Survived

First of anything are usually a challenge. It certainly was my first night on call as an intern. They said it wasn't too busy, but it felt like an avalanche to me. Fortunately all the patients did well and the only faux pas on my part...walking into a "isolation" room without a yellow gown. I learned to read door signs more carefully.

Of course the patient load/calls were compounded by not knowing how to get places, how to use the electronic medical record, or the "norms" of the hospital and staff. It was challenging to integrate medical school and my experience into the work of getting through the night. But I survived. Barely. I fell asleep after my 14 hour shift during morning report before going home.

And so it begins. The residency learning process in the face of overwhelming responsibility, not enough time, not enough staff and a learning curve as steep as Mt. Everest. But I'm determined to make the climb, one step, one day, one patient, one decision, one new EHR skill, one nap, one admission, one order at a time.