Winding Down
Thanksgiving break is fast approaching, which means that the semester will be over in the blink of an eye! I am very much looking forward to Thanksgiving break, and being able to spend time with my family and enjoy the delicious Thanksgiving meal that my mother always prepares! The five days of break will provide me with some much-needed rest and relaxation and will help me to return to school focused and ready to conquer my final exams!
I have really enjoyed this semester; it has probably been my favorite thus far. The schedule has been amazing, and has provided me with free time to relax and enjoy more activities outside of school. One of my favorite parts of this semester has been the Clinical Correlates rotations that we have participated in.
Second year Clinical Correlates has provided us with several opportunities to practice a variety of skills like venipuncture and physical exams on horses, goats, and exotic animals. My absolute favorite lab thus far has been the exotic animal lab! We had the opportunity to improve our exotic animal physical exam skills by receiving instruction from the Zoo Medicine residents and fourth year veterinary students as we worked with pigeons and tortoises. I enjoyed the time spent learning these important skills, because I’ve never been taught them before, and never know when I may need to use them! Because of that lab, I have a new-found confidence in proper handling and physical exam assessment of birds and reptiles.
I am grateful to attend such an amazing veterinary school that offers several hands-on labs during each year of the curriculum. Exposure to these important skills and techniques before our fourth year of clinical rotations enhances our confidence and allows us to be better fourth year students and will ultimately make us better veterinarians!
Speaking of clinical year…I am almost there! Well, not quite…but after this semester, I will be halfway done with the classroom-oriented portion of my veterinary education. I will have only three semesters left until my fourth year of clinical rotations! That thought is exciting, but a bit scary at the same time. However, I know that my knowledge base will only continue to grow during the next three semesters, and I will be able to walk into the clinics with confidence thanks to amazing education that we receive here.