I was the most nervous and apprehensive about starting my surgical rotation and was glad it was towards the end of my clinical year as I thought maybe I’d feel more prepared for it. Little did I know, the surgical world is a completely different world than all my other rotations such as internal medicine, ambulatory, psych etc.  The jargon is different and I had to learn names of different surgical instruments and all surgeons worked differently. Some surgeons were excellent teachers and had me first assist while other surgeons kept me in the background and barely acknowledged my presence. I must say this rotation was extremely rewarding. I asked a surgeon why they became a surgeon and he said “it’s the only specialty where you see instant results” and I definitely understood that. Many of the patients did not speak English and I had to use the translator phone for the interview process for almost every patient which was a new exposure. I got to interview patients preoperatively and learn their stories about their diagnosis of breast cancer, hernias, thyroid nodules, or even more acute diagnosis such as appendicitis and cholelithiasis. Then I got to be in the operating room and watch/assist in removing masses, appendices, gallbladders etc and watch this disease be taken out of the patient’s body.

Before each case I’d introduce myself to the patient, then I’d go into the OR and introduce myself to the nurse, scrub tech/nurse, anesthesiologist and the surgeon. I got to scrub into 3-4 cases a day and the most challenging part was keeping myself and everything around me sterile ! The first week was a mess, I contaminated myself at least once a day. The second week onward was a lot better, and I learned that if I did contaminate anything, it was important to speak up and disclose that.. Another challenging part was the hours – I was expected to be at the hospital at 5-5:30 am until 5-5:30 pm. The 12 hour shifts five days a week was really exhausting but I got to learn a lot. I rounded on patients in the mornings and presented them to my preceptor and the surgical team on morning rounds. In the OR, I learned how to subcuticular stitch and was able to master it after a resident went over it a couple of times. I learned a lot from residents as I found they were actually glad to teach me and help me out. I learned how to single and double handed surgical knots, correct way to cut sutures, run the sutures for the surgeon, use a stapler and clean the incision site after closure. I think the most beneficial thing I’ve learned during this rotation is to speak up – when it comes to asking the surgeon questions about a procedure or asking if I could help out and use the Covidein cautery pen (with supervision/guidance). Being more confident in asking questions is something I will take with me in my next rotation and my PA career.

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