QUB Scrubs Emergency Medicine 2008, Day 1

So, Day 1 (of 2) is over of the QUB Scrubs Emergency Medicine conference for 2008. It was pretty good, although a lot of the morning lectures I've heard before (ABCDE, causes of SOB/ACS, etc etc), but it was still fun because the friends who came with my from St. Andrews and I were passing writing notes to one another on our little notepads...

After lunch, there was a circuit of 6 skills stations, including Cannulation, ABG taking, ABG interpretations, some Sim-Man sessions with the Territorial Army, which were really awesome because I got to use my ABCDE skills from the ILS sessions as well as my EMT-B training from back home to care for a "soldier" (SimMan dressed in army gear) who had been a prolonged extraction from an crash.

Tomorrow looks to be interesting as well, with different lectures including things like Diabetic and Obstetric Emergencies, as well as more skills stations, like suturing and defibrillation. These topics are more fun than what you'd study in a medical assistant degree program.

Anyway, my friends and I are going to relax after a MASSIVE dinner at Villa Italia, and might just watch a movie and get ready for tomorrow!

-AMiB

Emergency Medicine Conference

Later tonight 3 friends and I are headed over to Belfast for the Scrubs QUB Emergency Medicine Conference (http://www.qubscrubs.co.uk/conference). I went back in first year when it was the first year of the conference, and I LOVED it. It looks to be bigger and better this year, so I'm quite looking forward to it. I will hopefully post pics/update, but then again, I seem to be neglecting my blog more and more recently.

If by chance you're headed to the conference as well, drop me a line! (I'll have my laptop with me)

-AMiB

Traveling time, once again...

So I'm currently sitting at my gate, waiting for my flight back home to start boarding. The travel this time has been surprisingly easy, completely contradictory to the normal airport/airline stereotypes I usually run into. I had an empty check in line, cleared through a nearly empty security checkpoint, and had a fairly empty domestic flight (am currently waiting for my international flight).

Uh oh, they just called the boarding. I am looking forward to 2 weeks of nothingness at home!

-AMiB

It's that time of year...

So, Christmas break is just around the corner (finally)! We third years have our last lecture of the semester (and technically, our last lecture of St. Andrews) tomorrow. We're all quite excited.

Today I spent the afternoon giving tours of the Bute to prospective students who have just been interviewed. I've done this a number of times, but today was more fun than I remembered...can't quite put my finger on why, but oh well.

I'm leaving for home Saturday morning. By Saturday morning, I mean my flight leaves at 6.30am. Which means I have to be there at 4.30am. Which means I have to get a taxi out of St. Andrews at 3.30am. Thank goodness I know a bunch of people who are on the same flight, so instead of paying the £50 myself, its down to £12.50. I'm quite looking forward to going home though, especially since none of my clothes seem to fit me anymore, and I'm excited to get some new ones.

Anyway, I really need to finish some more work before I go home. The plan was to be caught up and have all my notes, etc, done before I left. We'll see how that works, since I have a mandatory Skills Practice from 9-10am tomorrow, and a lecture from 12-1pm. And I haven't even started packing yet. Hopefully things will be fine.

Just felt like I should do a quick update, sorry its such a random dissociated post.

Only 5 more days till Christmas!
-AMiB