Preceptorships are the BEST THINGS EVER!!!

I have to admit - I am not a huge fan of the whole sitting in class for 7-8 hours a day (Tuesdays and Thursdays) or 4-5 hours a day (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays) and then studying more when you get home thing. It is getting a little bit old. How do I with stand the practically unbearable monotony? How do I keep my sanity in the sea of memorization? The answer is remembering why I am putting myself through all of this. When do we do this? During our preceptorship.

My preceptor is AMAZING. She is so cool and laid back, yet also really knowledgeable and eager to see me learn and observe new stuff. When I requested a family medicine preceptorship for winter quarter I asked if I could get a preceptor who works with disadvantaged populations. My desire was completely fulfilled. Dr. Huntington works in a clinic that does not refuse service to anyone even if they can't pay. Therefore the majority of their patients are on Medicare, Medicaid, DSHS, or are seen for free. I would say that we use a translator on about 1/2 of our clinic visits and a large population that the clinic serves is Ethiopian and Somali immigrants. They have a phone translator system and sometimes they have a translator that comes in-person with the patient. Dr. Huntington is particularly good at trying to bridge cross-cultural issues and asking the patient what they think is causing their symptoms.

I got also got to come into the clinic with Dr. Huntington on two Saturdays where she sees children who can't come during the week. I think the children are particularly fun. My nonexistent clinical skills have increased exponentially and I have been able to listen to heart and lungs on each patient, look in some children's ears and take a lot of medical histories. During the last Saturday peds clinic Dr. Huntington had me paint fluoride on the children's teeth for her. Apparently, a lot of poor children don't go to the dentist and are at risk for cavities, so there is a push among primary care providers who care for children to do this fluoride paint to prevent cavities.


This is a picture of me with my preceptor, Dr. Huntington. As noted above she is totally amazing. she is very caring and does all she can to make sure that her patients get the best possible care.