Terrible Monday! It is the first day of the week before spring break which means it is test week...and to make matters worse, it is raining!
I left a little earlier today because I had a test to study for but I did something interesting before I left. I actually got to be in the room while the nurse practitioner was seeing patient today. Yolanda was giving a male patient a general physical examination and since she is a female, I had to be in there with her while she was administering the tests. One would of thought the situation would be awkward but it was far from it. My motto is that it isn't awkward unless you make it awkward. It actually turned out educational. I learned the basic steps to giving a physical. First you check the general appearances. You look for any lesions, and you check their color and warmth of the patient. Then you go and check their respiratory system, making sure there is not any cardiac abnormalities. When the doctor is checking the testicles, he is actually checking the muscles behind it to check for hernia. I never knew this so I found this very helpful.
Sorry to leave it short but I have to study!
Quote of the day:
A wise doctor does not mutter incantations over a sore that needs the knife.
- Sophocles
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
Monday 3-1-2010
So it has been a couple of weeks since I last volunteered. The clinic was closed due to various reasons but I was more than ready to be back!
I came in today expecting to pick up where I left off but the whole staff changed! I found out that the medical assistant and the family nurse practitioner were on maternity leave and there were a couple of new interns inside the clinic. With that said, and the clinic host missing today, I worked the host desk again. Things were random today because of the rain so there would be moments when the clinic was empty and there were others when the clinic was buzzing with people. Sometimes, I forget how humbling this opportunity is.
Around 10:30 A.M. everyday, the cafeteria man from downstairs brings up a cart filled with plates of food for the patients that are waiting in the clinic. Each day has a different meal, and each patient must have a lunch ticket in order to receive a plate. Well today, there was a man in his mid thirties or late forties, that wanted to eat but did not have a ticket. A fragile old woman, that could possibly be in her seventies, pushed herself out of her chair, wobbled over to the cart, and got a tray of food only to give it to the man. The man realized what she was doing and met her halfway, thanking her and making sure she did not want to eat. She smiled and said "Son, you'll need it more than I do." I am not sure what she meant by this, but the overall gesture was heartwarming. These men and women, that have so little, are willing to share with one another the little that they have.
When they were eating, all I could hear was how good and wonderful the food was. The meal was simply garlic bread, spaghetti sauce, with a salad but one could have easily mistaken it for a five star meal from all the commotion that they were making. I have never heard of anyone complaining about the food and it really goes to show how these people are not only willing to share the little that they have with one another, but they appreciate every bit of it. Being around such an atmosphere really helps me reflect upon myself and it allows me appreciate the gifts in my life.
Quote of the day:
"Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity."
- Voltaire
I came in today expecting to pick up where I left off but the whole staff changed! I found out that the medical assistant and the family nurse practitioner were on maternity leave and there were a couple of new interns inside the clinic. With that said, and the clinic host missing today, I worked the host desk again. Things were random today because of the rain so there would be moments when the clinic was empty and there were others when the clinic was buzzing with people. Sometimes, I forget how humbling this opportunity is.
Around 10:30 A.M. everyday, the cafeteria man from downstairs brings up a cart filled with plates of food for the patients that are waiting in the clinic. Each day has a different meal, and each patient must have a lunch ticket in order to receive a plate. Well today, there was a man in his mid thirties or late forties, that wanted to eat but did not have a ticket. A fragile old woman, that could possibly be in her seventies, pushed herself out of her chair, wobbled over to the cart, and got a tray of food only to give it to the man. The man realized what she was doing and met her halfway, thanking her and making sure she did not want to eat. She smiled and said "Son, you'll need it more than I do." I am not sure what she meant by this, but the overall gesture was heartwarming. These men and women, that have so little, are willing to share with one another the little that they have.
When they were eating, all I could hear was how good and wonderful the food was. The meal was simply garlic bread, spaghetti sauce, with a salad but one could have easily mistaken it for a five star meal from all the commotion that they were making. I have never heard of anyone complaining about the food and it really goes to show how these people are not only willing to share the little that they have with one another, but they appreciate every bit of it. Being around such an atmosphere really helps me reflect upon myself and it allows me appreciate the gifts in my life.
Quote of the day:
"Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity."
- Voltaire
Monday, February 8, 2010
Monday 2-8-2010
Beautiful day so far! The day could not have started off any better!
I came into the clinic today to find out that the clinic host was not volunteering today. So I had to fill his position as well as perform my duties as a medical assistant. It was not so bad because I ended up spending most of the time talking about the Super Bowl with the patients. Its pretty remarkable how people can find such comfort in simple things like a football game, and they are able to forget about their discomforts. They make do with the little that they have, and they hardly complain!
Though there was one lady who became very impatient. It did not help her case when she was told that she would not receive dental treatment because she had a Gold Card. Apparently the dental manager downstairs does not assist patients that have a Gold Card. I'm not too sure what exactly is a Gold Card is or how one receives one, but I am pretty sure it is a government funded program.
This reminds me of the discussions that we recently had in my Bioethics class. To make a long story short, the debate on whether to have the government interfere with health care or how much the government should have a say is, and has always been, a topic of debate. Its hard to please the general public because the general public is filled with people of different cultural backgrounds and ideologies. Even though you want to stay away from politics, this type of issue touches home if you're interested in the medical field.
Quote of the day:
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it’s free.
- P.J. O’Rourke
I came into the clinic today to find out that the clinic host was not volunteering today. So I had to fill his position as well as perform my duties as a medical assistant. It was not so bad because I ended up spending most of the time talking about the Super Bowl with the patients. Its pretty remarkable how people can find such comfort in simple things like a football game, and they are able to forget about their discomforts. They make do with the little that they have, and they hardly complain!
Though there was one lady who became very impatient. It did not help her case when she was told that she would not receive dental treatment because she had a Gold Card. Apparently the dental manager downstairs does not assist patients that have a Gold Card. I'm not too sure what exactly is a Gold Card is or how one receives one, but I am pretty sure it is a government funded program.
This reminds me of the discussions that we recently had in my Bioethics class. To make a long story short, the debate on whether to have the government interfere with health care or how much the government should have a say is, and has always been, a topic of debate. Its hard to please the general public because the general public is filled with people of different cultural backgrounds and ideologies. Even though you want to stay away from politics, this type of issue touches home if you're interested in the medical field.
Quote of the day:
If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it’s free.
- P.J. O’Rourke
Monday, February 1, 2010
Monday 2-1-2010
Today was a slow day. Usually Mondays are quite busy but since it is the first of the month, I think the homeless are all lined up elsewhere trying to get in a shelter or something. Plus today was very cold and wet...
There were appointments and some walk-ins that were seen though. As a medical assistant for the Houston Healthcare for the Homeless clinic, my volunteer position requires me to take in patients and prep them to be seen by the nurse practitioner or the doctor. I take their vitals and input it into the electronic database. There is a lot of patient interaction with my position, so that is the part that I enjoy most when I volunteer. I was a clinic host for a few months and I enjoyed doing that as well because I got to hear their stories and try to make them feel comfortable as they wait to be seen. But as a medical assistant, things are done on a much more personal level. At this level, communication is very important. I must be able to understand the patient in order to relay it to the doctor, and I must be able to assure the patient that their concerns will be addressed.
So as I was checking patients in, I got mistaken for a doctor again. I don't mind at all, but it just reminds me that my position requires a lot of responsibility. Some of these people are at the lowest points in their life and they are trying to turn it around. They just need help and they trust you to provide them with it. Of course, I assure them that I am just here to get their vitals and that the doctor will be with them shortly...but this further fuels my motivation to one day be that doctor that can give them this help. We laugh it off and I take down a description on why he/she is at the clinic today. Most of the patients seen today were here for a dental screening while those that had an appointment were just here for follow-ups.
A patient that wants to get dental work done downstairs must come up to the medical clinic and get a dental screening. The doctor or the nurse practitioner makes sure that the patient is healthy enough to get dental work done to him, and he makes sure that the patient is medically sound so that the dentist does not get harmed as well.
Patients are always asking why they have to go see the doctor and why they can't just go see the dentist so I had to explain to several patients today how everything is connected. Once again, this shows how much communication is very important at this position. This brings me to the quote of the day:
"Communication - the human connection - is the key to personal and career success."
- Paul J. Meyer
until next time,
Michael Pham
There were appointments and some walk-ins that were seen though. As a medical assistant for the Houston Healthcare for the Homeless clinic, my volunteer position requires me to take in patients and prep them to be seen by the nurse practitioner or the doctor. I take their vitals and input it into the electronic database. There is a lot of patient interaction with my position, so that is the part that I enjoy most when I volunteer. I was a clinic host for a few months and I enjoyed doing that as well because I got to hear their stories and try to make them feel comfortable as they wait to be seen. But as a medical assistant, things are done on a much more personal level. At this level, communication is very important. I must be able to understand the patient in order to relay it to the doctor, and I must be able to assure the patient that their concerns will be addressed.
So as I was checking patients in, I got mistaken for a doctor again. I don't mind at all, but it just reminds me that my position requires a lot of responsibility. Some of these people are at the lowest points in their life and they are trying to turn it around. They just need help and they trust you to provide them with it. Of course, I assure them that I am just here to get their vitals and that the doctor will be with them shortly...but this further fuels my motivation to one day be that doctor that can give them this help. We laugh it off and I take down a description on why he/she is at the clinic today. Most of the patients seen today were here for a dental screening while those that had an appointment were just here for follow-ups.
A patient that wants to get dental work done downstairs must come up to the medical clinic and get a dental screening. The doctor or the nurse practitioner makes sure that the patient is healthy enough to get dental work done to him, and he makes sure that the patient is medically sound so that the dentist does not get harmed as well.
Patients are always asking why they have to go see the doctor and why they can't just go see the dentist so I had to explain to several patients today how everything is connected. Once again, this shows how much communication is very important at this position. This brings me to the quote of the day:
"Communication - the human connection - is the key to personal and career success."
- Paul J. Meyer
until next time,
Michael Pham
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