Lesson 1: The Game of Alphabet Soup
Reading the medical charts is like playing alphabet soup; it's a hot mess of swirling letters and abbreviations. The physician notes are rarely legible, making each spoonful a game of translation and decoding. Can you guess what this means: "Pt. p/w CP, c/o SOB with PMH of CAD s/p OHTx in 2008." On my first day on the cardiology floor it took me several minutes to learn that, "Patient presented with Chest Pain, complaining of Shortness Of Breath, with a Past Medical History of Coronary Artery Disease status post a heart transplant in 2008." It can be very discouraging, but I am finding that with each day I'm getting better.
I spent two weeks in cardiology, but now I'm on the surgical floors. Each new service is a fresh bowl of soup, a new mix of letters, and the start of a whole new game. Slurp!
Happy Monday!I spent two weeks in cardiology, but now I'm on the surgical floors. Each new service is a fresh bowl of soup, a new mix of letters, and the start of a whole new game. Slurp!
Handout I made. Heart disease leads to fluid accumulation. Taking medications and limiting fluids helps these patients decrease the extra fluid and swelling in their body.
Do you have any thoughts on the hospital?
Coming next...Lesson 2: The Humility Pill
Bye,
Rachel
(Photo from The American)
5 comments:
Great handout, Rachel! I'm glad that the hospital is becoming less intimidating. Synthesizing all the info in the medical record and understanding the patient's nutrition needs were my favorite parts of working in the hospital setting.
Rachel, the handout looks very professional! So much information in there. And what a fun way to eat your soup with those alphabets inside hehehe ...
I'm glad you are feeling more at home working in the hospital floors. Isn't it crazy that a doctor handwriting is so illegible and it's so important to be able to read it? Your handout looks great and should help a lot!
Great handout! Love the alphabets soup, so cute and delicious!
Great handout!! You are so talented. :)
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