It really, really isn’t my thing.
I don’t play scrabble.
I don’t do crossword puzzles.
This is pretty well known among the people I work with. The scrub techs have all learned my hand signals. When I need something, I rarely ask for it. They know to look at my hands instead of listening to what I ask for anyway. I get the name of the instrument right about 50% of the time, but the gesture is ALWAYS right.
You could ask anyone of them to show you my sign language.
• Scissors
• Stitch
• Pickups
• Allis clamp
• Hemostat
• Injection
• Wet sponge
They would all give you the same exact gesture. The hand signals that I use every day.
During rotations, I would struggle and feel embarrassed and stupid. I could explain disease processes backwards and forwards, but I could never name the disease. On rounds, I could never get the words out. I could explain workups and treatment plans, but I couldn’t tell you the differential diagnosis. I knew it in my head, but I couldn’t give it to you.
You know how the sun burns a vampire’s skin? They twist and writhe as their flesh burns and sizzles and smokes. They shriek in pain and terror.
That’s pretty much how I feel about pharmacology. I clench my teeth and complain and whine.
My issues with word finding make pharmacology like sun to a vampire.
When I took my PANRE, I planned to leave most of pharm out of my studying. For me, the return on investment of time just wouldn’t be enough. I learned the basics, but if I didn’t remember it right away I moved on.
My point isn’t that you should follow in my footsteps and do what I do. My point is that you should use that brain of yours for more than just memorizing facts. Use it to think. Use it to decide.
I’ve gone through lot of trouble to show you what I think is important for you to know. I do that through the podcast. I do that through The Final Step. And I do that in my upcoming book that’s currently in production titled “Wallace’s Notes.” You can’t get that yet, but what you can do is listen to the podcast and go through The Final Step.
You can listen to the podcast anywhere you listen to podcasts, and you can get a copy of The Final Step by clicking here.
Brian Wallace