My daughter has finished her second year in medical school and is working in a hospital in London as a medical notes summarizer. She takes pages and pages of doctor's notes and edits them into shorter summaries. She had her first day yesterday, and one of her colleagues, also a med student at Kings, told her that a previous occupant of the job said that she felt like blowing her brains out by the end of the summer because the work can get dull.
But I don't know why that is because Katie said her first day included all the notes from one family written by psychiatrists and other medical officers and was fascinating in what it revealed.
The mother had two abortions then tried to get pregnant again but couldn't. This caused her to become depressed, then the father was depressed because he knew about his wife's abortions but she had never told him. I think this is right. I'm sure Katie will come and correct me if it isn't.
Anyway, it seems like a swell way to spend the day to me. I never get such intimate glimpses into the inner workings of people in my job.
2 comments:
Well, your father took you right into the morgue of his hospital and pulled out the freshly-chilled cadavers for your entertainment, so you can hardly complain!:):)
I agree Katie's job sounds interesting, but a "SWELL" way to spend the day, encapsulating a tale of hapless human misery? Worthwhile and valid, but not to everyone's taste. The fewer "inner glimpses" of such people I get, the better.
Hats off to Katie and all medical students! Not everyone could stomach it, and it certainly takes brains and balls.
No, he was depressed cause she was having an affair with him.
There was a really inspiring one today. The girl didn't live up to her parents' expectations and became depressed and had hysterical screaming fits. The parents didn't support her at all. The notes describe her as "pathetically lonely". But she manages to save up for several years to take a holiday to the other side of the world. Exit psychiatric notes and enter notes about ringworm, low back pain, etc.
The last note on top of the pile describes her as being medically fit enough to move to Hong Kong. I felt so happy for her, that she managed to get it together and move out of the country.
Some phrases are amusing to read: "His insight was suboptimal" and "He is bothered by some thoughts that his neighbour is the devil".
Hmm. Perhaps they look better in context.
One rather amusing letter when the consultant was seeing the patient about stress headaches remarked that the patient was rather wet and perhaps his reaction to any stress in life was to develop one of these headaches. The phrases he used! It was total English conservative doctor from the 50s (It was a pretty old letter)
In one set of notes, I was just turning the pages, and I suddenly saw a note declaring she had been removed from her practice due to racist remarks. I was handling the notes of a racist! But of course I had to carry on.
But all the notes on the patient and all the letters are by doctors. It's the oddest thing when something written by the actual patient comes up. It's all about the patient, but the only thing that's from them is whispers on a page.
But yes, I already share this urge to blow my brains out. There's so so much boring among the interesting! And the really sad, like the deaf autistic boy.
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