MedEx Day Six

Today was our first day of clinicals, and I couldn't be more excited! I had some high expectations for this clincal rotation due to the fact that it was at the Cancer Institute in Eastside, and I have a great interest in cancer based lab research. It definitley exceeded my expectations! Although I had experienced my dad's journey with cancer so far, I had never seen so many people undergoing cancer treatment in one place, and as soon as I walked in it was quite overwhelming. Seeing how all of the patients checking in were so supportive of each other, and so sweet to me, a stranger, made me a little emotional at the beginning. However, I was able to pull myself together and Ms. Tip Thomas, the lab manager, came to get me to take me back to the lab. As soon as I walked in, all of the lab techs were extremely welcoming, which made me feel comfortbale immediately! I first shadowed Ms. Dodie in the chemistry part of the labratory after getting a quick tour of the facility (which was massive by the way!). She mentioned that many people believe that lab techs just click a button on a machine, but I quickly learned that they do so much more than I originally thought. Not only do they troubleshoot machine issues, but they also have to look at the results and determine if they make sense. These can include the iron levels, calcium levels, BUN, etc! The sheer number of patients that were needing treatment astounded me as well. I knew cancer was a serious issue in our world today, but I had no idea that it was getting worse, and just how far it's reaches extend into our communities. Seeing all of the names of the patients really just made me even more pasisonate about having an impact on the lives of cancer patients, and hopefully making strides in cures! I was fascinated by how the lab kept all of the blood samples organized as the number of them was overwhelming! They had a tightly run system, which was amazing! I then shadowed the hematology lab tech, which was an amazing experience as I got to see how blood smear slides were made, and how graph results from the machine were read! I already felt so comfortable in the lab environment as I knew the techs was making an impact on the lives of the cancer patients even if they never saw them in person! I also was able to shadow the blood smear reading portion of the lab, where I got to see a real sample of a cancer patient's blood under a microscope! It was so amazing to learn all the different components of blood, and to see it in person! To be honest, looking under a microscope and decipherng what was under it felt natural to me, and knowing that a pathologist does this work in more detail made me feel as though my career goals may be in the rigth direction so far! I also was able to see how a machine that utilizes biomarkers for different cancers works, and it was amazing! I even was able to shadow a phlebotomist as she completed the blood draws for patients, which I learned IS NOT an easy thing to do! It takes a certain skill to do it well! However, I did actually get to see a patient procedure face to face as one man had to come in to have bone marrow removed. He was a talkative guy, but he was super positive. However, I was most impressed by the nurse practioner! She completed the procedure so quick and with such ease, the patient barely seemed to feel anything. It was amazing to me that she sticking a rod INTO his bone as she was asking him about his life and talking to him like normal. I would hope that if I were to work in a clinical setting, I would be able to make a patient feel that comfortable and complete a procedure that efficiently! Overall, the day was incredible, and after having seen so many patients and their families suffering with a cancer diagnosis, I just had a feeling that I was meant to make some sort of impact in this field of medicine to help these people. I even learned that geneticist are extremely useful in this area of medicine to complete research, so if becoming a pathologist isn't in the cards, I know that I can make a great impact on the lives of these patients just with a degree in Genetics! I hope I can come back to this facility again!