MCW Class of 2012

[samenewme]

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Is there any good place to get furniture?

Target nearby, IKEA an hour or two away in Schaumburg, IL, St. Vincent de Paul thrift store on the northeast end of town, I think. There's also a JC Penney scratch and dent store, but I haven't checked out the deals there.

 

[45408]

Or you don't want to admit to knowing who she is talking about.

Okay

 

[MCW2011]

The JC Penney place wasn't that great of a deal and they had hardly any furniture when I went there, but places like that are always hit or miss. There are a couple of Salvation Army places on the south side and a really big, nice Goodwill in Greenfield (a suburb on the southside of MKE). I got a decent dining room table with 4 chairs for $35 there. They also always have really awesome 70's style yellow, green, and/or orange couches, if you are looking for that kind of thing 🙂

 

[45408]

The JC Penney place wasn't that great of a deal and they had hardly any furniture when I went there, but places like that are always hit or miss. There are a couple of Salvation Army places on the south side and a really big, nice Goodwill in Greenfield (a suburb on the southside of MKE). I got a decent dining room table with 4 chairs for $35 there. They also always have really awesome 70's style yellow, green, and/or orange couches, if you are looking for that kind of thing 🙂

There's another Goodwill on 91st, just south of Mill Road a little ways. That's about 10 minutes from Watertown Plank. I think there's a Salvation Army on 50th and Bradley Rd, up near Brown Deer.

 

[samenewme]

There's another Goodwill on 91st, just south of Mill Road a little ways. That's about 10 minutes from Watertown Plank. I think there's a Salvation Army on 50th and Bradley Rd, up near Brown Deer.

For some reason, that Goodwill tends to have lousy furniture. What I have heard (but have not verified) is that St. Vinny's is the way to go for thrift furniture.

The Salvation Army on Greenfield or National in West Allis has some decent stuff from time to time. Council for the Blind Thrift store on Greenfield in West Allis is also a possibility.

 

[Agent Splat]

How is the South side, say, along 23rd street south of national avenue? I have to go do some home healthcare visits for family medicine rotation. It makes me nervous when the instructions about it says "be aware of your surroundings" and "wear minimal jewelry."

 

[MCW2011]

Truthfully, it is not the greatest neighborhood, but it is not the worst. It is mostly working class and Latino (a really good little Puerto Rican restaurant in that area 🙂 ). I used to volunteer in that neighborhood and would take the bus. I never had any problems, but I was always there during the day. Just lock your car and don't leave anything valuable in plain sight. I would be more worried about Riverwest or the far Northwest side, honestly.

 

[akpete]

How is the South side, say, along 23rd street south of national avenue? I have to go do some home healthcare visits for family medicine rotation. It makes me nervous when the instructions about it says "be aware of your surroundings" and "wear minimal jewelry."

I believe that's close to Latin Kings land. I think around 12th is moreso though. It'll be daytime.

 

[45408]

How is the South side, say, along 23rd street south of national avenue? I have to go do some home healthcare visits for family medicine rotation. It makes me nervous when the instructions about it says "be aware of your surroundings" and "wear minimal jewelry."

That's pretty close to the Domes, and well within my employer's ambulance territory 😉 It's a crappy neighborhood, but if you're parking in a clinic lot and working indoors, I can't imagine that you'll have a problem. Latin Kings are further east, but it's not like you'd ever have a problem with them unless you started selling drugs or flashing gang signs while wearing rapper apparel.

 

[Agent Splat]

That's pretty close to the Domes, and well within my employer's ambulance territory 😉 It's a crappy neighborhood, but if you're parking in a clinic lot and working indoors, I can't imagine that you'll have a problem. Latin Kings are further east, but it's not like you'd ever have a problem with them unless you started selling drugs or flashing gang signs while wearing rapper apparel.

i'll only feel safe if you're on call.

you don't have to talk to me, just hand me your run forms and I'll fill out the necessary patient info, including SAMPLE history and physical exam.

 

[45408]

i'll only feel safe if you're on call.

you don't have to talk to me, just hand me your run forms and I'll fill out the necessary patient info, including SAMPLE history and physical exam.

I just worked a 24 over the weekend, so I probably won't bother working again until April. I just do it for giggles and thrills.

 

[riverwoman1040]

has anyone worked with/seen a good endocrinolist there?

 

[Agent Splat]

has anyone worked with/seen a good endocrinolist there?

I worked with a Dr. Shailendra Patel on internal medicine. He definitely knows his stuff. Sort of a goofy guy. MD + PhD in endo = massive physiology pimpage.

Any patient with diabetes that was admitted for something other than diabetes left with the tightest control of their sugars they'd probably ever had.

 

[riverwoman1040]

I worked with a Dr. Shailendra Patel on internal medicine. He definitely knows his stuff. Sort of a goofy guy. MD + PhD in endo = massive physiology pimpage.

Any patient with diabetes that was admitted for something other than diabetes left with the tightest control of their sugars they'd probably ever had.

How about hyperthyroidism?

 

[Agent Splat]

How about hyperthyroidism?

he was acting as an attending for a general medicine service, so we never got around to that one.

but i'm sure he's good with that too. otherwise a search of various MCW physicians on the website will probably yield plenty good endo docs that are into thyroids.

 

[45408]

How about hyperthyroidism?

Hershel Raff, PhD - that's probably a good place to start

 

[AceRockolla]

off the top of my head there's softball, volleyball, cagefighting, and i think less-organized but active ultimate frisbee(more just people getting together and playing, really). There was curling going on at some point as well.

A bit off-topic, but I am curious about the softball league. I am a 2nd year pediatrics resident and wondering if we could field a team in the med student softball league. Does anyone know if resident teams are welcome in the league? Thanks for all the info!

 

[relf]

thats a great idea....i backpacked europe a couple of years ago, and i loved it...you really do catch the travel bug...if youre the adventurous type (and like your freedom), consider going without a tour group....i'll be in europe in april, so most likely out of your time frame....feel free to PM me if you have any questions....my big trip this summer is to backpack SE asia (cheap!)- cant wait...

 

[ecca58]

Are you sure you don't mean watersports? Not that I, uhhh, would know anything about that at all...whatsoever.

I think that's what the psych guy meant, but he kept arguing with the attending that he was right. 😉 The conversation went something like:

Me: "So what kind of plays are you into?"
Psych: "I like play water game."
Attending: "You mean watersports?"
Psych: "No, water game."
Attending: "What do you mean by water game?"
Psych: describes the play
Attending: "That's watersports."
Psych: "No, it's not."
Attending: "Ok, whatever." 😡

Anyway, during the preceptorship, are you able to chose what specialty your preceptor would be, or would your preceptor automatically be in primary care? I was curious because I've always wanted to shadow a neurologist/neurosurgeon...

 

[Kernal83]

would it be better to visit on the weekends when looking for apartments? or is someone probably going to be home for a showing of the place during the week? I heard that a lot of apartments are just advertised in a window with a phone number. Is this true?

btw, how did water sports even come up?

 

[ecca58]

would it be better to visit on the weekends when looking for apartments? or is someone probably going to be home for a showing of the place during the week? I heard that a lot of apartments are just advertised in a window with a phone number. Is this true?

btw, how did water sports even come up?

Sorry, that was all my fault. I think we were talking about being recorded during patient interviews...

 

[samenewme]

would it be better to visit on the weekends when looking for apartments? or is someone probably going to be home for a showing of the place during the week? I heard that a lot of apartments are just advertised in a window with a phone number. Is this true?

btw, how did water sports even come up?

It is true that many are advertised only with signs, but I found most people willing to show places in the evening on weekdays. So as long as you're staying two or three days, you should be fine.

 

[riverwoman1040]

Alright guys, I'm having my first med school freak out 🙂 I just got my taxes back from the accountant and started filling out my Fafsa, only to find out that today is the deadline for institutional aid, and I can't track down my parents to get their info. I'll need to pay for everything with loans. Have I already screwed myself over????

 

[akpete]

Alright guys, I'm having my first med school freak out 🙂 I just got my taxes back from the accountant and started filling out my Fafsa, only to find out that today is the deadline for institutional aid, and I can't track down my parents to get their info. I'll need to pay for everything with loans. Have I already screwed myself over????

I believe today is only the deadline for continuing students. As a new student you should be fine.

 

[45408]

I believe today is only the deadline for continuing students. As a new student you should be fine.

Yeah, I believe that's the case.

And besides, MCW doesn't offer very much in the way of institutional aid.

 

[samenewme]

Alright guys, I'm having my first med school freak out 🙂 I just got my taxes back from the accountant and started filling out my Fafsa, only to find out that today is the deadline for institutional aid, and I can't track down my parents to get their info. I'll need to pay for everything with loans. Have I already screwed myself over????

Info for newly accepted students is HERE:

http://www.mcw.edu/FileLibrary/User/pconfer/finaid/200809/APPINSTent0809.pdf

Always call the office when you have important, $30,000+ questions, though. Don't trust us. We cannot possibly care as much as you do about getting it right.

 

[akpete]

Yeah, I believe that's the case.

And besides, MCW doesn't offer very much in the way of institutional aid.

it's better than nothing though. I get an institutional loan and a need-based scholarship. Well, I have in the past at least.

 

[Gimlet]

Anyway, during the preceptorship, are you able to chose what specialty your preceptor would be, or would your preceptor automatically be in primary care? I was curious because I've always wanted to shadow a neurologist/neurosurgeon...

Since nobody addressed this yet...I'm assuming you're talking about the M1 "mentor" program, where you shadow a doctor in clinic once a week for a few weeks? You can request a preceptor in a certain specialty, but no guarantees that you'll get it. They definitely lean heavily towards primary care, although with Neurology you might have some takers. I requested anesthesiology...definitely a no-go on that one.

 

[Ashers]

I requested ortho and I got senior mentor program. Do NOT ask for the senior mentor program.

 

[indo]

I requested some kind of cardiology and I got a guy who was heavily into lipidemiology. It was pretty cool for learning about lipids/ TGs/ and cholesterol.


Some people's mentors had them do pap smears and that type of thing and others didn't do anything.

 

[ecca58]

I requested ortho and I got senior mentor program. Do NOT ask for the senior mentor program.

What is the senior mentor program, anyway? 😕 And, out of curiosity, why is it something I should avoid?

They definitely lean heavily towards primary care, although with Neurology you might have some takers. I requested anesthesiology...definitely a no-go on that one.

No anesthesiology?! NOOOO! 😱

I requested some kind of cardiology and I got a guy who was heavily into lipidemiology. It was pretty cool for learning about lipids/ TGs/ and cholesterol.

Lipidemiology, huh? That must have been quite interesting. Hmm, I wonder what's my blood lipid level? (I wonder if it's so high that it would solidify as you pull the blood from the syringe? It's pretty gross, if you think about it.) 🙄

 

[45408]

You can always shadow an anesthesiologist on your own time.

 

[Agent Splat]

You can always shadow an anesthesiologist on your own time.

And you won't like it anyway.

 

[ecca58]

More random questions. (Sorry, these have nothing to do w/ MCW or WI...)

(1) I'm highly allergic to pollen. I suffer every year. 🙁 I used to take Claritin D for the past four years, but this year, it's not effective. (I took four 24-hour tablets within 24 hours...and continued to have a runny rose and a sinus headache.) I've tried Sudafed, Tylenol Sinus, Benadryl, with no success. Do you guys particularly know of any effective over-the-counter allergy meds? I think Zyratec is over-the-counter. Have any one tried it?

(2) So, I haven't had a health insurance plan since I've graduated undergrad approx. two years ago. Though I will be getting insurance once I officially enter MCW, I'm now using the very last contact lens. Does anyone know of a place/website where I can order more contacts w/o a doctor's prescription?

Thanks guys~. 😀

 

[yeasterbunny]

More random questions. (Sorry, these have nothing to do w/ MCW or WI...)

(1) I'm highly allergic to pollen. I suffer every year. 🙁 I used to take Claritin D for the past four years, but this year, it's not effective. (I took four 24-hour tablets within 24 hours...and continued to have a runny rose and a sinus headache.) I've tried Sudafed, Tylenol Sinus, Benadryl, with no success. Do you guys particularly know of any effective over-the-counter allergy meds? I think Zyratec is over-the-counter. Have any one tried it?

(2) So, I haven't had a health insurance plan since I've graduated undergrad approx. two years ago. Though I will be getting insurance once I officially enter MCW, I'm now using the very last contact lens. Does anyone know of a place/website where I can order more contacts w/o a doctor's prescription?

Thanks guys~. 😀

Zyrtec just went OTC recently and is a good drug, worth a try, but if a hefty dose of benadryl does nothing then it may not help much more since they act basically the same way.

 

[riverwoman1040]

More random questions. (Sorry, these have nothing to do w/ MCW or WI...)

(1) I'm highly allergic to pollen. I suffer every year. 🙁 I used to take Claritin D for the past four years, but this year, it's not effective. (I took four 24-hour tablets within 24 hours...and continued to have a runny rose and a sinus headache.) I've tried Sudafed, Tylenol Sinus, Benadryl, with no success. Do you guys particularly know of any effective over-the-counter allergy meds? I think Zyratec is over-the-counter. Have any one tried it?

(2) So, I haven't had a health insurance plan since I've graduated undergrad approx. two years ago. Though I will be getting insurance once I officially enter MCW, I'm now using the very last contact lens. Does anyone know of a place/website where I can order more contacts w/o a doctor's prescription?

Thanks guys~. 😀

I tried to do this and couldn't find anyplace. Luckly I have some sketchy connections 🙂 My rx is from an ER doc. I've been much happier since I got a temporary insurance plan though, and they're not that expensive.

 

[docfosho]

does anyone know when the white coat ceremony is and how many guests one can have?

 

[Agent Splat]

does anyone know when the white coat ceremony is and how many guests one can have?

it's at the end of orientation week. It takes place at nearby college's gymnasium with lots of bleachers, so if memory serves there's no guest limit. But personally, I'd hate to inflict that ceremony on any more than immediate family members, unless I didn't like certain people.

 

[riverwoman1040]

it's at the end of orientation week. It takes place at nearby college's gymnasium with lots of bleachers, so if memory serves there's no guest limit. But personally, I'd hate to inflict that ceremony on any more than immediate family members, unless I didn't like certain people.

Do most people have immediate family attend? (what I really want to know is if the crowd is going to be huge enough that my father and his tears of joy won't embarass me🙂)

 

[Agent Splat]

Do most people have immediate family attend? (what I really want to know is if the crowd is going to be huge enough that my father and his tears of joy won't embarass me🙂)

Yeah, most people definitely have parents, siblings, S.O.'s attend. I brought my parole officer, but he was required to be there.

It's definitely a boring ceremony. One of the head honchos that was on the stage fell asleep during ours.

 

[Ashers]

Yeah, most people definitely have parents, siblings, S.O.'s attend. I brought my parole officer, but he was required to be there.

It's definitely a boring ceremony. One of the head honchos that was on the stage fell asleep during ours.

It was especially awkward since he had to sit next to you and go up on stage with you. They should've given him some sort of coat just for being there.

If i had a choice, I wouldn't ask anyone to attend... major waste of time when you're really tired from the rest of orientation. My parents flew out to go to it, but they're kinda strange and also forced me to go to my college graduation. Ugh.

 

[Xandie]

Nobody in my family came.

Then again... my parents are a little busy.

 

[indo]

More random questions. (Sorry, these have nothing to do w/ MCW or WI...)

(1) I'm highly allergic to pollen. I suffer every year. 🙁 I used to take Claritin D for the past four years, but this year, it's not effective. (I took four 24-hour tablets within 24 hours...and continued to have a runny rose and a sinus headache.) I've tried Sudafed, Tylenol Sinus, Benadryl, with no success. Do you guys particularly know of any effective over-the-counter allergy meds? I think Zyratec is over-the-counter. Have any one tried it?

(2) So, I haven't had a health insurance plan since I've graduated undergrad approx. two years ago. Though I will be getting insurance once I officially enter MCW, I'm now using the very last contact lens. Does anyone know of a place/website where I can order more contacts w/o a doctor's prescription?

Thanks guys~. 😀

So you are one of the 80 billion uninsured people that everyone is bitching about? Jeeze. j/k.

Zyrtec worked for me but if using the OTC allergy pills is way more expensive than just going to the doctor.

 

[b533211]

I have another question: how much time is spent at hospitals not within walking distance from MCW?

 

[Ashers]

I have another question: how much time is spent at hospitals not within walking distance from MCW?

If your question is really, should I buy a car? The answer is yes.

For family med, I was one of the people who lived "closest" to Racine (40 miles away), drove down there every week day -- clinics not hospital. I liked the rotation though.

For OB/gyn I was by the lake. For Psych I was about a 30min drive from the school. For peds outpatient, I'll be by the lake again. During medicine, I'll be at the VA 15-20min from school depending on traffic, and St. Joe's absolutely no idea where that is, but not walking distance.

Edit: I guess they could be walking distance if you got an early start.

Edit pt deux: You probably don't want to do ALL rotations at Froedtert. I was there for 4 months straight and wanted to shoot myself by the end (ok, well, maybe not that bad, but I hated going to work every day and wanted to claw my eyes and pull my hair out several times). It's the busiest place you'll be. It's good for rotations in which you're interested, but it's also a GREAT place to avoid if at all possible.

 

[yeasterbunny]

If your question is really, should I buy a car? The answer is yes.

For family med, I was one of the people who lived "closest" to Racine (40 miles away), drove down there every week day -- clinics not hospital. I liked the rotation though.

For OB/gyn I was by the lake. For Psych I was about a 30min drive from the school. For peds outpatient, I'll be by the lake again. During medicine, I'll be at the VA 15-20min from school depending on traffic, and St. Joe's absolutely no idea where that is, but not walking distance.

Edit: I guess they could be walking distance if you got an early start.

Edit pt deux: You probably don't want to do ALL rotations at Froedtert. I was there for 4 months straight and wanted to shoot myself by the end (ok, well, maybe not that bad, but I hated going to work every day and wanted to claw my eyes and pull my hair out several times). It's the busiest place you'll be. It's good for rotations in which you're interested, but it's also a GREAT place to avoid if at all possible.

They told use they picked us for Racine not because we lived closest to the rotation but closest to each other, and thus should have the easiest time carpooling. Still kind of a lame way to choose.

 

[ecca58]

Luckly I have some sketchy connections 🙂

Yeah, I hoped to fully utilize my sketchy connection...but since my connection dude failed the final optometrist test for the second time, I'm guessing he's not going to be any use to me in the near future. Darn it.

Yeah, most people definitely have parents, siblings, S.O.'s attend. It's definitely a boring ceremony. One of the head honchos that was on the stage fell asleep during ours.

So are there any other events that parents, siblings, S.O., etc can attend besides the white coat ceremony during the rest of orientation? I'm trying to see if this one ceremony is really worth the trip for them...

So you are one of the 80 billion uninsured people that everyone is bitching about? Jeeze. j/k.

Yes, I am one of those unfortunately uninsured people that most med school applicants had to discuss about during their interviews. 😉 Darn my employer (an university hospital) for not providing benefits for its PRN workers... Let's hope that I won't get horribly injured in an accident or get appendicitis for the next couple of months.

 

[45408]

Yes, I am one of those unfortunately uninsured people that most med school applicants had to discuss about during their interviews. 😉 Darn my employer (an university hospital) for not providing benefits for its PRN workers... Let's hope that I won't get horribly injured in an accident or get appendicitis for the next couple of months.

I had disaster coverage through Golden Rule for $175/three months for the few months after I got married before my wife's insurance started. You could look into that.

 

[Gimlet]

So are there any other events that parents, siblings, S.O., etc can attend besides the white coat ceremony during the rest of orientation? I'm trying to see if this one ceremony is really worth the trip for them...

In the morning on the day of the White Coat ceremony (last day of your orientation week), the school puts on a "parental orientation" for the families of all the med students (SO's are welcome, too). They talk about what the classes and schedule will be like for the first couple of years, how to deal with having a stressed out med student in the family, etc., and they also give the parents a tour. My parents really enjoyed that, and it answered a lot of questions they had that I hadn't been able to answer yet. So I think overall the day is worthwhile, especially if your parents are into sappy ceremonies like graduations and whatnot.

 

[45408]

Post #1000 holla. And only two of the top 10 posters in this thread are actually going to be in the class of 2012.