PERSONAL STATEMENT The night was unusually silent when the phone began to ring at 2:00 am. The nurse answered the call and came running to me saying that there was a horrific road traffic accident 20 miles away from our hospital and around 30 severely injured patients were being transferred. The number of patients that needed urgent attention was beyond the capacity of our ER. There was chaos everywhere. A young man in his 30s presented with acute shortness of breath. He was in acute distress with unstable vital signs, O2 saturation in the 60s, breath sounds absent on the left side, raised jugular venous pressure and normal heart sounds. As I clinically suspected the patient was in distress from tension pneumothorax. We were going to …show more content…
As an intern, I rotated through various departments such as Internal Medicine, General Surgery, Preventive medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics and Orthopedics. This helped me improve my understanding of the role of each of these departments and also have hands on experience of the dynamic interaction among all the departments. During this period, I could rediscover the joy of working in Internal Medicine, as a part of a medical camp held by my Internal Medicine team I had an opportunity to take care of an elderly man complaining of headaches and frequent falls due to dizziness; then there was a young lady with a rash on her face and difficulty in breathing; a gentleman with chest pain that never dissipates and many others, so the list went on from Cardiology to Neurology, constipation to concussion, I was able to manage each and every one of them, the idea of having a chance to see my patient as a whole and not only as a symptom or disease. More than anything else, providing a solution to almost every patient's problems, simple to complex, acute to chronic, allowed me to walk back home with the satisfying feeling that only comes from practicing medicine. By the end of my rotation, I knew Internal Medicine is where I can see
A tension pneumothorax can be caused by a blunt or penetrating trauma, in the case study provided it would be a blunt trauma. The trauma to the chest area causes damage to the plural cavity; either the visceral (lines either lung) or parietal plura (lines the thoracic wall), or can be caused by trauma to the traceobronchial tree (Daley, 2014). The trauma to the chest area causes the formation of a one-way-valve, this allows for the air to flow into the plural space on inhalation, but on exhalation cannot be expelled (Curtis, Ramsden, & Lord, 2011). As the trapped air in the lungs build up within the affected side it can cause serious complications. In the case study it is the left lung that is in distress, and as the pressure increases within the left lung it can cause an impaired venus return to the right atrium (Daley, 2014). The increased pressure can eventually affect the right lung as the pressure builds in the left side and causes mediastinal shift which increases pressure on the right lung, which decreases the patients ability to breath, and diffuse the bodies tissues appropriately. The increase in pressure on the left side where the original traum...
I am interested in pursuing the Physician Assistant (PA) degree because of my experiences both within the medical field and as a patient. These experiences have led me to believe that a team approach to patient-centered medicine provides the best and most comprehensive care possible. Further, the PA profession offers me the opportunity to continue my lifelong passion of helping others, giving back to my community, and provides me with further opportunities to teach.
Pritesh has a previous medical history of asthma and has experienced right-sided haemothorax as he got hit by a hockey ball during a competition. Currently, the nurse suspects that Prithesh may be developing tension pneumothorax which is a life-threatening medical emergency (Brown & Edwards, 2012). Tension pneumothorax develops when a hole in the airway structures or the chest wall allows air to enter but not leave the thoracic cavity (Rodgers, 2008). The pressure in the intrathoracic space will continue increase until the lung collapses, place tension on the heart and the opposite lung leading to respiratory and cardiac function impairment, and eventually shock may result (Professional guide to pathophysiology, 2011; Rodgers, 2008). Tension pneumothorax usually results from a penetrating injury to the chest, blunt trauma to the chest, or during use of a mechanical ventilator (Brown & Edwards, 2012; Rodgers, 2008).
Brief description of the patient’s presenting symptoms and initial complaint Wildgruber and Rummeny (2012) define tension pneumothorax as a life-threatening condition where air enters the pleural cavity during inspiration but cannot escape during expiration. It is more common in patients with chest trauma and those with mechanical ventilation (Briggs, 2010). Increased the thoracic pressure will compress against the heart and the unaffected lung, impairing cardiac functions and ventilation (Pons, & National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, 2011). Rapid intervention is required to prevent fatal conditions including hypoxia, shock, cardiorespiratory arrest and death (Wildgruber & Rummeny, 2012; Day, 2011; Bethel, 2008). Assessment of the patient and patient needs Assessments focus on establishing the underlying cause of Pritesh’s rapid deterioration to guide successful interventions.
My mom always used to say,” Look at the person as a whole to understand the condition.” Even though it made little sense to me as a child, I learned the concept when I was doing my Internal medicine rotation. The passion of knowing that I could improve a person’s quality of life drew me into pursuing medicine. The multitude of different organ systems that one covers while practicing medicine fascinated me to delve into a field that encompasses them all - Internal Medicine. In addition, I enjoyed the challenges that Internal Medicine would provide me with its diversity. Altogether, Internal Medicine was the amalgam of everything I learned in my medical practice and decided to pursue my residency.
Growing up in rural Texas, you have to learn to care for the things that are important to you. There really is not much to entertain yourself with so many adolescents become vulnerable to trouble. Luckily for me, I grew up with the responsibilities that came with growing up on a farm. I had things to care for on a daily basis and for the longest time, the things I cared for most were animals. I exhibited livestock in my youth and this is where I spent the majority of my time. I would come home from football or basketball practice and go straight up to the barn to tend to my animals. Along with feeding and cleaning, I would often administer vaccinations and antibiotics when needed. Because of my interest in medicine and science coupled with my love for animals some could say that I was destined to become veterinarian. The major I chose, animal science, even supported that notion. However, it was not until the summer after my freshman year of undergraduate where I realized it was human medicine that my heart was yearning for.
The objective of this assignment is to explore and reflect upon a situation from a clinical placement. Reflective techniques will be used to reveal how well or badly the situation was handled. And how the incident, and the reflection has influenced personal learning and professional practice in relation to nursing care.
My father, two paternal uncles, two maternal uncles, five cousins, and two cousin’s husbands. Three cousins who are in medical school along my sister who is on the premed track. These are the statistics behind my claim of being from a family of physicians. Importantly, these statistics do not hold much importance in my choosing of becoming a family medicine physician. In my last year of medical school, evaluating my personal experiences with my family, my country of origin, and future opportunities, I decided that family medicine was the field I wanted to be a part of.
I like problem solving and the challenge of being faced with a set of symptoms to figure out the diagnosis. With my preceptors, I experienced the intricate thought processes involved in managing patients with multiple co-morbidities. Going to my clerkship everyday was exciting in not knowing what I will encounter; it can be an acute or chronic condition or a combination involving any system of the body. At times, I also observed my preceptor play an initial role of a specialist such as a cardiologist or nephrologist. I respect the vast knowledge internists possess and their integration into practice. During my clerkship, I felt like every day was an adventure of problem solving which is appealing to me as a
The patient is a 56-year-old male admitted for altered mental status, scalp laceration, and right pneumothorax after a fall off his porch onto concrete. This patient has been in the hospital for 9 days with these problems and now has developed pneumonia and showing signs of possible sepsis. One of the abnormal assessment findings were his respiratory assessment. Currently the patient has a trach tube and is on mechanical ventilation of 50%. He has diminished breath sounds on the right side especially in the base of the lung and clear on the left side. The patient has regular labored breathing with the use of accessory muscles. Another abnormal finding is that his heart rate is tachy and heart rhythm
Education is neither linear nor static. It requires evolution and fluctuations. I received my undergraduate degree in Exercise Science at UNC Charlotte, and now it is time for a prime conversion to be made. Attending the Masters of Public Health program at UNC Charlotte would open the door for me to pursue my career aspirations in health care. Specifically, I am interested in epidemiological methods in community health. My ambition, perseverance, and work ethic have brought me to a high point, and enrolling in the Masters in Public Health program would raise that threshold even higher.
From a young age, I was drawn to the healthcare field, not because the amount of money doctors, nurses and other health professionals made, but because of the dedication and contentment I saw on their faces helping someone in need. Growing up everyone wanted to become a doctor or a nurse and as a little child being a doctor or a nurse was a profession many parents wanted their child to pursue as a career. Needless to say, I fell into that category because I had high hopes that one day I will become a nurse. However, that dream came to a halt.
On my very first emergency first aid call as a high school volunteer EMT, I was thrown into a chaotic scenario where I had to conduct numerous rounds of CPR in an attempt to save a patient who was absent of a pulse. While our first response team was unsuccessful in saving this man’s life, the people around me had saved hundreds of patients over the course of their health care lives and I knew that I wanted to be like them. This life-changing experience ultimately served as the catalyst for me to enter the medical field and I am currently pursuing a premed track at Lehigh University as a rising senior, where I plan to graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in molecular biology. At college, I decided to continue being of service to my community
My aspiration to undertake a degree in adult nursing was confirmed following the successful completion of my first placement at a residential care home, caring for service users with dementia, the elderly and those with physical disabilities. I got great satisfaction from caring and talking to the residents, especially one lady who was very lovely and kind to me. I also enjoyed and benefited from developing relationships with the service users, and this is something that really draws me to working in adult nursing. The experience I gained whilst working in the care home, allowed me to work effectively as part of a team and made me appreciate how important it is to meticulously follow instructions given to the staff by supervisors to safeguard
Internal medicine excites me because it is extremely versatile and is not limited to one organ or medical problem. My experience as a volunteer has taught me the importance of being an exceptional healthcare professional. This lesson is something that I carry with me throughout my day-to-day life. I view myself as a young physician-scientist who is constantly trying to better himself.