Happy Holidays

Last Post!! I hope that everyone had a great first semester at UNC and did ok on their first set of finals. I know everyone is excited to be home for winter break. Hopefully everyone has a Merry Christmas or whatever it is that you celebrate and a Happy New Year!

Going to the Doctor

Look, here is another one that is actually about medicine... kind of. I think it is kind of weird that I want to be a doctor but absolutely despise going to the doctor. I usually wait until I am so sick that my mother forces me to go with some kind of threat like "you are not riding untill you go get some anitbiotics". So I suck it up and go to the little emergency clinic and find out that not only do I need antibiotics but steroids and cortizone because my cold has turned into a sinus infection and ear infection. I also refuse to go to the doctor for injuries. Of all the times I have fallen off my horse and landed on the hard ground or solid jumps, I have never gone to the doctor for an injury and I have never fallen off without getting back on and finishing my ride. Three years ago my crazy ex racehorse reared and I fell off and landed on my lower back. This was the first time I didn't jump right up and run after my horse. I didn't stay down long because I heard my Dad yelling for me to get up before my horse trampled me. So I got up but couldn't seem to move my legs because they were shaking so bad. While my parents caught my horse I composed myself and decided to work the horse on a line so that we could both settle down for a few minutes. Then I got back on him and went back to work and I didn't realize until I was walking him out that my tailbone and back really hurt. I blew it off as having bruised my tailbone and went back to riding 3 days later. I now realize after 3 years of having a sore back and not being able to sit still in a chair for very long that it was probably more than a bruise and I probably should have gone to the doctor.

It isn't quite the same

One of the things I miss most about home is my horse, Goldie. Untill about one month ago she was still at home so I had to drive home to take care of her pretty often. Mom will feed her but that is about it and horses need more care than that. Now she is at a beautiful barn in Concord where she is taken care of every day by their staff. The nice part is that I can go ride her whenever I want and they have an arena with lights so I can even ride after dark. I still miss seeing her in the pasture when I get home... and as much as I hated going out in the cold every morning to feed her in high school, I kind of miss that responsibility now.

Home Sweet Home

I am sitting in my living room by the fire and the Christmas tree and I couldn't be happier. Well I would have liked a real tree but since I was gone I didn't have much say. It was nice to have a good home cooked breakfast, and I can smell the soup cooking for later. It is a perfect day for laying around and recovering from exams since it is nasty weather outside. I know that in a few days I will start to miss Chapel Hill but right now I am perfectly content to be in Smallsbury even if there is nothing to do.

Sleep Deprivation

We have all pulled an all-nighter before but did you know there are serious side effects to sleep deprivation? Sure, staying up all night once won't kill you but staying up late several nights in a row does take a toll on your body. I had never gone so many days with so few hours of sleep before this past week. When I was taking my music exam I couldn't stop my hand from shaking. I had to erase and rewrite half of my test. I have always had steady hands even when I am nervous or overly caffeinated so I had no clue what was wrong. Surprise... among other things such as increased blood pressure, headaches, and irritability, sleep deprivation causes hand tremors. I hope this issue resolves itself in the next four years or med school should be fun. Steady hands are kind of a requirement in the medical profession.

Lillian Update

Yesterday Lillian's x-rays showed that fluid is starting to clear out of her lungs which is a very good sign of improvement. The bad news is that she is fighting off an infection and is building a tolerance to the drugs that keep her sedated, making it harder to keep her comfortable. She also had minor surgeries to adjust the ECMO catheters because they had shifted, causing her oxygen saturation to drop. Keep praying for Lillian and her family.

Pointless Rules

Obviously you can get in trouble for having alcohol in your room but did you know that you can't have things such as wine glasses, flasks, and empty bottles even if they are used for decorations like christmas lights in wine bottles or painted glasses? This seems unfair and completely pointless. Most sororities give out beautiful wine glasses that should be allowed to be displayed. I don't know if all dorms do this but Granville is checking our rooms for housing violations after we leave for break. I don't really like the idea of someone snooping around my room while I am gone. At least the RA's won't steal stuff like the maids who have access to our rooms.

Headed Home

I am finally done with exams! Chem was not nearly as bad as I expected so hopefully I will end up with an A. Now I get to go home and SLEEP for the next two days and after that I am going to spend as much time as possible outside. I am so tired of sitting in my room or the study lounge all day every day. I didn't even walk outside on Thursday. How pathetic is that? Good Luck to everyone on Exams!

Platelets

I went to give platelets a week ago because club teams have to donate. So after I found my way to the hospital (I don't go to south campus very often so I was kind of lost) I went to the information desk and asked where the platelet center was... they sent me to the complete wrong end of UNC's very large hospital. Anyway, after spending thirty minutes trying to find the place I answered all of the questions, had my finger pricked, and sat down in the chair. After about 10 minutes of sqeezing a stress ball the nurse still could not find a vein to stick. She would not even try although I told her it wouldn't bother me. What would they do if I needed an IV? So I walked back up to Granville after wasting more than an hour. At least the team still gets credit because I tried.

One down, One to go

Only one more exam! I thought I would study a lot for chem but I really only spent like 3 hours studying. All I can think about is going home tomorrow and having an entire stress free month. Between horses and school I have always had something to do. I am so excited to go home and have a) no homework/projects and b) no horses to take care of.

Prayers For Lillian

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=183280774868&ref=ts
If you have not already joined the facebook group Prayers For Lillian please follow the link above and join. There are currently 7,775 members praying that Lillian, a freshman at UNC, will recover from h1n1. She has been hospitalized since November 23 and is in a medically induced coma. An ECMO machine is doing the work of her heart and lungs by taking blood from her body, oxygenating it, and puming it back into her body. On Monday her heart stopped but she was revived through CPR. While the rest of us stress about exams and prepare to go home to enjoy the holidays, Lillian is fighting for her life at the UNC hospitals.

The ECMO Machine


Lillian and her family

Flu Shot... JK flu mist in your nose

I have never gotten a flu shot before but I considered getting one since college is the flu's favorite breeding ground. I got h1n1 early this semester... well I think but I can't be sure because campus health doesn't bother to test you or medicate you (maybe they will revise this policy as a result of poor Lillian's fight agains h1n1). They had a vaccination clinic in the Agora and since it is convenient and free it couldn't hurt to go and get a quick shot. I am fine with needles but I am not sure about this mist in the nose thing. I skipped the vaccination and decided to hope that I actually did have h1n1 and therefore can't get it again. Also, being that the vaccination is a mist which indicates that there are airborne droplets that cannot possibly be completely contained within the nasal passages... Is it safe to have the vaccination clininc within 20 feet of the cafeteria food?

The little things

The more time I spend here at UNC the more I find myself enjoying the many traditions on campus. One of my new favorites is the Clefs Old Well sing on the last day of class. I took a break from studying to go watch the clefs sing and it was very nice. Obviously I have never lived on another college campus but I can't imagine that other NC schools have traditions like we have at UNC. This was not my first choice in colleges but now I can't imagine myself anywhere else, especially not Wake. In addition to the rich tradition, the community is incredibly welcoming and hospitable. There are massages in the Agora twice during exam week and late night breakfast is served on thursday night at 11:00. My sweet RA has also decided to leave a treat outside her door each day for the 12 days of studying... instead of the 12 days of christmas. I find that little things like this make even the most stressful of weeks bearable and maybe even enjoyable.

4:30 am

In the next three days I have to write 7 more pages for the honors first year seminar I ended up in. How am I in an honors class when I am definitely not an honors student? I really don't know but whoever said fys are nice easy classes to take to get used to college lied. I also have to finish blogging, study for and take a music exam, and pull off an A on my chem exam on Saturday at 8am that I probably won't start studying for until Friday night. Oh well, sleep is overrated and in three days I will be done done done. If anyone else needs to vent about their busy final week leave it in the comments it really does help :) Happy Studying

15 posts in two days!

So I got a bit behind on my blog and now I have to catch up in addition to finals for other classes. Procrastination will be the death of me. At first I thought a personal blog would be more difficult but I have found that it really is not that bad so here it goes... the blog on medicine has turned into a blog on the stresses of being a student at UNC plus the added pressure of being a pre-med student. Maybe I should switch my major to English? Atleast I wouldn't have 4 hour lab classes... sometimes two per semester!

Pediatric Playroom

There is more to being a pre-med student than stress and horrid chem classes. I recently spent a few hours volunteering at the pediatric playroom at the UNC children's hospital. These opportuntities are rare since volunteer positions fill up fast. The kids that I met at the playroom were incredibly strong and resilient. It must be hard for them to have to spend so much of their life in the hospital, connected to an IV pump. I know that the one time in my life that I was admitted I was terrified to move because of the IV in my arm but these kids didn't even seem to notice it was there. Their strength and good attitude is something that we can all learn from. I loved spending time with these children and they are what motivate me to become a doctor.

What If?

As if trying to survive pre-med classes isn't bad enough the average GPA of science courses is 3.5-3.7 at the medical schools in NC. Yes, Med schools separate your major classes from electives and gen ed requirements to make sure that you cannot boost your GPA with easy classes. Of course your overall GPA needs to be outstanding as well but they really care about the sciences. And forget trying to take organic at another school because they know your trying to find an easy way out. I think I need to take a valium before going to pre-med meetings because they never fail to scare me. What do I do with a bio degree if I don't get into med school? What if I have to go to med school on some carribean island? What if I do get into med school and don't get matched with a residency program? What happens if I put all of this time and effort into extremely hard classes and fail? These questions run through my mind every other week as I sit in the meeting and I panic. I am jealous of the people that do not plan on going to graduate school who just worry about passing their classes and finishing their major. I am even more jealous of the people who really don't need a degree but go to college for the experience. It must be nice.

Deans Panel

The Carolina Pre-Med Association hosted a deans panel last week. It was supposed to be an opportunity for UNC pre-med students to ask the deans of Wake, Duke, ECU, and UNC med schools questions about their programs. The only dean that showed up was the one from ECU who had the longest drive. I was extremely dissapointed that our own dean did not come and I think it was an emarassment to our school. Wake, Duke, and UNC all sent admissions people. I didn't really learn anything new but I was once again reminded of the incredibly small chance of getting into medical school.

Three Rivers

Three Rivers

I love doctor shows and as I have mentioned before I am a strong believer in organ donation. What could be better than a hit tv show about organ donation? This show allows the audience to sympathize with the patients who need organs as well as the people who lose a loved one. It shows that even though the decision to end the life of a brain dead patient is difficult, saving the life of many others is an amazing thing to do. I believe that this is an excellent way of weaving an important message into great entertainment. Check it out on Sun at 9pm. Click the link above to see a quick clip or visit the site to see an entire episode.

Help Save Lives

The UNC hospital needs 10 platelet donors ever day to fufill their needs. Platelets, unlike blood, must be transfused within 5 days of donation. Donation takes about two hours becase blood must be separated and cycled back into the body in order to only take platelets from the donor. They are needed by some cancer patients that are currently being treated, transplant patients, patients undergoing open heart surgery, and those with specific blood disorders. You can donate platelets once every 48 hours but only 24 times a year.
Also, you have probably noticed that there are a ton of blood drives on campus. These have not been meeting their goals and there is a large demand for blood. The process of donating blood is much faster than platelet donation. It is really not that hard to make time to donate blood and you can do so once every 8 weeks. There is nothing scary about it and you can surely handle a needle prick, so why not?
I can't give blood right now but as soon as I am eligible I will donate blood and platelets as often as I can.

Please, please, please give up a few hours of your life to save the life of someone else!

Scary Statistics

The University of North Carolina School of Medicine had a record number of applicants for the class of 2013. 4,116 people applied, 639 were interviewed, and the school accepted 160. 138 of 160 admitted are NC residents. These statistics serve as a motivator to maintain outstanding grades as well as become involved in volunteer activities and other organizations. Applying to medical school is not like applying to college... you can't just fill out a few applications, throw in a safety school and be done. Many people apply to 10-15 schools because of the small number of students admitted to each school. I am sure that the 161st applicant to the UNC SOM is extremely smart and deserving of acceptance, however, they can only accept so many students. Hopefully I won't end up at one of those island med schools.

Doctor Shows

Do show such as ER, Grey's Anatomy, House, and Private Practice cause more people to want to become a Doctor? These show glorify the career. Medical dramas are just that... dramatic. They are unrealistic but very entertaining. ER was on for 15 seasons and Grey's Anatomy turned into two shows when one of it's characters moved to Private Practice. These shows make a lot of money and have a large audience. Do people decide to major in bio/premed because they have a passion for medicine or do they just want to be like their favorite actor? I think that many of the 1900 premed/predent freshman will drop out of the program when they realize that biology and chemistry is not nearly as entertaining as Dr. House makes it seem. I love watching medical dramas but I know the difference between reality and TV.

Stem Cells

I found this blog post about stem cells used in a shoulder surgery. Doctors implanted a swimmer's own stem cells into her shoulder during surgery. After a three month recovery period the swimmer was able to swim nearly as fast as her best time. I think the use of stem cells as a medical treatment is a great breakthrough. If adult stem cells can make such a huge difference imagine what embryonic stem cells will be able to do for medicine.

Pain Meds

How do doctors determine how much pain a patient is in and how much pain medication is necessary for their patient? Physicians must prescribe the minimum amount of pain medication because narcotics are controlled substances. Physicians must try to distinguish those seeking drugs because they are addicted to them or want to sell them from those who actually need narcotics to relieve pain. Even a weaker narcotic such as hydrocodone can be sold for more than five dollars a pill. Doctors are responsible for making sure that the medicines they prescribe are used for their intended purpose by the patient. Doctors can be disciplined for prescribing too much of a controlled substance. Does the fear of consequences prevent doctors from prescribing meds to those who truly do need them? Is it fair for a doctor to judge pain or prescribe less medication than a patient may actually need in order to protect themselves from legal trouble?

Campus Health

Last Monday I went to campus health where I was diagnosed with the flu after having a temperature of 103.4. There are antivirals such as Tamiflu or Relenza that reduce the severity of the flu (either influenza or H1N1), yet neither of these drugs were prescribed. I was told to stay in my room until I had been without a fever for atleast 24 hours and get over the counter meds to treat my symptoms. If I was sick enough to be asked to wear a mask while in the campus health building, or any other building, why was I not treated with the appropriate medicines. It is Saturday, and now I have a sinus infection and fluid on my ears that developed as a result of the flu. I would not still be sick if I had been prescribed the antivirals designed to prevent complications of the flu such as sinus infections or pneumonia. I understand why the antivirals were not prescibed. Doctors do not want to overuse them and decrease their effectiveness. So instead I am now taking antibiotics, which also lose effectiveness with overuse. So either way I was prescribed medicine that is selectively prescribed to only those who need it, just the wrong one five days too late.

Even though I knew I had an infection and needed antibiotics on Wednesday I waited until I got home on Friday to see a doctor. I have completely lost faith in campus health. Campus health is free and my copay is $60 at RoMed. I have learned that you get what you pay for.

The cost of medicine and the idea of pro bono work to offset it

One of the blogs that I am following, Bioethics Discussion, has a post about requiring doctors and even insurance companies to do pro bono work as a solution to the high cost of health care in the United States. First of all, insurance companies are picky enough about the money that they allow their policy holders to use, it is doubtful that they will do pro bono work. Secondly, it is not simply a matter of doctors donating their time and knowledge to treat those with no health insurance. They would need access to labs, procedure rooms, radiology equipment, and drugs that have also been donated. Many hospitals and practices are struggling as it is and others have already been bought out by large companies such as Novant Health, a company that owns both huge hospitals and small practices in North Carolina, Virginia, and South Carolina. These facilities have cut nursing staff and litterally scan every roll of tape so that it can be charged to a patient's bill. However, Novant does provide free treatment to those who make 300% or less than the Federal Poverty Level and offers discounts and payment plans to those who qualify. No person will go untreated due to inability to pay medical bills. Many doctors do their best to help patients with financial issues by giving drug samples or trying to use generic drugs. Many doctors also donate money out of their own pocket to hospitals and charities that provide care to those who can't afford it. People should not be forced by law to do pro bono work, they should make that decision themselves.

Medicine is expensive due to the cutting edge technology and medications. The research that is required in order to produce these new, lifesaving medicines and machines is outrageously expensive, therefore the products are outrageously expensive. The companies that produce new drugs must get the money that they deserve for creating the drug during the first few years, because after that generic medications can be produced and sold by other companies who invested nothing in the research and testing of the original drug. Do we want pharmaceutical companies to stop researching new drugs or computer companies to stop producing new scanners because people don't think that medical care should be so expensive? The answer is no, people seem to want the best treatments available. No matter what it is, the newest, most advanced product is always significantly more expensive than the old, less functional one. Why are medical supplies and services expected to be any different?

Organ Donation

I believe that every person should be an organ donor. There is no reason for a person who has suffered brain death, or has injured their brain to the extent that when taken off of life support death would occur not to donate their viable organs to save the life of another person. According to Discovery Health about 18 people die daily while waiting for an organ. This number would not be so high if more people were willing to donate their organs instead of burying or cremating them.

There is an organization, separate from the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), that prioritizes organ donors over those who choose not to donate. I think giving organs to those who are donors before non donors is not only fair, but a great way to encourage more people to sign up to become organ donors.

Please check your driver's license to make sure that the symbol for organ donation (a small red heart in NC) is on it. Also, don't forget to donate blood whenever you have the chance... you can save a life with less than an hour of your time and a pint of blood!

Introduction

I will discuss important topics in the medical field and as I become aware of what areas I am most interested in my posts will begin to focus on those areas of medicine. At UNC there are currently 1900 freshman listed as pre-med/dent. Only about 150 members of the class of 2013 will actually attend medical or dental school. I want to be one of the few. I hope that creating and maintaining this blog will strengthen my knowledge of the medical field and help me decide what type of medicine I would like to study.