I survived my first day of internship, and thankfully so did all my patients . . . all 1 of them. Turns out that Pulmonary Consults at the VAMC is going to be a pretty easy way to begin what will be otherwise a very challenging year. I kind of wish I had this "vacation" rotation a little later in the year once I'm more burned out, but that's OK. I plan to spend some of my extra time studying, preparing for the harder rotations, and staying in good physical shape.
Today I saw a 74 year old tetraplegic veteran with Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) who had previously been having some trouble with his breathing. Chest X-ray showed fluid in his lungs so starting a couple of days ago we gave him some diuretics to pee off the extra fluid, and put him on some pulmonary therapy in addition to medications for his heart condition. Today, much improvement showing blood oxygen saturations of 100% without any supplemental oxygen. Yay! It was certainly rewarding to see this veteran feeling better from a lung perspective, even as many of his other health issues are not fixable. I was very glad to have my first case as an MD being one that showcased health IMPROVEMENT. I'll do all I can to make that a theme for the year . . .
Dr. K
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