So I started my externship on Monday and it has been awesome! I am learning a ton of stuff and I'm sure I will soon know as much as any doctor--just kidding. Monday was pretty busy because everyone had been sick for weeks and finally decided that Memorial Day would be a good day to spend in a clinic. I met Linda who is probably in her mid 50's. She is the LPN I was supposed to follow that day. She was very sweet to me and very good about telling me how to do things. I met the other ladies there and they were at first a little shy around me. Once they got to know me a little and realized that I was friendly and willing to do anything, they were very open and friendly with me as well. I would LOVE to work at this clinic. I really enjoy the doctors there. There is a real cooperative spirit between everyone and I would love to be a part of it.
I have done a lot of blood draws. The first two were very unsuccessful. I almost made one guy pass out because I poked him twice (without any success) and then Katie (an MA) ended up poking him and getting blood. He had to lie down to keep from throwing up and passing out. I felt so awful!!!! I wanted to go home right then, but I also knew that I couldn't give up yet...jeez. But since then, I have done a quite a few successful blood draws and so I don't feel so bad. Plus, there have been some times where the ladies there have missed, too. One guy on Friday got poked 8 times and they were still unable to get blood from him. I wasn't even involved in that one.
I have seen a lot of strep, UTI's, a few badly scraped knees from bike accidents, broken arms, the corner of a fingertip cut off, naked bums because I had to give hip shots and vaginal itching. It has been fascinating. I come home exhausted, but totally fulfilled and loving every minute of it. I know I am in the right field. I just hope I can find a job.
On Tuesday afternoon, I took Ollie to the vet. We hadn't realized how much weight he was losing until we compared him to Teddy, our new little ferret. Ollie is completely scrawny. On Monday night his poop was literally liquid, he was shivering and totally lethargic. For Ollie, that is NOT normal. He is usually a pain in the butt getting into mischief. They loved him at the animal hospital because most of them had never held a ferret before. They kept him overnight and fed him liquids and antibiotics. It cost $200, but it was worth it. Emeli was distraught. She was crying. She asked me if he was dying. I told her he was very sick, but the vet said his heart and lungs sounded good. That was a good sign for me as long as we could get him hydrated and back to his usual weight. He is still not his usual self. He sleeps a lot, but I figure he is trying to heal. He has gained a little weight. They gave us this tube of stuff to give him. That is impossible. When I tried to give it to him, he made all kinds of ferrety noises and wouldn't eat it. Ferret noises are little grunts that sound like squeaks. It's absolutely adorable when two ferrets are making that noise together when they are playing. When they are avoiding medicine, it sounds like little shrieks and you feel like a jerk. They had to shave his little neck to draw blood. He has about four little red dots where they poked him. Poor guy. When he saw me when it was time to come home, he just lay in my arms with his little head against my shoulder. In fact, whenever I pick him up, he lays his little head on my shoulder and lets me pet him...very unusual for Ollie. It's so sweet. The thought of losing Ollie made me really scared. I have really grown attached to this little guy, even though there are times I would gladly skin him for the mischief he gets into!!!!!
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