orientation

Strange how you can get use to a certain level of stress--have the old "stressed out" feeling back. Feels like an old friend. Oreientation this morning was not too overly horrible--just the usual threats and loads of work piled on, which I am used to from past semesters. They always have to throw in some ridiculous surprises that makes our schedules look completely undoable.
Went to the hospital and found out they changed our floor to a trauma floor (alas no cardiac or oncology!). Once again, I am in an inner-city hospital and will be caring for patients who have been shot, shot themselves, fallen off buildings/construction equipment, and had other violent things happen to them. Learned all about "denial names" and we are once again on a lock down unit. We have some surgical overflow from patients w/ newly placed colostomy/ileostomy bags and some plastics where patient's who have tried to blow their heads off have had a "flap repair," whatever that is. Our max will be two patients (other groups will have up to 4) because of the acuity of this floor. Plus we get all the high profile stuff from the news--people hurt in police chases, gang violence, people that are assaulted/abused, criminal stuff. The floor looks like something out of a movie w/ people wandering around in bandages, residents everywhere, and lots of noise. A fellow student looked at me and said, "Wow, I actually feel like I am in Grey's Anatomy or am on ER. This is surreal."

Add to that a butt load of paperwork and all the usual stress of clinical and I am...uh. Speechless. Don't even want to THINK about clinical right now. It is scary.

Off to make note cards. How is your week going?