When did you know?

[scrubswannabe]

I'm premed but I just wanted to know when you felt that this was for you - When you decided that you wanted to do gas for the rest of your life?

Thanks.

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[coprolalia]

When I realized that anesthesiologists did more than just push white stuff and stick a tube down someone's throat, which was about 3/4 of my way through 3rd year of med school.

-copro

 

[anestheticman]

Same here.

Also, trying it and loving it and pretty much hating everything else/ otherwise considering dropping out of school.

 

[Pharm Life]

I came into medical school thinking about anesthesia because I really liked pharm. I guess I could change my mind after I do my rotations, but I wouldn't have even gone to med school in the first place if I hadn't gotten interested in anesthesia.

 

[dhb]

Early in my 4th year, i was thinking IM i wanted to learn to intubate so i went to the OR and never looked back...

 

[Socialite MD]

I took an elective early on and came out of it thinking: the residents are all pretty happy, they encouraged me to look seriously into anesthesia, lots of residents/attendings had switched from something else into anesthesia. I'm also thinking very heavily about lifestyle. There's maybe only one other specialty that I'm considering, but I haven't rotated through it yet. Unless I have that feeling of I can't do anything but that, I'm going for gas.

 

[Ferdie]

end of 3rd year. It's hard to really know what you want to do until you've tried it and other things first.

 

[Curare]

I'm premed but I just wanted to know when you felt that this was for you - When you decided that you wanted to do gas for the rest of your life?

Thanks.

When I was doing my Surgery rotation and the surgeons wouldn't let me do anything and were upset at everyone else. The gasmen were cracking jokes and always took the time to explain to me what was going on and offered to let me try anything after proper teaching. Plus I have a degree in Chemical Engineering so flow was specialty. My first elective was Gasworks!

 

[UTSouthwestern]

During my internal medicine residency when myself, a pulmonologist, and 4 other residents were coding a 22 y/o thin, female cystic fibrosis patient unable to intubate (all six of us had two tries each including the pulmonologist 4 times), unable to stabilize the patient, then watching an anesthesiologist named ****** Jackson come up, DL the patient, offer to put in a 8.5 ETT (ahem - declined, 7.5 accepted), intubate the patient, turned off half of the meds running into the patient, give a bolus of what was probably neosynephrine, stabilize the patient, all within 10 minutes.

It took him longer to write the procedure note than do all of the above and after talking to him for five minutes, I knew I would no longer be pursuing cardiology or radiation oncology. Eight weeks later, I had a spot secured at Southwestern and the rest is history. Haven't regretted my decision since day 1.

 

[amyl]

one day on my surgery rotation my super cool surgeon preceptor recongized me looking over the drape from time to time while holding a retractor and decided let me do a day with the anesthesiologists. i was hooked.

from time to time i wish i had slightly more patient interaction in anesthesiology... but there is always that pain fellowship....

 

[bullard]

This is an awesome story, UT. But was this at UTSW? Why didn't the anesthesiology resident on call have the first crack at intubation?

During my internal medicine residency when myself, a pulmonologist, and 4 other residents were coding a 22 y/o thin, female cystic fibrosis patient unable to intubate (all six of us had two tries each including the pulmonologist 4 times), unable to stabilize the patient, then watching an anesthesiologist named ****** Jackson come up, DL the patient, offer to put in a 8.5 ETT (ahem - declined, 7.5 accepted), intubate the patient, turned off half of the meds running into the patient, give a bolus of what was probably neosynephrine, stabilize the patient, all within 10 minutes.

It took him longer to write the procedure note than do all of the above and after talking to him for five minutes, I knew I would no longer be pursuing cardiology or radiation oncology. Eight weeks later, I had a spot secured at Southwestern and the rest is history. Haven't regretted my decision since day 1.

 

[happyabe]

I was considering surgery until I did my surgery rotation. I realized most people were unhappy, arrogant for various reasons, and had poor personalities. Maybe if they made it seem fun, I'd be in a different position right now. Nothing was appreciated, which was fine for four weeks, but wouldn't be for 5 years. I knew right then, I was going into anesthesia. I liked the procedures, I liked the physio and pharm, and I could see myself doing the residency. Someone made a good point on a different post: anesthesiologists get to think like medicine doctors, do procedures like surgeons, and get paid well for all of it. It's fun and lucrative, why not?

 

[UTSouthwestern]

This is an awesome story, UT. But was this at UTSW? Why didn't the anesthesiology resident on call have the first crack at intubation?

It was at Southwestern's St. Paul University Hospital in the night when there are no anesthesiology residents in house on call. At that time, there was a CRNA that had been there for 20+ years who no one could find and who did not respond to her pager and Dr. Jackson, who had just finished a long day of scheduled ortho and plastics.

 

[urge]

During my internal medicine residency when myself, a pulmonologist, and 4 other residents were...

Thats a confusing sentence. Are you a pulmonologist or you were coding along with a pulmonologist?

 

[VentdependenT]

You guys are really getting the point of UT's story....

 

[numbmd]

When did I know? Six months into my CA-1 year @ the PGA in NYC.

 

[DrDre']

Well said

You guys are really getting the point of UT's story....

 

[VentdependenT]

Anyhoots.

I did 2 surgical sub-I's and a SICU month early fourth year. The gensurg where a good group of people but a way over worked crowd. Plus once I realized that gensurg is only about 25% operating and the rest is painful floor disasters, ER consults when you're at home chillen, and poopy clinic, I became dejected.

I loved surgery, but man, I didn't love it enough.

So I thought I was completely hosed. My pops and some buddies lived in Seattle so I took an anesthesiology rotation for the hell of it. It was the only field I had zero exposure to.

First day in the OR I knew that it was my thing.