day two as an intern!
Friday, January 22, 2010
and here endeth my second day as a clinical psych intern at prince court! ^^ there's something ridiculously happy about stepping off that elevator in the morning and walking the hospital lobby. i remember jacqueline telling me once that she'd be silently frustrated whenever her patients cancelled their appointments. back then i used to say "why?! isn't them NOT coming to the hospital a good thing?!" and she'd say back to me, aghast "hell no!". today... i understood what she meant.
i arrived at the lmc wing at 9:15am. sat down with my mentor and was briefed on today's duties. went to my desk and did lit reviews. ran down to the HR department to make copies for the seminar my mentor's conducting on saturday. came back up and continued at the computer. ran back down to HR with the second lot of papers my mentor forgot to attach. returned to my desk. left the lmc to buy a bottle of water. came back and drank my pills - in front of the computer. walked across the corridor to the staff lounge and had lunch (or in my case carrot sticks, apples and the shake supplement) with my bosses. went back to the computer and read more articles. my mentor left at 3:00pm. i called down to HR to find that the documents wouldn't be ready till tomorrow. i clocked out at 3:30pm.
i was at the hospital for six hours today and spent around 80% of tht time in front of the computer screen (if you include my bathroom breaks ;p). as much as i found the process interesting - what with me researching the psychological components involved in cardiac rehabilitation - i finally understood what jacq meant when she said NOT having patients throws off your entire day.
my mentor won't be around tomorrow but i still hv to report in so i can show her what i've compiled in my reviews over the last two days - an essay i am yet to get to unfortunately. for the first time in ages, staring at my computer is the last thing i want to do tonight ^^
here's to day three! ;)
i arrived at the lmc wing at 9:15am. sat down with my mentor and was briefed on today's duties. went to my desk and did lit reviews. ran down to the HR department to make copies for the seminar my mentor's conducting on saturday. came back up and continued at the computer. ran back down to HR with the second lot of papers my mentor forgot to attach. returned to my desk. left the lmc to buy a bottle of water. came back and drank my pills - in front of the computer. walked across the corridor to the staff lounge and had lunch (or in my case carrot sticks, apples and the shake supplement) with my bosses. went back to the computer and read more articles. my mentor left at 3:00pm. i called down to HR to find that the documents wouldn't be ready till tomorrow. i clocked out at 3:30pm.
i was at the hospital for six hours today and spent around 80% of tht time in front of the computer screen (if you include my bathroom breaks ;p). as much as i found the process interesting - what with me researching the psychological components involved in cardiac rehabilitation - i finally understood what jacq meant when she said NOT having patients throws off your entire day.
my mentor won't be around tomorrow but i still hv to report in so i can show her what i've compiled in my reviews over the last two days - an essay i am yet to get to unfortunately. for the first time in ages, staring at my computer is the last thing i want to do tonight ^^
here's to day three! ;)
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catching up...
Thursday, January 21, 2010
for those who rely on my blog to stay updated on the inner-workings of my dramatic life , here's a quick rundown of the milestones you've missed:
.school.
1. i did get accepted into melbourne uni after my first year at deakin. however, i was offered a place in the new BSc program... meaning i would have to start my course all over again and disregard the credits and work i'd gained over the previous 12mths. some of you may read that sentence and consider those conditions a miniscule price to pay for a spot back at my dream school (and undoubtedly the goal i'd revolved my life around since leaving kl). but here's the equation many of us in melbourne have come to understand...
.school.
1. i did get accepted into melbourne uni after my first year at deakin. however, i was offered a place in the new BSc program... meaning i would have to start my course all over again and disregard the credits and work i'd gained over the previous 12mths. some of you may read that sentence and consider those conditions a miniscule price to pay for a spot back at my dream school (and undoubtedly the goal i'd revolved my life around since leaving kl). but here's the equation many of us in melbourne have come to understand...
melbourne university = money
the course annual fees were already double of what deakin was charging me and i didn't feel it fair to incur that increase on my mom. plus, as much as it was an honour to be acknowledged for my performance with a place at that school, i knew that the standards they impose we're going to be a tall order to follow. basically... i was worried that i was about to pay a crapload of money and start flunking out. so i stayed at deakin and had the most amazing 2 years i could have ever asked for ;)
2. which brings me to point number two.
2. which brings me to point number two.
i've graduated!
on november 5th, 2009 i was an official graduate of deakin university with a BSc. i completed my major in psychology and got a distinction along with my degree ;) i opted to walk the ceremony with my friends - most of whom are local australians - and skipped out on the international graduation in november. so hopefully on april 30th, 2010 this blog will be updated with some pretty interesting photos ;) [note: mom keeps reminding me that i'm still in desperate need for a dress :( atleast we have the shoes!]
3. i've been accepted back at deakin to complete my fourth year in psych with a Graduate Diploma in Psychology. the same application is currently pending at melbourne uni, so i haven't accepted deakin's just yet ;p (because no matter how i may complain about that school... it's a damn good school and an awesome thing to have on my resume!) if i survive that i'll be able to get partial accredidation from the powers-that-be and be trained and/or employed as a practicing psychologist... should i decide to of course ^^
4. not letting my medical dream go, i've enrolled to sit for the GAMSAT this coming march. it's alot to study for with alot riding on it... so i'll keep you posted on how it goes :(
everything else! ^^
3. i've been accepted back at deakin to complete my fourth year in psych with a Graduate Diploma in Psychology. the same application is currently pending at melbourne uni, so i haven't accepted deakin's just yet ;p (because no matter how i may complain about that school... it's a damn good school and an awesome thing to have on my resume!) if i survive that i'll be able to get partial accredidation from the powers-that-be and be trained and/or employed as a practicing psychologist... should i decide to of course ^^
4. not letting my medical dream go, i've enrolled to sit for the GAMSAT this coming march. it's alot to study for with alot riding on it... so i'll keep you posted on how it goes :(
everything else! ^^
1. my best friend and little sister, jacqueline got her first boyfriend! ^^ it's been about 3 months but the novelty still hasn't worn off! i can't believe you beat me to it, but i'm so immensely happy for you ;) please don't bully him too much and save a couple of weekends a month to go boy-watching with me, kay?
2. as for my real sibling, hafiz is now 13! O_o where have the years gone?! i came home after my final semester to find him almost as tall as i am... and his shoes are already a couple of sizes bigger than mine! (mind you i've held the record in my house as having the largest sneakers for some time now... a title i begrudgingly passed on to him). but deep in the crevices of my cold, bitter and jealous heart... i'm proud of the big boy he's becoming ;) he's now an 8th grader and is breaking as many fragile, feminine hearts as he possibly can... sigh....
3. and since it was never in my nature to have only one best friend, mark tan is still around. hahaha! in all seriousness, i never thought that two people with as much history (both good and ridiculously bad) as we did could ever possess a future more than that of casual acquaintances. we appeared to be a doomed friendship from the very beginning - something more of my doing than his. but it's been 4 years since i first spoke to that brilliant boy at lunch on the day our spm results were released... and we're still at each others' throats ;) he has grown to become truly one of my bestest friends - someone i talk about everything with (even relationships!). mark and i are walking testiments that a guy and girl can care immensely about each other... want the best for one other... will do anything for the other person... and not have to be a couple. he's my best friend for life... and that's all i need ^^
4. my four-year health period has unfortunately come to an end, and i have been diagnosed with yet another ailment. this time it's called insulin resistance, or IR for short. it basically means that i am pre-diabetic... at 21. my doctors aren't willing to condemn me to a life of pills and treatment so they've thrown me into a whirlwind eating plan in an attempt to help me lose 10% of my bodyweight - thereby hopefully reducing my chances of developing type-2 diabetes and all that it entails by 60%. the food is ridiculous and most days i want to curl up into a ball and cry over the fact that i've had to give up the greatest love of my life: chocolate T_T. mom and tee are on this diet with me, so it isn't too lonely a struggle.... but the down side is that they get to end the torture in 3 months. i have to watch what i eat and when i eat till the day i die. the doctors aren't too cruel though - they promised me that i'll be allowed to resume a somewhat human eating regime at the end of my 3 months (even with a nibble of chocolate every once and a while!) ^^
so here's what you need to know for now...
my life will always be about making a difference. to know that everyday i do something to change someone else's life. it was a description that was never easy to fit into the 'occupation' box when teachers asked what i wanted to be when i grow up. it was a definition that plagued me as i tossed between settling in psychology and having 'experts' tell me i couldn't cope in medical school. but today i realised, none of my doubts even mattered.
i helped a little girl today. she was my first patient, on my first day as a clinical psychology intern at prince court hospital. when my mentor walked into my office and told me about her, all the confidence i'd been carrying around all day - the high of finally getting to stand in a hospital - disappeared instantly. what if i didn't know what to say? what to do? how was i supposed to act uninformed and let her tell me, all on her own, all the things i needed to know - the things she couldn't explain to everyone else? how was i supposed to help her, when i was wracked with my own fear that i'd do something wrong and trouble her further.
but from the moment we were introduced, all that worrying stopped. i was finally getting a chance to help someone. for that 11-year-old girl, i was the difference between her silent confusion and the misconceptions everyone had pegged her for. being left alone to get to know her for that hour was terrifying and utterly amazing. to be there when someone learns to trust... learns to open up and share their pain. to be there when you know that THAT moment started the better part of the rest of their lives...
THAT is what i live for ^^
i'm not going to let my IR drag me down... and more so the people that underestimate my resolve.
when i left the hospital today, the nurses looked up from the reception and called out "Dr. Yana, you have two patients tomorrow. see you at 9.30." so i guess there you go ^^
i'm going to spend the rest of my life making a difference ;)
2. as for my real sibling, hafiz is now 13! O_o where have the years gone?! i came home after my final semester to find him almost as tall as i am... and his shoes are already a couple of sizes bigger than mine! (mind you i've held the record in my house as having the largest sneakers for some time now... a title i begrudgingly passed on to him). but deep in the crevices of my cold, bitter and jealous heart... i'm proud of the big boy he's becoming ;) he's now an 8th grader and is breaking as many fragile, feminine hearts as he possibly can... sigh....
3. and since it was never in my nature to have only one best friend, mark tan is still around. hahaha! in all seriousness, i never thought that two people with as much history (both good and ridiculously bad) as we did could ever possess a future more than that of casual acquaintances. we appeared to be a doomed friendship from the very beginning - something more of my doing than his. but it's been 4 years since i first spoke to that brilliant boy at lunch on the day our spm results were released... and we're still at each others' throats ;) he has grown to become truly one of my bestest friends - someone i talk about everything with (even relationships!). mark and i are walking testiments that a guy and girl can care immensely about each other... want the best for one other... will do anything for the other person... and not have to be a couple. he's my best friend for life... and that's all i need ^^
4. my four-year health period has unfortunately come to an end, and i have been diagnosed with yet another ailment. this time it's called insulin resistance, or IR for short. it basically means that i am pre-diabetic... at 21. my doctors aren't willing to condemn me to a life of pills and treatment so they've thrown me into a whirlwind eating plan in an attempt to help me lose 10% of my bodyweight - thereby hopefully reducing my chances of developing type-2 diabetes and all that it entails by 60%. the food is ridiculous and most days i want to curl up into a ball and cry over the fact that i've had to give up the greatest love of my life: chocolate T_T. mom and tee are on this diet with me, so it isn't too lonely a struggle.... but the down side is that they get to end the torture in 3 months. i have to watch what i eat and when i eat till the day i die. the doctors aren't too cruel though - they promised me that i'll be allowed to resume a somewhat human eating regime at the end of my 3 months (even with a nibble of chocolate every once and a while!) ^^
so here's what you need to know for now...
my life will always be about making a difference. to know that everyday i do something to change someone else's life. it was a description that was never easy to fit into the 'occupation' box when teachers asked what i wanted to be when i grow up. it was a definition that plagued me as i tossed between settling in psychology and having 'experts' tell me i couldn't cope in medical school. but today i realised, none of my doubts even mattered.
i helped a little girl today. she was my first patient, on my first day as a clinical psychology intern at prince court hospital. when my mentor walked into my office and told me about her, all the confidence i'd been carrying around all day - the high of finally getting to stand in a hospital - disappeared instantly. what if i didn't know what to say? what to do? how was i supposed to act uninformed and let her tell me, all on her own, all the things i needed to know - the things she couldn't explain to everyone else? how was i supposed to help her, when i was wracked with my own fear that i'd do something wrong and trouble her further.
but from the moment we were introduced, all that worrying stopped. i was finally getting a chance to help someone. for that 11-year-old girl, i was the difference between her silent confusion and the misconceptions everyone had pegged her for. being left alone to get to know her for that hour was terrifying and utterly amazing. to be there when someone learns to trust... learns to open up and share their pain. to be there when you know that THAT moment started the better part of the rest of their lives...
THAT is what i live for ^^
i'm not going to let my IR drag me down... and more so the people that underestimate my resolve.
when i left the hospital today, the nurses looked up from the reception and called out "Dr. Yana, you have two patients tomorrow. see you at 9.30." so i guess there you go ^^
i'm going to spend the rest of my life making a difference ;)
1 comments
1 Comments:
what a beautiful post. you rock yana :) keep doing what you're doing; i'll always be here cheering you on. *big hugs*
new beginnings...
Sunday, January 17, 2010
for 1 year, 8 months and 12 days... this blog remained dormant.
not anymore.
1 comments
1 Comments:
wheeeee. i love the new banner pic :)
