The End of the Road

Total Spring Semester Hours: 55

Total April Hours: 16

    We have reached the end of the semester and it's a little bitter sweat. Many classmates are packing their things and heading back home and others are staying in the city. For me, I will be spending most of my time, if not all, studying for the MCAT this summer. I will continue living in New Orleans the city I was born and raised.

    This month I volunteered with the Habitat team in two locations throughout the city. The first location in Gentilly I was working with a team of volunteers from New York in framing staircases and nailing down outer walls to the structure. A week later Chad and I helped with constructing a chain-link fence in New Orleans East with a high school group from Connecticut. I have much respect for volunteers coming to our city from out of state especially during their vacation to help and rebuild the city and provide housing for less fortunate Americans. I wish to continue volunteering with Habitat and rebuilding the city I grew up in.

    In my conclusion I would like to thank all the faculty and staff that have been so helpful with everything. I also would like to thank my fellow classmates and wish to continue the friendships I have made. From the start of this program I have grown so much and can honestly say I have not one single regret. Goodbye my friends! 

Gentilly Build

 

Framing the Porch

  

Chain-linked Fence Build

Spring is in the air!

     The weather has finally warmed up and days seem to be getting longer so that means it's crawfish season! Next week I will look forward to the pharmacology department annual crawfish boil and this Friday, Good Friday, my family will be boiling close to 300 lbs of crawfish. This has been a tradition in my family as far back as I can remember and it should be a wonderful time. Besides all the crawfish boils, many other festivals are occurring throughout the city in the upcoming months like the one and only Jazz Fest or the French Quarter Festival where you eat till your hearts desire. All this celebration is granted due to the fact that we just finished are shelf exam and deserve a little down time to unwind and live life like everyone else seems to be doing now a days except me. This doesn't mean its time to let loose completely because we still have a month left of school which entitles a few presentations and one more test in cell control. But in general, this year has pretty much come to a close relating to course material.

     For my classmates and I, most of our time is filled thinking of plans for the next year and where we may be working. My plans after graduation are a little foggy and mostly shadowed by the fact of the impending MCAT that I will be taking in the summer. Luckily with all this extra free time next month I will be sure to kick back into gear volunteering with Habitat and at the hospital.
  

Let the Good Times Roll

   It has been a great week following the craziness of Mardi Gras and we are back in full swing. The Mardi Gras season is a time where we more than let go and are embraced by following a nonchalant attitude towards the normal traditions of society. The history of Mardi Gras follows the traditions of French Catholics in which we get all of the partying out of the way before the start of lent. For lent I decided to give up soft drinks and follow the strict rules of not eating meat on Fridays.

   Besides all the partying, I was able to do some volunteering with the New Orleans Medical Reserve Corps. We aided New Orleans EMS in opening first aid shelters and responding to calls that could not be reached on certain areas of the parade route. We responded to many calls to transport patients through the crowds to ambulances that could give them the care they needed. In three days, 138 people were assisted with bandaging and 47 people were provided with direct care in which 22 were transported to EMS. The stations were a huge success and the mayor acknowledged are help in his press release following the closure of the Mardi Gras season. 

First Aid Station on Canal

February hours:
   NOMRC: 23 hrs 

   Ochsner Medical Center: 8 hrs 

The Coldest Month of the Year

Welcome back guys and happy New Year! I have many stories and experiences in my return to this blog from last year that I wish to share with you. The spring semester is three weeks in and going strong and I am geared up and ready for what this semester throws at me. Last week we finished the Endocrine/Reproductive block and it was one of my favorite blocks. The reason being is I have a profound interest in the field of endocrinology, specifically the study of diabetes. I have been involved in diabetes projects in the past through Ochsner hospital and will be again next week in a project with the endocrinology department which will mostly involve going room to room at the hospital asking patients if they know how to check their blood sugar or need assistance. This program is monitored by a joint committee which monitors the levels of diabetic care that medical professionals are providing in the hospital setting out of the clinical aspect. Diabetes is a growing disease, specifically type 2, which is largely related to the epidemic of obesity in our country.  One out of every three people in the US suffers from the early stages of type 2 diabetes and is now being seen in young adults and adolescents evolving from a disease mostly effecting our parents and grandparents.    

Other than that, today I had the opportunity to spend the day with the habitat team. Kin and I worked on a house in New Orleans east mostly installing shoe molding and painting doors. I met a Tulane professor that taught Roman history to undergrads that had lots of advice for proper techniques of the tasks at hand. This gave me the idea that I would love to see our professors in the pharmacology department come and join us one day!

January 31^st: 8 hours 

End of the Semester

It's been a short time back following Thanksgiving and we are getting near to closing down shop for winter break. Many classmates are anxiously anticipating returning home to family and most importantly a much needed vacation. Well vacation for most of us will be studying for the MCAT if you consider that one. For me, I will be staying here with the family and enjoying quality time with my nephew. Chad and I had one last day volunteering with the Habitat team before the end of the semester. We had the pleasure of working with a group of ladies that all went to Tulane and were in the same sorority that made it a tradition to come volunteer in the city following Hurricane Katrina.  I really respected the fact that they came down on their vacation from all different states to help rebuild New Orleans. 

Reflecting back on the semester and the five months that have passed I could write a book for all that has happened but I don't have time for that. Instead, I am going to say a few words that summarizes what I have gone through, a semester vignette if you would call it but not a clinical vignette which we all have heard about too many times this semester. I can honestly say that I have not one regret from the start of this program. All the professors have been very helpful and understanding. My experiences with Habitat for Humanity have been very rewarding to say the least. I have developed greater confidence in myself all around. There are many things that I am missing and would love to say but my time is up. Happy holidays everyone and see you next year!

Total Volunteer Hours: 40 hrs

Dec 4th: 8 hrs  

Nov 20th: 8 hrs 

Oct 16th: 8 hrs 

Sept 13th: 8 hrs

Sept 6th: 8 hrs

A Time For Giving

Happy late Thanksgiving everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and a much needed break! This month we finished the pulmonary block which went well and some of the classmates and I took a camping trip out to Fontainbleau State Park which was loads of fun. I also had the wonderful opportunity of volunteering with the Habitat team, this time on a house within the Gentily area. The project, called A Brush with Kindness, is a program through Habitat that is designed to preserve home exteriors through painting, landscaping, weatherization and minor repairs. The program helps current homeowners repair the exteriors of their houses that otherwise could not due to unfortunate situations. This time we were working on window frames, soffit/fascia, and a handicapped ramp for the owner. The weather was perfect and we got a lot accomplished.

The time is approaching for the end of the semester and I am sad to see it end. This is the final block with only 2 weeks left before winter break!

A Brush of Kindness

Total Volunteer Hours To Date: 32

November 20th: 8 hours

September. 6th: 8 hours

September 13th: 8 hours

October 16th: 8 hours

Fall Is In The Air

     Wow I can't believe another month has gone by! The weather is finally getting cooler. Earlier this month I did my third Habitat build and it was a great experience. I got to bond even further with many of my classmates. This time we worked at the main Habitat Warehouse, where we were building a shed for storage at one of their build sites. Luckily the weather was perfect, not nearly as hot as my first two builds during the middle of September!

   

October Habitat Build

    We just completed the renal block and man was it interesting! Learning about hypertension, BPH and ED seemed so relevant to medicine. The cardiovascular block before that was tough, but I really enjoyed the material. I can't believe we have only a month and a half left in the first semester. We only have two blocks left, it feels like just yesterday I was walking into my first test on inflammation. I'm looking forward to the rest of this semester, and can't wait to see what else is in store!

Total Volunteer Hours To Date: 24 

September 6th: 8 hours

September 13th: 8 hours

October 16th: 8 hours

Chapter 1

I can't believe it's been over two months since the program has started, wow does time fly! It seems like yesterday I was working here in the city at a hotel and was anxiously anticipating my acceptance. The last day of my job was a hot Monday morning in the city and was mostly filled with giving farewells and goodbyes to fellow coworkers. As I was driving back home listening to some tunes I developed a feeling of nostalgia that I would be starting school again. Just like the first day of elementary school, I was anxious about meeting my fellow classmates and teachers for the first time.
With times following and the start of this program I can honestly say I do not have a single regret.

The first three blocks have passed and I have finally acclimated and found a rhythm. The material seems overwhelming at first, well not just at first but many times over and over which never ceases to amaze me. I'm not complaining, in fact I love the challenge. One of my favorite blocks was the microbiology block, particularly the lectures regarding antibiotics. This was the first time I felt like a physician and found much enjoyment deciphering many of the questions involving the use of antibiotics for the treatment of bacteria with their ever changing resistances. Also, I really have enjoyed the cardiovascular block that we are currently covering and am looking forward to acing the exam!

Breaking up concrete!

One of the many reasons the pharmacology program caught my eye was the involvement within the community. I had the wonderful opportunity to join the Habitat team helping build a home for underprivileged families. I ended up working at two locations in the month of September with one house in Hollygrove and the other house in New Orleans East. I performed many tasks from soffit and fascia work to laying down sod and leveling dirt. Let me tell, this was not easy work but having classmates there with you made all the difference. I also had the privilege of meeting one of the owners and her family who were also out there working hard.



9/06/2014: 8 hours
9/13/2014:8 hours

Total September Hours: 16