The American College of Surgeons describes General Surgery as "a discipline of surgery having a central core of knowledge embracing anatomy, physiology, metabolism, immunology, nutrition, pathology, wound healing, shock and resuscitation, intensive care, and neoplasia, which are common to all surgical specialties."

I can't believe I'm writing about my second to last rotation. General Surgery was one of the rotations I was most anxious about, if only because of the horror stories I had heard about the hours and the prickly personalities of surgeons and techs in the OR. While these circumstances didn't actually hold true for my personal experiences, I won't discount the trials my peers faced. As I mentioned previously, my daily commute to Indiana continued from my previous rotation in OB/GYNE. There were two main hospitals that I visited for rounds and surgeries, while I spent two days out of the week in clinic. Unsurprisingly, I enjoyed rounding on patients post-operatively and seeing them again in office several weeks after their procedures. I had ample time to study and found that in my rotation, I was almost 100% involved with the GI system. This worked extremely well given that the EOR is 50% on the GI system.

My main resources for this rotation were Surgical Recall and Abernathy Surgical Secrets, with some quick reads through Kaplan Step 2 CK for anything I couldn't find in Abernathy's. Unlike my other rotations, I will also be taking another practice board exam so I think it helped that I had General Surgery to help me cover more general topics. I'm still nervous about taking it but still need to make sure I get through the General Surgery EOR first. Priorities!

My time in the OR was enjoyable, just as I enjoyed it in OB/GYNE. Acting as a first-assist was satisfying but I still felt the pull towards the wards. The six weeks passed too quickly for my tastes, I wish I could've spent a longer time practicing sutures but I suppose everyone else feels that at the end of their rotation. In the future, I would like to keep my suturing skills sharp. After all, use it or lose it!

I'll be taking my EOR tomorrow and I'll be one step closer to the next break between rotations. Just gotta stay focused. Until next time!