The First Shift
Evidently this blog has absolutely no structure because my posts have been obnoxiously sparatic, but this day is something I think I will want to be able to look back on so I'd say it deserves a post of its own.
Today was my first day riding in the ambulance. We started the day at 7 am with a call for a middle aged man with severe back pains and ended at 6 pm with an 82 year old lady who claimed to have high blood pressure (which she didn't). Long story short the day was relatively uneventful, but nonetheless I enjoyed every second of it.
I have wanted to go into medicine ever since seventh grade, and all this time I thought it was the science that kept bringing me back to the daunting idea of going to medical school. Don't get me wrong, science still plays a big role in me continuing on the same path after all this time, but today added a new layer to the prospect of becoming an actual physician. Even though none of the calls were as exciting as those melodramatic TV shows that everybody thinks of when they think of medical emergencies, I felt entirely in my element. As soon as one call was completed, from getting the patient to the hospital to filling out the paperwork, I was giddy with anticipation for the next one. The day went by much faster than any one would expect for an 11 hour shift, and I didn't even want it to end. My biggest takeaway from today is that I don't think that I've done anything in my lifetime that has made me feel so passionate, appreciative, and excited- not rowing, not working at Panera (which I enjoy way too much... don't judge me), not even school.
My particular "aha" moment today was with a 92 year old patient. This guy had every ailment in the books and his only signs of life were the occacional groans as we went over speed bumps on the way to the hospital. However, for the entire 20 minute ride he had an iron grip on my hand. People who have been through this program complain about the obsene amount of "boring" calls that consist of literally just driving old people to the hospital, but this old guy, barely holding onto life but refusing to let go of my hand, helped me realize that these simple calls are just as important as any sort of life threating trauma. These people genuinely need us and even if we were to have a shift where all we did was serve as a hospital taxi for nursing homes, we are making an impact on the lives of every single patient and their families. Every time we got to somebodies home, whether they were old or young, I found that all I wanted was to help them in every single way that I possibly could. It is a really good feeling to feel like you're making some sort of an impact on someone's life.
After my first year of college, I was starting to second guess my decision to go to medical school. It was not the academics, which were admittedly challenging but considerably rewarding, but rather the fear that I had latched onto a dream too early on in my life and have therefore neglected to look for what other options I have for my future. While I am slowely drifing away from the idea of 4 more long, expensive years of school after undergrad, I am also now more sure than ever that my purpose in life is to help people... which sounds very cheesy when I say it out loud but is so profoundly accurate that I don't care. If medical school can give me the opportunity to fulfill this self made profecy, then count me in.
This post ended up being a lot longer than I intended, so if you actually read this far... thank you! I can't wait to see what the next few weeks bring, and I only hope I can always find it in my heart to appreciate every "boring" call as much as I did today. Hopefully I can look back on this post and remind myself not to brush off these seemingly "unimportant" moments because every single life we come across is just as important as the next.
Today was my first day riding in the ambulance. We started the day at 7 am with a call for a middle aged man with severe back pains and ended at 6 pm with an 82 year old lady who claimed to have high blood pressure (which she didn't). Long story short the day was relatively uneventful, but nonetheless I enjoyed every second of it.
I have wanted to go into medicine ever since seventh grade, and all this time I thought it was the science that kept bringing me back to the daunting idea of going to medical school. Don't get me wrong, science still plays a big role in me continuing on the same path after all this time, but today added a new layer to the prospect of becoming an actual physician. Even though none of the calls were as exciting as those melodramatic TV shows that everybody thinks of when they think of medical emergencies, I felt entirely in my element. As soon as one call was completed, from getting the patient to the hospital to filling out the paperwork, I was giddy with anticipation for the next one. The day went by much faster than any one would expect for an 11 hour shift, and I didn't even want it to end. My biggest takeaway from today is that I don't think that I've done anything in my lifetime that has made me feel so passionate, appreciative, and excited- not rowing, not working at Panera (which I enjoy way too much... don't judge me), not even school.
My particular "aha" moment today was with a 92 year old patient. This guy had every ailment in the books and his only signs of life were the occacional groans as we went over speed bumps on the way to the hospital. However, for the entire 20 minute ride he had an iron grip on my hand. People who have been through this program complain about the obsene amount of "boring" calls that consist of literally just driving old people to the hospital, but this old guy, barely holding onto life but refusing to let go of my hand, helped me realize that these simple calls are just as important as any sort of life threating trauma. These people genuinely need us and even if we were to have a shift where all we did was serve as a hospital taxi for nursing homes, we are making an impact on the lives of every single patient and their families. Every time we got to somebodies home, whether they were old or young, I found that all I wanted was to help them in every single way that I possibly could. It is a really good feeling to feel like you're making some sort of an impact on someone's life.
After my first year of college, I was starting to second guess my decision to go to medical school. It was not the academics, which were admittedly challenging but considerably rewarding, but rather the fear that I had latched onto a dream too early on in my life and have therefore neglected to look for what other options I have for my future. While I am slowely drifing away from the idea of 4 more long, expensive years of school after undergrad, I am also now more sure than ever that my purpose in life is to help people... which sounds very cheesy when I say it out loud but is so profoundly accurate that I don't care. If medical school can give me the opportunity to fulfill this self made profecy, then count me in.
This post ended up being a lot longer than I intended, so if you actually read this far... thank you! I can't wait to see what the next few weeks bring, and I only hope I can always find it in my heart to appreciate every "boring" call as much as I did today. Hopefully I can look back on this post and remind myself not to brush off these seemingly "unimportant" moments because every single life we come across is just as important as the next.
Love this Shellie!! Love that you've truly discovered your passion! Can't wait to hear more. Love you!!
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