College and Career Connections

This internship has been an amazing experience for me. I started out unsure if I would like what I was doing, and the first day, I certainly didn't. It was difficult for me to be a part of anything, and I wasn't sure what I was allowed to do. I was even hesitant to touch the pneumatic tubes. Now, however, I am hard at work every day, all the time. I absolutely love what I'm doing and really want to be able to do more. This internship has helped me solidify many of my goals and given me more perspective on what I want to do. I know for a fact that I do not want to be a pathologist. The microscope hurts my eyes after a while, and the smells are starting to get to me. There was a colon that we got yesterday, which had a huge, fist sized lump in the middle of it. We had to wash it out, which I thought was really gross, because there was still...stuff...in it. But that wasn't where it ended! Then the pathologist opened up the colon and it was the worst thing I have ever smelled in my entire life. Also, there is only one tiny window in the tissue room that opens to the OR, so there was no escape. The fist sized lump in the colon was actually a necrotic tumor and the smell was the dead flesh. It was grey and green in side and the walls of the colon had a consistency like cottage cheese. Pedro said it was in the top three worst colons he had ever smelled. I am perfectly comfortable with blood and organs and even dead people, but that smell was too much for me. Dr. Mathews explained to me that pathologists inhale so much formalin that it fixes their noses like tissue samples and they can't smell much anymore. That must be why the pathologist was able to open up that colon, because I was about to throw up. Therefore, long story short, I do not want to be a pathologist.

However, I really loved working with the lab assistants and do want to be a phlebotomist in college. They don't make a good salary, so I would not do that as a full time job, but that certainly makes more than someone working at a fast food restaraunt. I absolutely love the environment and the connections that I have made with the people are wonderful. I know now that I do want to end up working in a hospital because I love the environment and the responsibility. I also learned so much from watching my co-workers and how they do their jobs that I can apply to any working environment. There were certain things that really struck me. For example, Viviana and Pedro in pathology have to check and triple check everything that they do. There are two log books and an insane amount of paper work that goes with accessioning specimens. However, they are so upbeat and do not have an air of exasperation because they realize that even though that specimen is just the next in a long line for them, it is incredibly important to the patient. They are so positive all the time, despite their workload, and I want to have that attitude about whatever I'm doing. I have a lot to learn, but I also know that I have ideas now and plans.