NKA: No Kids Allowed, or No Known Allergies?

I should have been reviewing for the family practice shelf the day after tomorrow, but (1) I have zero motivation, (2) it doesn't count for our grade, (3) we haven't really received any guidance on what to study, and (4) it's supposed to be the single most difficult clinical shelf exam. I've been reading all along, but we'll see - hopefully, The Essentials of Family Medicine has prepared me well (despite the negative reviews on Amazon. But what can I say? It was required).

I've made some realizations. Toddlers actually do fear the white coat - I tested this. One of the office ladies had her little one in at the end of the day, and I went to play with the kid. He saw me coming and immediately became incredibly shy, so I went back to our break-room and doffed the white coat. When I came back, the kid played with me like I was a different person. I first noticed this when, a few days ago, a patient's 18 month old daughter cried every time she looked at me. Her older sister(she was six) and I, however, got on smashingly - that must be my target age group (I got along well with another six year old yesterday).

I've realized that, even though I don't speak toddler, I'm apparently fluent in doctor. Last time we were in Miami, Nicole and I rotated with a GI doc who took us out for Cuban food, but that was just because he was a nice guy. At this clinic, there's one doc with whom I get along particularly well. Do I say that because he shares with us his Cuban coffee? No. Do I say it because he seems to prefer spending time observing my interviews with and examinations of the patients, or because he just seems to like me in general? No. Do I say it because he took me out for Subway at lunch today? Close, but no. I say it because he asked me to help him update his will.

I must speak doctor, because another doc at the clinic today specifically requested me for a sensitive task. Apparently, he likes the way I work, because he sent me to interview and examine a 10 year old who'd been hit by a bus and suffered some severe left-sided trauma and neurological deficits. Recall that this clinic does a lot of insurance physicals and such - the mother needed documentation from his doctor in order to keep him in a certain program at school; the district was trying to throw him into regular classes, and there was clearly no way that was going to happen.

This is all refreshing - of course it's nice to reaffirm that I'm good with patients, but it's also nice to know that, since such a huge portion of our grade is subjective, I'm making friends in high places.

I have also realized that I'm going to have to do a lot of reading for OBGYN, which starts next week. I sat in while Nicole interviewed a patient, and it was like they were speaking Sanskrit. It wasn't just because Nicole's a great student, but it's because, being a woman, she'd been inundated with women's health all her life. I have not. It's foreign to me - a completely different culture. I know a few phrases like "last menstrual period", and "family history of breast cancer", but I don't really understand all of the connotations that go along with them. I'm just faking, essentially.