Internship: Week Two Reflections

Week two was an amazing whirlwind!  It was my first week on the floor.  For those of you following along at home, I'm on the hem/onc floor which means I'm  working with kids with cancer, blood disorders, and bone marrow transplant.  Our floor is sponsored by Aflac, which means we have a ton of resources, including a HUGE Child Life staff.  We have 2 Child Life Specialists (CCLS), and a Child Life Activities Coordinator.  The Activities position does group activities, and can do play at the bedside for kids on isolation, and check in with some of our kids who have less urgent needs.  That leaves the Specialists to focus on the more urgent needs, and high priority stuff.  To put this is perspective, most CCLS serve about 30 kids at a time.  We have about 12-17 kids per Specialist, plus the help of the Activities person.  It's really nice.

On our floor, the kids are split by diagnosis.  So one CCLS gets the kids with blood disorders (like Sickle Cell) and ALL (the kinder, gentler leukemia).  The other (my mentor) gets solid tumor (like brain and bone tumors), AML (the rougher, tougher leukemia), and all the kids getting bone marrow transplants.  

Day one on the floor was an eye opener.  We started with morning report at 8:30 am, in which we met with the charge nurse to get a quick run down on each child.  This was my opportunity to learn how very much I need to learn about the medical side of treating cancer, blood and bone marrow disorders.  I think I understood about 10% of what the nurse said!

At 10:30 am we had a Code Blue.  My mentor later told me this was the second one she'd ever seen in all her years in hem/onc!  For those who don't know, a Code Blue is true medical emergency.  I means that someone is not breathing/heart not beating.  The situation ended happily, the child was fine.  But for about 5 minutes it was pretty scary.  About 6,742 people came running as the alarm went off.  Doctors, nurses, NP, respiration therapist, social work, chaplaincy, child life, security, etc.  It was reassuring to see so many people responding so quickly, calmly, and competently!  I performed my role perfectly, and with out prompting -- I stuck my back up against a wall, and stayed the heck out of the way!  Once the first wave of responders went running by, my mentor and I checked the hallways and surrounding area for any kids/families that might be witnessing the Code and feeling confused or scared.  We didn't find any, but if we did, it would have been our job to help them understand what was happening, and soothing their fears, and helping them to cope and process this frightening event.  The child that coded was assigned to the other CCLS on the team, so she went to the child's room to provide support for siblings and family present in the room.  A few minutes later it was all over, child safe . . . happy ending.

The rest of the week was much quieter by comparison.  My mentor walked me thru the basics of the medical stuff, so by Tuesday morning's report, I was able to understand about 90% of what the nurse said!  Yay!  (Learning that fast was a huge boost to my confidence!)

I had to opportunity to observe two different Diagnosis Teachings.  One of the jobs of the CCLS is to educate patients, in an age appropriate manner, about their diagnosis.  As you can imagine, explaining leukemia to a 4 year old is very different then explaining it to a 16 year old!  The first teaching I observed was for the siblings of a newly diagnosed leukemia patient, helping them to understand their sister's disease, as well as helping them to understand why she's in the hospital, and Mommy is away from home so much to help her.  The second teaching was for also for a sibling, who would be a bone marrow donor for his brother.  My mentor used a giant toy bone, which unzipped, and pulled out felt pieces representing each type of blood cells.  "The red blood cells' job is to bring energy to all the parts of your body.  The white cells are your solider cells, they fight off infections!  These are called platelets, and they are like band-aids.  And these cells are cancer cells.  They don't have a job.  They make your blood sick."

This week, I also learned a lot about working on a healthcare team, and about the roles of the different people on the team.  I especially enjoyed a talk from one of the Chaplains about the spiritual teachings on death and dying offered by many of the different religions from around the world.  From intake meetings, to care conferences, I got to see it all!  And everyone was so welcoming and made me feel right at home.

One of my most rewarding moments this week was with a sweet little boy who came in to the hospital on a return visit.  (Our kids in hem/onc are in and out several times for multiple courses of chemo.)  When he came in he was in a great deal of pain.  That combined with his anxiety and shyness made it very hard to connect with him.  We kept checking back with him throughout the week.  Yesterday when we brought bubbles, he actually smiled and made eye contact.  It was pretty exciting to see that rapport beginning to build.

Check back next week to hear more.  I'll try and post reflections each Friday.  Meanwhile, I hope to get some Malcolm pictures up later this weekend.

Internship, Week One Reflections

Hello Family & Friends,

Many of you  have kindly ask how the internship in Child Life is going, so I thought I'd share a few thoughts here.  It's Friday evening, as I write, and I have just finished Week One.  This week was all orientation -- two days of official hospital stuff (policies, infection control, HIPPA training, etc.) and three days of orientation to the Child Life Department, and the internship.  The Child Life days were my favorite, as they including presentations from each department, such as:  Radiology, ICU, Child Advocacy Center, Emergency Dept, etc.  This gave me a look into what Child Life Specialist do in each of these departments.  Throughout the next 14 weeks, I'll have the opportunity to spend a day shadowing a CLS in a different department.  I get 5 or 6 shadowing days, so I'll have a chance to try out several of the ones that intrigued me this week!  Monday will see me start my first 7-week rotation, which will be on the Hematology/Oncology/Bone Marrow Transplant floor.  I am very excited about this placement!

So, beyond the factual report, here are my reflections . . . . Orientation was, undoubtedly, the "info overload" week.  I have so many handouts, articles, and booklets, I think the pile outweighs Malcolm!  It will take me far longer than this weekend to digest it all.  But that is to be expected.  The other intern (there are two of us) came straight to the internship from a college program in Child Life, so this gives her a broad base of reference and experience that I seem to be missing.  Mostly, I've been playing catch-up learning all the terminology and field-specific vocabulary. (And my knowledge of specific child development theories is a little dusty!)  The contrast of seeing the other intern pick right up on the terminology and such, while I'm thinking "Wait, what does that mean?" has left me feeling slightly . . .  I'm not sure.  Not "less confident" . . . maybe a  little "unprepared."  Not really sure.  I think after I've had a week on the floor, I will be completely caught up with this part, so a week from now it probably won't even be an issue.

Overall, I'm wildly excited to be here.  This will be an amazing opportunity, and I'm looking forward to getting everything out of it that I can!

Christmas

Merry Christmas to all our loved ones!

We spent the holidays in Buffalo, New York, with Matthew's family.  We also enjoyed a couple day trips to Rochester to see friends and Malcolm's birth-family.  Today is our last day in NY, we'll be flying back tomorrow.  I'm feeling sad to see our vacation end, but also looking forward to getting back to our normal routine, and the start of my internship, as well.

It's been really nice being back.  So many wonderful, familiar places and people are here.  I really miss NY.  As most of you know, we don't really feel at "home" in Atlanta.  We have some friends there that we've connected with, and found a restaurant we like, and a few fun places to take Malcolm (when they're not overwhelmed with crowds) . . . but for the most part we are looking forward to leaving Atlanta permanently.  

Here's Malcolm with the Christmas tree!

Wanted: Advice, please!

Hello to all our Readers!

Warning:  today's post contains some frank talk about poop.  You've been warned.  Read on at your choice.

For all the parents, aunts, uncles, babysitters, and otherwise experienced persons out there -- how do you stop the blow out diapers?!?!?

What makes me ask?  Here's the whole scoop:

Problem One:  a couple months ago, Malcolm started putting his hand in the back of his diaper while he slept, and came out with handfuls of poop.  (Which he thought was lotion, so promptly rubbed it on his arms, legs, and hair.  Yuck!)

Solution:  We started putting onsie undershirts on him, under his clothes/jammies, that snapped at the crotch, so he couldn't get into his diaper.  Ta-Dah, perfect fix!

Problem Two:  A couple weeks ago, he learned to take his pants off, and go in the side of the onsie.  Mommy's little problem solver.

Solution:   Haven't really come up with one yet.  Advice, please?  

But, wait, there's more.

Problem Three:  He's now on the super-antibiotic for his ear infection, which means some rather loose-poop.  Yesterday morning, and this morning the diapers were big messy blowouts.  Yesterday was a mess, but all I needed was some extra wipes, and a run of laundry.  We even managed to make it to school on time.  Today, though . . . .  UGH!  It was everywhere!  He greeted me with "Mommy!  Play-doh!" and showed me two big fistfuls and how they squish.  By the time I got him cleaned up and ready for school (I had to change my clothes, too!) he was quite late.  Then I had to come back home (so much for my errands!) and get all the laundry started, and break out the clorox wipes to scrub all the crib bars, the wall, the floor . . . .

Solution:  I don't have one!  Advice, please!!!!  After I get this load of laundry finished, and deliver Malcolm's Elly Bean to school before nap time (she did not survive Poopapalooza), I'm going to go buy diapers one size bigger.  I'm thinking "more room, less 'xplode, right?)  Matthew thinks the onsies are causing it.  I think the antibiotics are partially at fault.

But, what do you think?  And how do I stop this from happening again?!?!?!

Ear Infection, Take Two

So . . . as it turns out, doing your full 10 days of antibiotics, never missing a dose, is sometimes not enough.  We had another night of screaming last night, so first thing this morning (a Sunday of course) we packed up and headed out to Urgent Care (which is half an hour drive away, of course.)  We sat in the waiting room for a bit over an hour, sharing germs with half of Atlanta's sick children (of course).

Round two of antibiotics began before nap today.  They've put us on the "tough stuff," which for the medically minded means that we're now on augmentin (sp?).  Round one was amoxicillan (sp?).  We also got prescription eardrops, which are a numbing agent.  This will be particularly helpful, as we'll be flying in less than a week.  Wish us luck!

A Weekend of Family!

It's been a while since I posted.  I finally caught the cold that's been plaguing the rest of the family.  Happily, the boys are better, so I can rest while they're at school/work.  (Though one of the kids in Malcolm's class brought in pink-eye!  So we'll see if Malcolm soon ends up back home with me through another course of antibiotics!)

A few weeks ago, we enjoyed a weekend visit from my Dad, along with a synchronized surprise visit from my brother, Darin!  What an awesome weekend!!  Below are a few pictures from that wonderful visit!

 

Malcolm snuggling with his Grandad:

My Dad, and my brother, Darin.

Weeks later, Malcolm still talks about "Unca Darin!" nearly every day.

We took a family adventure to the kids museum, Imagine It!, and enjoyed their Bob the Builder exhibit.  Malcolm wasn't too much into Bob, but he sure loved the goggles, tools, building materials, and trucks!

Krispy Kreme Fundraiser

Hello Family & Friends!

Malcolm's school, which we love and adore, is having a fundraiser!  I'm relieved to say that I don't have to ask anyone to buy over-priced wrapping paper, or plastic-wrapped sausages.  Nope, we're selling doughnuts!  Best part -- we're selling redeemable certificates so that friends and family beyond Atlanta can participate!

The Details:

* Each certificate costs $6, and is redeemable at any Krispy Kreme fora dozen glazed doughnuts.

* If you'd like to help out, please mail me a check (made out to Teresa Schoell) for $6 per certificate you'd like to buy, and I'll mail you the certificates.

* If you want to help out but are on Atkins or dislike doughnuts, you can send money anyway, and I'll donate the certificates to the kids' program I volunteered at this summer (since they have practically no budget, I know this would be a big hit!)

DEADLINE:

* Checks must arrive to me by Wednesday December 10th!!!

* Certificates will arrive Monday December 15th, and I will mail them out right away.

Looking forward to any orders you'd like to place!  And thank you for taking the time to read about our fundraiser.