MY 4-WEEK EXPERIENCE WORKING IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT AT CHARLOTTE MAXEKE JOHANNESBURG ACADEMIC HOSPITAL

There are moments where sometimes I must actively force myself to pause and reflect on just how much my life has changed in the last two years. Sometimes it seems almost unbelievable the extent of that change, and I felt that more so whilst doing my electives this year in the emergency department (ED), wards 161, 165, and 167 at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH). Just two years ago I was sitting behind an office desk at a stockbroker having celebrated my 8^th year working in the IT department, ensuring our staff were able to trade on the stock exchange. For the entirety of those eight years, my sole purpose and objective was trying to get into the Wits GEMP program and having actively worked towards it for the best part of a decade, it always seemed so incredibly impossible and unrealistic. However, I was offered a place in the program in 2019, and now just two years later I sometimes sit and reflect on how much my life has changed, and how I am now literally living the life I dreamed of for so long. Instead of managing a network of JSE connections, I am now performing lumbar punctures, suturing, inserting catheters, examining patients from start to finish, and coming up with differential diagnoses and management plans that have actual meaning and consequence behind them.

Reflections on our Healthcare System

I have been on both sides of the South African health care system since the lockdown was enacted – I volunteered and assisted for a couple of months at a Clinic in Orange Farm, and unfortunately had a family member spend a few weeks at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH) due to a terminal cancer diagnosis. My experiences as such have been contrasting and have shown both the best and the worst that our health care system has to offer.

The best aspects have come from doctors and nurses showing unbelievable courage, determination, empathy, work ethic, and ingenuity in running a clinic safely and smoothly in the light of a pandemic. Doctors and nurses who see literally hundreds of patients every day, and yet manage to give empathetic and personalized care to people. Doctors and nurses who take the time (despite the unimaginable patient burden) to teach and encourage students in every little aspect of patient care, from examining chest x-rays to dispensing medication, to taking adequate histories and communicating effectively with patients across all spectrums. Watching team leaders develop new plans to safely manage patient-load and to design systems to triage an entire community has been beyond awe-inspiring and incredibly motivating.

However, the one thing I feel I can take away from both scenarios is to say without a shadow of a doubt the kind of doctor I don’t want to become, and I hope to one day run a ward in the way it absolutely should be.

FIRST DAY BACK AT CAMPUS!

This week marked the first time I’ve gone back to campus in almost 4 months, and it’s something I’ve been really looking forward to so I decided to do a “day in the life of a medical student”-type video! We are only going to campus to do our clinical skills sessions, and then later to do our exams and OSCE’s.

THE WARBURG EFFECT (Normal Metabolism VS Cancer Metabolism)

Here’s a quick video explaining the Warburg effect and cancer cell metabolism

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WITS GEMP 1 | RESPIRATORY BLOCK REVIEW (Tips and Advice)

This is a quick review for the 4th block of GEMP, which is the respiratory block. A lot of people underestimate the block because it follows haematology, but it can catch up on you at the end.

MY OSCE STORY

This week we had our first OSCE’s of medical school! It was a crazy experience, and the nerves definitely got the better of me in our first few stations! The second round of stations were much better and I felt more at ease and comfortable in my ability. In all there were 12 stations we had to do this year:

Respiratory exam; BP (in Zulu); Haem history; General exam; Chest X-Ray; Bioethics; Abdomen exam; ECG; Respiratory history; CVS and JVP exam; IV and fluids; and a CVS history

Now to study for the end of year exams!

RENAL BLOCK EXAMS

POSTED: 9 November 2019

This week marked our 6th and FINAL block exams for GEMP 1! It was a relatively short block, but that only meant that we had to cram a normal block-worth of lectures into half the amount of time! To end off the year, we have our OSCE’s next week and then finally our end-of-year exams in the last week of November!

MY FIRST FOSCE

On Thursday 19 September 2019 I did my first FOSCE of medical school! This is a mock exam of some of the clinical skills we’re taught throughout the year, and is used to prepare us for the end of year OSCE’s which count 35% of our year mark! We each do 3 FOSCE’s during the year.

A big thank you to my AWESOME group for all the practicing, and to Saijal, Dylan, Angela, and Azra for being a part of the video!

STUDY WITH ME | HOME EDITION

We are fast approaching our exams for our 5th block of medicine – the cardiovascular system! As such, I’ve started studying quite a bit and thought I’d do another “Study With Me” video!