My Guy!

So Jay left today, but we had a nice visit, and look what he left for me! Super cute. I have lots to update..coming soon...well after my anatomy practical tomorrow!

Till Next time... 

First 5 Weeks

Hello Everyone!

            I know I know this post is about 5 weeks over due! I got on island, started class and haven’t stopped since, so lots to catch you all up on. So coming back to the island was bitter sweet, bitter to be leaving my family and friends and sweet because it means I start semester 2 of medical school which puts me one semester closer to being done! Before classes started I just got ready, relaxed, etc. The first “block” that we had was our Neuro-Endocrine block, which means that for the first 5 weeks of school we were studying EVERYTHING to do with neuroscience and endocrine. We started classes with the first 3 weeks being all Neuro, mostly 8 hour days of lecture with lab thrown in. Again this semester I have to take anatomy lab, so I have a new group, a new patient, and a world of new experiences. The anatomy lab this semester we will focus on the head/neck for the first practical (which I take next Monday) and the GI/Viscera for the second practical.

Following our three weeks of neuro we had a neuro practical in which we got to look at both slides of brain and “wet” brains. The practical exam would be different from most medical school exams because it was to be fill in the blank and not multiple choice. Well let me just say way scarier to have fill in the blank because spelling counts; and for all of your who know me, you know that spelling is NOT my strong subject. Also, in the brain/spinal cord there are lots of words that sound the same. The exam went well though and I feel as if it was a good way to test what you actually know because when I am in the hospital, and a physician asks me a question he will not give me a multiple choice option but I will have to know the answer!

Work The Brain!

After the neuro practical it was on to the endocrine system which was interesting and put together a lot of the different diesases you see. We learned all of the hormones that are produce and what they do, where they act, what regulates them etc. I learned how to do a thyroid examination to check for nodules in the thyroid gland which was very interesting.

This past month I also had to go on a “reflective practice” trip to Roseau (the capital) I went to the Dominica Disabled Persons Association and had time to speak with the founder, the president and other members of DADP. It was interesting to learn that in Dominica although the government tries to help people with disabilities it is difficult and that there are a number of disabled persons in Dominica who are kept away from the public because their families might be embarrassed or ashamed. It is amazing to see that the disabled person does not have all the privileges and support that disabled persons in the United States have. This includes persons who are mentally disabled. The DADP is working to improve the legislation and spread the knowledge of disabled people, they are trying to educate the community about their cause and show the world that they are just like you and I. I hope to one day have time to get involved with the DADP and one of their clinics that they hold.

Simulated Intubation 

Bone Marrow Aspiration

We had a simulation this semester for airway management, and were able to practice using the different types of airway management tools on the sim-man. I even learned how to intubate! I think that intubation will take practice just like everything and so I plan on going into the simulation lab to practice. The new simulation building is amazing it is like a real hospital. Another interesting thing that I did so far was I learned how to do a bone marrow aspiration. I was taught the technique and how to locate the proper place and then how to retrieve bone marrow. We practiced on our cadavers and it is another skill I can add to my bag of knowledge.

Red Rock Haven 

So yesterday I had my first block exam, because we completed the Neuro/Endocrine block. It was a pretty long test about 3 and a-half hours, and we took the exam on the new computer system. I am not sure how I feel about the new exam because of the fact that you are only allowed 20 questions at a time and once you submit your 20 questions you can never go back to those again! I will let you all know how I feel about that when I get my grade next week! But good news is that yesterday Jay flew in!  So Jay is here for the week, we went to dinner with some friends last night, which was great, it was by far the BEST meal I’ve had on the island, I went all out and got surf-and-turf! If any of you ever come to Dominica go to Red Rock Haven, it was Outstanding, the atmosphere was wonderful, food was great, and they even gave us marshmallows to roast over one of their many fires!

How I feel taking a Computer Exam

Well I think that’s it for now, I’m sure I’m leaving things out but this is a super long post and I apologize for that! Hope all is well with you guys! Miss you tons!

Till next time….. 

Round 2

Hey Everyone!

The Crew at Connecticut Children's Hospital

            First of all Happy New Year, welcome to 2011! So I have been in CT for the past few weeks on break from school and I must say I had a fabulous time visiting with family and friends. I have a ton to catch you all up on before I begin the blogs about Dominica and second semester! Also can you believe I’m already a second semester?! Crazy I know! While I was home I was able to go with my family on a holiday tour to the Connecticut Children’s Hospital and New Britain General Hospital to sing carols and give out gifts to the children, patients and families who had to spend their holiday in the hospital. It was a wonderful day the singing wasn’t the best but I hope we were able to bring smiles to those we saw. I also had the opportunity to speak with Mike Chaiken from the Bristol Obeserver to talk about my life in Dominica. Mike wrote an amazing article and you can read it on-line at http://www.bristolobserver.com/ or in print. Thank you Mike for taking the time to listen to my stories!

Mom and I at Christmas Eve

            While I was home we got a foot of snow in the Blizzard of 2010, it was amazing and I was really excited to see the snow after being on the island where it is way to hot to snow. Jay and I took a trip to Vermont and went snowboarding at Killington with his brother and some friends from Louisiana. The day was great with lots of fun trails and boarding adventures; I only had one really big fall and a few little falls along the way. Not bad for someone who hasn’t been snowboarding in a year! Christmas was filled with family time as we have many traditions that we do every year including a secret Santa with Jay’s family and a Grab-Bag with my family, roll cake on Christmas Day made by my Memere and many other wonderful traditions and memories made possible by my amazing family. While I was home I also got to spend time with great friends from high school and college, I also ate AMAZING food all the time. I think every time I wanted to eat I did and it was so nice to drive a car and get my hair done, all the perks of USA that I missed while away.

My Christmas Tree Game! 

            So being home was all around amazing I got to go to see the tree in NYC and have dinner at Butterfield 8, with some of my favorite QU girlies! Jay took me out to a fancy dinner at Flemming’s in West Hartford Center, which was phenomenal. We had a wonderful and romantic dinner and I got to get all dressed up for the night, my mom even let me wear her fur!  Speaking of romance I want to congratulate Denise and Mark, who are friends of mine from Ross who got engaged over break! Leaving home was sad and I will miss you all very very much.

Me and Jay

Jay and I before Flemming's

            Now on to the boring stuff or the fun stuff depending on how you think of it! School starts tomorrow morning at 8am. I start some new classes this semester and I get to learn Neurology. I’m nervous about Neuro. because we are doing it in 3 weeks which seems like madness and I’ve never taken Neuro before but it will be good, I’m actually very excited to learn all about the brain and how everything works. I start my second semester of gross anatomy this week in addition to all of the other classes that I am taking. I will keep you all posted on how the first week of classes go.                                         This semester will be interesting and I look forward to learning more and building on the foundation of what I have already learned. The Island is good, my flights in were smooth and no delays or extended layovers! Back to subway, and chicken! I have “fresh blood” again so my legs are covered in bites but soon they will hopefully be sick of me and move on. My apartment is still great and I added some decorations and pictures to the doors, as the walls are difficult to have things stick to them because they are cement. I haven’t gone on any island adventures since I’ve been back but I plan on doing a few when I take my breaks after my exams! So wish me well everyone and I will keep you posted on how my life and schooling is going! Please feel free to leave comments or shoot me an email updating me about life. Again if I don’t get back to you quickly I apologize but I am pretty busy and I like to respond with thoughtful emails not just quick responses so it takes me time, but I ALWAYS read them so keep-em coming!

Painting Pottery at the Clay Pen

Till next time…. 

9 Days!!!

Amazing Coordinator of Turkey Day
Nicole...Thank you for giving us
a real thanksgiving

Hey everyone! So it is amazing but I only have 10 days left until I fly home from my first semester of medical school. So we had thanksgiving day here and it was a nice day. My friend Nicole is amazing and she cooked a whole thanksgiving feast! She did such a great job and I was thankful that day for good friends to have the day with and great family that I got to skype with. Our turkey and ham were amazing and so yummy. I also made homemade apple pies! It was quite the adventure to make pies here. I realized that apples are not native of Dominica so each apple was $3! Can you believe it. I went to the store and told them that I was buying 17 apples! haha it was a great though my mom sent me my grandmothers apple pie recipe and it was a little taste of home! So my grandma Jean's apple pie was a huge hit and they were devoured within hours! 3 pies gone!! 

Golden Brown Bird Yummm

My apple pies! 

So last week we had all of our practical exams, I had my gross anatomy exam on the lower limb, foot, thorax, heart, lungs etc. It went really well and then the next day I had my DPS practical exam in which I conducted a fake interview and HPI write up for a patient with palpatations. Then finally I had my cumulative histology exam on Friday. What a busy week. So over the weekend I studied for my third “mini” on the respiratory/cardiovascular block and I took that exam yesterday! So the mini was pretty tough, a lot of people were very scared but I think when we get our offical grades back people will be happier than they expected. So as you all know after a mini means……afternoon off. So what did I do with my afternoon you ask well I finished my exam at 10 am got a fresh orange juice and went to the pool. 

Me and the boys on Thanksgiving!

I met up with Casey, and Denise and we chatted and swam a bit and then within 2 hours I was pink and ready for lunch. So my tanning lasted all of 2 hours but 2 hours in the sun down here and you will be red really quick! After that it was nap time and skype dates with my family and Miss Leisa! And of course w/ Mr. Jay!! Wonderful to catch up on everyones lives and making plans for my time at home. Today started the grind towards finals and I have my exams on Tuesday the 14^th so wish me luck; I will blog after my exam and then on the 17^th it’s homeward bound to the USA…Question is what to eat first when I get back??  

I was the bacon in this story! 

Till next time…..

Taking good advice....

Hey everyone,

      So this is officially the crazy week of exams, I have already had 2 exams this week, one more tomorrow and then one on monday then my final! So I will be updating my blog post Monday exam about Thanksgiving on the island and everything else but I wanted to share some good advice I took full advantage of. So my friend Denise here has a ritual of buying herself something after she gets a good grade or does well on an exam, she sends it to her parents house and when she gets home she'll have a well deserved present. Soooo I did well on my exam on Tuesday so I bought myself a christmas dress! It is super cute and even has pockets! I love pockets in dresses! So I sent it home to myself and will wear it on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day! Hope you guys like it!

Gift to Me!!
From ModCloth (awesome clothes)

Till next time.....

Week 12 begins!!

Hello Everyone!!


          So it is week 12...OMG how the time has flown by. I have a few updates to tell you all about that I have forgotten. So this semester I was part of the PEDS club and we had two PEDS fair's where we did basic physical exams on the children and the other weekend was the second fair. In the first one I was in charge of games but this time I did the eye screening for the kids. So we had them stand 20 feet away from the chart and see how many lines they could read correctly. It was funny because the kids instead of saying the letter Z said Zed! We also checked their ocular motor muscle function and told them their basic vision. Most kids had great vision some even were 20/15!! It was also interesting because the little kids didn't always know their letters yet but wanted to try like the big kids so they would say that every letter was T or F or A! Super cute. So I also started keeping a very detailed iCalendar, showing what I do every day from 8am- about 10 or 11! It is shocking to see how busy my weeks are and it helps that they are FLYING by. Within the next three weeks I have 5 exams and then it will be time for me to come home for the holiday's! Very exciting and again I will try to keep you all posted on my life. Hope everyone enjoys the first days of winter weather!

Universal Eye Exam Chart
How far can you see?? 

So here is part of my schedule but it doesn't show 8am or after 8pm
Orange= In class
Purple= study time
Blue = Mandatory school events
Green = lunch/work
Blank = dinner/walking/random breaks

Till next time..... 

Ughhh

So all I have to say is what does 1 mosquito + 1 bedroom + 1 stephanie + 1 night  = ..... it equals 10+ mosquito bites that are HUGE and one fat lip! Needless to say I feel like a giant bug bite today and wanted to share some words of wisdom with everyone.....DO NOT GO TO SLEEP UNTIL YOU KILL THE LONE MOSQUITO FLYING AROUND YOUR ROOM, HE WILL NOT DIE BEFORE HE EATS YOU to pieces! Ok thats it! Miss everyone like crazy good thing there are no mosquitos in CT in the winter time!

Until next time....