Over the years, I have been described as serious, and a tad bit unexciting; however, I always preferred to think of myself simply as someone who likes routines. I have always enjoyed having things be predictable, and I also thought that was something that I was looking for in my pharmacy career. Then August of 2012 came along, turned my world upside down, and in the process taught me something new about myself.
August was my internal (general) medicine rotation in a hospital setting, and I was prepared to be miserable. The idea of not knowing what types of patients I would be seeing every day, or what to expect each day, made me feel like hyperventilating! But as the month progressed, I started realizing that I was really enjoying the rotation and the variety that went along with it. I enjoyed getting to manage different disease states every day, and that I was viewed as a valuable resource for drug information questions on many topics during rounds. By the end of my rotation I realized that I could be more than just a one trick pony, and that maybe a predictable practice setting wasn’t necessarily for me.
Throughout my time in pharmacy school, I have learned many things about myself and changed quite a bit, but I still find it amazing that one rotation month could so significantly impact me and change my thought process. I am so grateful for this experience I had, and I have grown to appreciate the value of APPE rotations. In my mind, I am currently in the midst of the most important year of pharmacy school, and I hope I have many more experiences this year that teach me new things about myself. My new motto is, “you don’t know until you try it!”
#APPERotations #InpatientCare #PharmacyStudents