Omphaloskeptics

I've been reading other people's medical blogs for a while now, and have seen a trend that REALLY irritates me. Not with the bloggers themselves, but with their commenters. In a typical scenario, a poor overworked blogger will use his/her OWN BLOG to vent about a problem at work that has irritated them past all patience, related to people faking symptoms, people who are VERY difficult to treat due to psychosocial reasons, and drug seekers. Then, like lightning, a bunch of people with chronic pain, with those same psychosocial concerns, or who take narcotics will descend on this blogger, taking PERSONAL OFFENSE at the blogger, and, on at least one occasion telling them that they should KILL THEMSELVES because they are a bad person.
Just how self-absorbed do you have to BE to see YOUR situation in ALL blogs about drug seeking behavior? These medical people KNOW that there are good reasons to take narcotics! They KNOW that migranes are an actual phenomenon! And yet these rabid commenters treat medical bloggers as if they are saints! To be a "good doctor" or "good nurse" according to these people means having no actual clinical judgment.
If this means I am going to get flamed next month when I start getting my own patients, so be it, but honestly, some people need to take their heads out of their navels, and stop seeing their own pain in EVERY blog.

Disinfranchised!

This state just sent me a letter saying that my voter registration was incomplete, and I may not therefore vote in the election. This is bullshit. I registered IN AUGUST, when I moved here. They sent the letter AFTER THE DEADLINE. And my registration WAS complete. I got my driver's license for this state AFTER registering. Therefore, the ABSENCE of the aforementioned license number on the application was BECAUSE IT DID NOT EXIST!!!!!
I won't stand for it. My grandmother was born before women were even ALLOWED to vote, and i'm certainly not going to let it happen to me!!!!

DAMN THE TORPEDOES! I WANT TO VOTE!

A Sad Realization

I am no longer as young as I once was. I don't think I can keep doing this EMT class, because I'm taking 17 credits already, and will be taking 21 for spring, and to take another 6-8 hours of classes UNcredited, in addition to some weekends, I dont think my precious sleep schedule can take that. I NEEED sleep. The first time through college I could schedule more and worry less about my naptime. :-D
Of course, my chronic need for sleep is partially responsible for my decision NOT to go to medical school. On fewer than 7 hours of sleep a night, I cry like a six year old girl, I kick people in the shins with no provocation, and I get violently sick to my stomach. Somehow I don't think that would lend much credence to my claims to be a professional.

Tomorrow I'll have to tell the EMT squad on campus that I cannot continue to hang with them. Is ok though.

EMT class

First EMT class this evening. I have to take the whole bloody class over again because my bloody cert lapsed. Bah.

Adding to the pile of medical blogs

Yes, I know that it's halfway through the semester, but better late than never! Here's the background- I have have returned to school after recieving ONE useless liberal arts degree, heading south into the Mid Atlantic to do a two-year second bachelors program in nursing, since I've loved the past four years as a volunteer EMT in the frozen north woods.

So far I don't really feel much like a nurse- I keep thinking like an EMT. A professor will tell us a hypothetical patient has vital signs of P. 74, R. 15, T. 98.2, BP 155/85, and I'll say "oh, he's fine!" Yes, I am aware that 155/85 means hypertension, but it's probably NOT a hypertensive CRISIS, and since they DIDNT say that the patient was clutching their chest, having runs of V-tach, had a low pulse-ox or anything else like that, I'm used to thinking "oh meh, they've got high blood pressure...just like 2/3 of the people I see. It's PROBABLY not their chief complaint".
Except now it MIGHT be their chief complaint! OH NO! We ARE the people who take care of that sort of thing!

I have decided I DEFINITELY need my NP, or even to go on for a DNP. Because my classes are so FUN!!! I LOVE pharmacology, I LOVED A&P and can't WAIT for Patho. I'm sure the classes at the grad level are even better!