Month: October 2015
Learning to Lead & Lean In: A Medical Student Perspective on AWS.
1st year Medical Student Sarah Armenia at the AWS Conference 2015. Author: Sarah Armenia I first became familiar with the Association of Women Surgeons after a simple Google search of “women in surgery.” After becoming a physician assistant a year prior, I had decided to apply to medical school instead of entering practice in order to become a surgeon. I was already aware of the American College of Surgeons from reading the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, but I had yet to discover an organization like the Association of Women Surgeons. As a member of the national medical student committee, I was given the opportunity to collect recordings and photos of AWS members discussing why they loved being a part of the AWS. I initially thought interviewing women who have spent their careers shaping surgery and medical education might be intimidating. However, this fear...
I. AM. TIRED.
I am tired today. It was a call night, after a full day of operating. The pages came in steadily. I don’t mind the ones that have to do with patient care. Most are just from people trying to do the right thing for the patients. But the calls about whether the patient should be observation or inpatient at 3 am push my button. My internal ire rises after the call and I can’t fall back asleep right away, stealing at least 20 minutes of precious sleep. I wish these things didn’t bother me, but they do. I’m tired of having to negotiate with the OR desk to get my patient in the operating room. I’m just trying to fix a problem. This isn’t about getting to a golf course. It’s about the patient and their family being in pain and fear. If you are too nice, you get put...