Just to let you all know….it is still very hot here in sunny Arizona. It’s still been in the triple digits this past week.
I’ve had great experiences here at my externship these past few weeks. I had the opportunity to observe Dr. Hiatt (one of the ophthalmologists) perform cataract surgery one day. I got to “scrub in” and sit in the operating room and watch 20 cataract surgeries. It was a great experience. I even got to look into the operating microscope and appreciate the true nature of the cataracts. He did a total of 20 cataract surgeries that day. Most were standard intraocular lenses inserts, but he did have some toric lenses that he put in. The toric lenses have to be oriented the right way to correct for the astigmatism. It was great to see the patients through this experience.
Also I had the opportunity to attend GWCO (Great Western Council of Optometry) for a few days up in Portland, OR. It was an amazing opportunity. It is a convention for 11 Western States to get together for Continuing Education, vendor information and state association meetings. If you are looking to practice in the Western United States, I would highly recommend going, even as a student. (It’s FREE for students!!) .I was able to attend some great lectures and association meetings.
I was able to network with many Doctors and get my name out. I was able to meet the AOA president and talk with her for some time. Also they were very student friendly. I was able to attend classes especially made for students. I was able to meet some 4th year students from other schools there too. Some of these 4th year students were at externship sites with some of my classmates from SCO. They said my classmates would often talk about how SCO prepared us to become great clinicians. These other students were very impressed with how SCO had done so much for us in preparing for National Boards. I got all warm and fuzzy inside and realized how true that was.
In my spare time, I am still studying for Part 2 of National Boards. It has been going well so far. It's not until end of November, but I wanted to get a head start and start reviewing now. It's nice too because as I am at my externship seeing patients all day, it is helping me study for boards.
Side note: On my trip to Portland, OR, I was able to fulfill one of my dreams and meet one of my TV heroes. I love to watch TLC’s show “Little People, Big World”. I knew that the show takes place somewhere by Portland. I was able to find out where it took place (No I’m not a stalker) and got to meet some members of the Roloff Family at their farm. I included a picture as proof for you all…
That’s it for now but I will keep you posted.
Cheers,
-Riley