlife medicine group (ZEW), I'm putting together a
necropsy event scheduled for late April. We're bringing in wild
dolphins that died of natural causes (and washed up onshore) for
students to learn from; gaining experience in treating some of the
more exotic species is so valuable for those wanting to pursue
careers in zoos, aquariums, and wildlife organizations. Open house
planning is coming right along as well. The famous teddy bear
surgery, breeds parade, and ZEW room will be back as usual-make
sure to mark your calendar for April 20th!
Coming off of a break, I'm getting used to the life of a
veterinary student all over again. But not too soon after I get
used to the routine, I'll be a doctor!