Much different from the hospital I was at during my clinical rotation last semester. For one, this place is MASSIVE!! I am so glad to be following the dietitians through my weeks because with my directionally challenged self I easily get turned around. There are several windy hallways, lots of stairs and three buildings all connected. The dietitians are keen on using stairs instead of elevators (which I am completely ok with) but they change floors and buildings several times throughout the day, so I'm hoping to have one killer lower body by the end of this rotation. The dietitian I worked with used a pedometer during one of her shifts and said she walked about 2 miles in a day! That's approximately 4000 steps a day, the average individual takes only about 1000 steps a day.
Since we are on our feet so much I purchased some shoe inserts to provide more cushion to my feet. (I feel like such an old lady...) The flats I wear do not have a lot of padding and after day 1 my feet weren't too happy with me. Hopefully these will help with all the walking on hard floors, mastering the stairs and walking from building to building.
My first week was basically an introduction. The first two days I followed my dietitian around, listened while she did assessments, watched as she went through the patients' charts to gather information and we attended a couple of clinical meetings with other health care staff. On the third day with her she gave me the freedom to view the patients' charts, talk with the patients and write our clinical notes while she observed me. It surprised me after only being out of clinical for a few months, how much I felt that I had forgotten, but after a couple of days in the hospital, I felt more comfortable and confident. Everybody keeps saying how fast your clinical knowledge goes if you're not using it and I will completely agree with that statement! I'm afraid now of not working in a hospital because I don't want to lose that information.
During one of my assessments I was discussing food preferences with one of the patients and he mentioned that he wanted a ham sandwich. I was laughing on the inside because it made me think of the Duck Dynasty episode I had just recently watched. Thanks to my father in law for getting us started on that show, it is quite funny I must admit.
Next week I'm with the dietitian who is assigned the floor with the inmates. Being the county hospital, if an inmate requires hospitalization, my site is where they go. I'm nervous about visiting that floor, but curious as well, hopefully I have developed thick enough skin to handle anything they may throw my way. Obviously this is completely different from the previous hospital I was working at.
Which brings me to a quick wrap up of my spring break! Both weekends included weddings, the first weekend we were in Houston for Erika and Joseph's wedding. We had such a blast! The wedding was beautiful and everyone was there to celebrate at the reception. They sat us at the perfect table, directly in front of the bar :) (You two know us so well!) Probably dangerous spot, but we had so much fun!
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| Congratulations newlyweds! |
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| I'm in prison! |
Our second weekend was spent in Pasadena, California. We went out a couple days early to visit some of our friends who have moved out there since our TCU days. It was great to be able to visit some of the local places they showed us. The weather was gorgeous out there! Nice and cool in the morning and warmed up slightly in the afternoon, but never too hot. It was bright and sunny too.
There are quite a few gastropubs located throughout the city and one of the neatest was Congregation Ale House. It was set with a church theme, the tips jars were offertory boxes, the staff wore the black shirts with the white under the collar (sorry not sure of the technical name) and the water station was labeled "Holy Water". It was really unique and I know Andy really enjoyed being able to taste some of the local beers that we don't get in Texas.
We had planned to meet up with my incredible friend from forever Laura, but unfortunately she was sick during her spring break. I hate being sick during vacation/time off, such terrible timing. However, I am thrilled to say that her and her boyfriend Jon recently got engaged! Congrats you two!
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| Congratulations! |
~Brittani
"Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves." ~ 1 Corinthians 13:7
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