Parathyroid Foundation

For the past three and a half years, I haven't been away from the hospital where I work for more than a week. After a month of time at the Norman Parathyroid Center, I was sure it would take me a few days to get back into the swing of things, ease my way into the usual grind of surgery residency. As I entered the hospital on my first day back, I was greeted by the news of a patient with diverticulitis awaiting admission in the ER. There was also a patient who needed an appendectomy later in the day. Another patient had gallbladder disease, so she was admitted. I operated on a patient to revise her fistula for dialysis access. Next, we did a kidney transplant. Then came a trauma patient whose chest had to be opened in the trauma bay, where I spent what seemed like an eternity squeezing the patient's heart between my hands to keep him alive. So much for easing my way back into things!

Rarely does a surgery resident have the opportunity such as I had to focus on learning a specific disease and its management. We are expected (and rightfully so) to manage various diseases well. When it comes to our training, there is no substitute for experience. Those experiences are heavily dependent on what problems come through the door on a given day. This varied experience may provide familiarity and comfort with surgical diseases but it doesn't provide expertise. Expertise comes with total immersion. I realized four weeks of immersion into diseases of the parathyroid provided more education than five years of residency ever could.

Although my time at the Norman Parathyroid Center has come to a close, the lessons I've learned will continue to shape the care I provide my patients and the direction I take my career. To all the patients who allowed me to learn from their experiences, thank you. You've taught me more than I imagined. To Lisa, Callie, and everyone in the office, you went above and beyond the call of duty to make the time with you a worthwhile experience. Thank you, Mark, for finding a role for me, even if it was brief. To everyone at Tampa General Hospital's Parathyroid Center, know that I enjoyed working with you and appreciate all of your efforts to teach me, make me part of the team, and help me adjust to a new city. Thank you Drs. Norman and Politz. Your patience in teaching me in and out of the operating room is appreciated more than I can express. Your passion for your work is contagious. I could not have asked for a better experience!