Thursday, September 22, 2011

Last to Know

So, why is it that no one ever told me about surgical critical care as a specialty? It basically combines all the things that I love: really sick patients, emergency medicine, critical care, and...surgery...!

What? Why was this option never presented to me at career day in high school?

Off the cuff one day M.C told me I should consider trauma surgery (yeah yeah, OMDG I hear you snorting) and I brushed the suggestion aside because I would like to start my career sometime before the age of 45. But I've started looking at some of these different fellowship programs and (Trauma! Surgery! and Critical Care! Oh my!) they sound ahhhh-mazing.  

How seriously bad assed would that be? I can only imagine people who have that training must land in the department completely dressed in black, crashing through ceiling windows, and worming their way under laser sensors to get to their patients, because that is how medical ninjas roll.

I just hope I am married by then because LORD knows no man will have me if that is the career I choose.

Anyway, just reading the program descriptions makes me slightly wide eyed.

The problem is, I could also see myself running a vegetarian aromatherapy clinic where we sit and knit our own yogurt after telemarking to work.

And thus continues the fight within me on choosing a medical specialty. My complete love for living the simple life in the mountains, attending bake sales for the hockey team, and making soup is at odds with the part of me that could live in a crazy wild big city cracking chests in the ED by day and going to the symphony at night.

The only thing that really comforts me is that M.C also said, "I think you'd be good at anything you do". Which is no small thing, coming from someone who you have a great professional respect for.

So I suppose time will tell.

13 comments:

OMDG said...

You don't have to be that specialized, especially if you want to live in a rural area. Yes, you could do a trauma or critical care fellowship and that would be great. But you could also do something like general surgery or ortho and be able to work in those places as well.

Elizabeth said...

Just curious, how does one knit yogurt? This is new to me :D

Anonymous said...

...so are they surgical intesivists who run the SICU? do they operate? do they get custom-issued balaclavas? ...so many questions ...

Anonymous said...

My supervisor for my gen surg rotation was a surgical intensivist, and he was - without a doubt - one of the smartest, most talented physicians I've ever met.

Surgical intensive case interested me too, but I couldn't stand the surgical lifestyle (odd, I know; I like everything about gensx except the surgeries).

It sounds like surgical intensivist is right up your alley, though. A lot of those guys do Trauma Team too, so that's something else that you can add to your repertoire.

PGYx said...

I trust that you will live your way into the answer. :-)

Allison said...

Wow, that is hardcore! I can relate to the whole being pulled in two directions. Hopefully you can do a rotation in both extremes and see what works best. Burn out has always been something in the back of my mind, especially concerning something physically demanding, like will my body hold up at 60 in the same manner it is now at 20-something. (I'm preparing to work that old because of the cost of education, haha!)

TheTracker said...

Surgery is an awful residency, just terrible. You watch people start out as normal human beings and become assholes right before your eyes as their program slowly bleeds the humanity out of them.

I wouldn't recommend it.

Greg said...

Take a look at:

www.ccm-l.org - listserv for a bunch of critical care docs around the world - lot of anesthesiologists, but quite a few surgeons, too.

VinceD said...

Ever listen to any of Scott Weingart's talks from EMCrit.org? I believe he studied as a surgical intensivist before settling down as a emergency department intensivist. Here's a short 6min spiel from him on critical care fellowships (http://freeemergencytalks.net/?p=6190). Enjoy, even though the 110 hr weeks at Baltimore Shock Trauma sound a bit intense...

Albinoblackbear said...

Thanks Greg and Vince for the resource suggestions!

Yes I subscribe to the EMcrit podcasts, I think it was one on abd pain that made me look like a champ the other day on rounds, actually...hahah.

MDinKY said...

As a gensurg resident who wants to do trauma/critical care/acute care surgery, I think its awesome. I found it hard to replace the acuity or intensity in Surg Critical Care. Plus, with critical care foundation you can go annnnywhere. Seriously. You don't have to end up in a big urban area to make it work. I am at a level 1 trauma center university, but there are enough attendings in trauma/crit care that they do more like shift work in the ICU/ED--one week in unit, one week on floor....then some weeks off to do as they please. So, really, I think it has the potential to allow you to knit yogurt or whatever your heart desires.

I think it sounds awesome!

Albinoblackbear said...

MDinKY---YEAH!!!! LOVE it. That is what I am talkin' about.

could you pretty please email me at blackkermode@gmail.com? I'd really like to ask you a few questions...if you don't mind! :)

Bostonian in NY said...

There's also EM folks in crit care...that's where I'm heading with my life!