Saturday, July 28, 2012

Funmi - week 7

It is quite incredible how much I have learned these past 7 weeks. I cannot even begin to describe what I will take away from this experience and I am just so appreciative of having the opportunity to be a part of the program. Before I go into what my last week entailed, I would first like to take this opportunity to thank my numerous mentors throughout these 7 weeks. First, I would like to say thank you to my clinical mentor, Dr. Bostrom, who allowed me to follow him during patient visits and in the OR to watch hip and knee replacement surgeries. It was an eye-opening experience, and one that puts my research in Ithaca in perspective. Thanks to Dr. Bostrom, I can honestly go back to Ithaca and have tangible motivation behind my research or any orthopedic research for that matter - the patients. I believe this is what any biomedical engineering research is about at its core.

I would also like to thank Dr. Boskey, Dr. Mary Goldring and Dr. Maher whose guidance and support has helped not only with my summer project but also with the project I plan to start in Ithaca in the fall. I have certainly learned a lot and I am truly grateful to have been immersed at HSS, surrounded by incredible clinicians and researchers. Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Frayer, who made this whole experience one that I will never forget. From setting up rounds in various ICUs to setting up different surgeries for our class, he spent many hours listening to our feedback, aiming to make the immersion term the best experience for everyone.

In fact, thanks for Dr. Frayer, I had the opportunity to see an open heart surgery (an aortic valve replacement) this week, shadowing Dr. Girardi. I was at a loss for words when I walked to the area where the anesthesiologists were, and was able to see the patient's heart beating in his open chest. The nurses and residents explained how the bypass machine works as the lungs and heart of the patient while Dr. Girardi  replaced the diseased valve. Again, seeing how machine works with medicine reiterated to me how medicine and biomedical engineering function symbiotically, and how the intersection of both fields can lead to better treatments for patients.

I am very grateful for the opportunity to have been here for the past seven weeks, but now I look forward to my research in Ithaca. Getting ready for year two!

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