STARS simulator

So the STARS mobile simulator rolled into town today and I was scheduled for a 1.5 hour session inside this modded out RV. Instead, I spent 6 hours inside! It was a great experience! I wish I took a picture but it's fully equipped with an interactive mannequin that talks, blinks, breathes, has vitals... and even has responsive pupils.

Since I was the only person there at 9 AM this morning, they basically threw me off into the deep end with a simulation of me (and only me) managing an acute inferior myocardial infarction. Major fail, hahahahaha. We also ran simulations on septic shock, a fractured pelvis and a difficult airway. My brain is totally saturated now and I need to debrief myself on the information overload I received. With that said though, I probably won't forget any of the information I learned today any time soon.

the social network soundtrack

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="190" caption="The Social Network OST cover"][/caption]

Great great great movie. Even better score. I'm a sucker for soundtrack music, and The Social Network is a soundtrack I've enjoyed the most in at least a couple years.

Even better than the TRON: Legacy soundtrack? Oooooohh...... yeah I'd say so. Not bad for something Trent Reznor almost didn't do.

post-hibernation midpoint post + inaugural life-choice charts

Goddammit, it never fails! I don't think I've ever been able to blog for more than two months at a time consistently. It's funny to see when I track my stats that I was still getting a couple visits each month. Must have been an unfortunate interweb straggler or a very bored friend.

Anyways, a new category I'd like to introduce are the "Life-choice charts", basically outlining who's winning the horse race to own my life starting in little more than a year (holy shit!).

Without further ado, here are the initial rankings:

1. Internal Medicine
   
   The long-term frontrunner. In all honesty, EM has been the only one that has come close to toppling it. There are too many subspecialties in its massive blob of a "specialty" that I like. I get far more satisfaction in solving complex problems than performing a fix, even if the results aren't yielded immediately. I even enjoy its bread and butter. Diabetes and hypertension, hooray! To this point though, I haven't experienced true IM in the city. Will it crush my spirits?
   
   


2. Emergency Medicine
   
   Easily becoming my favourite part of the rural clerkship despite the long-ish 12-hour shifts. Variety is the spice of life, keeps me sharp, and where I learn the most. Includes the coolest of the cool problems, but also some of the most frustrating too. Working ~14 days/month with no call? I could live with that. Red flags abound like a minesweeper field - shift work, "NYD", shift work, shift work. My family history tells me I should know better.
   
   


3. Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
   
   There isn't much about physiatry I don't like, but there's also a lot that I do like outside of physiatry. Laid back and great schedule but can I stay sane in a relatively narrow field?
   
   


4. Family Medicine
   
   I'd rather do something than nothing at all.