The title of today’s post is inspired by a little kid who could only say “puffs”.
Today began like most other days at Carolina Kids Pediatrics. Even though we started at 9:30 instead of 8:30, we saw a few sick visits before diving into regulars. I began with Dr. Emmet as we saw a 6 month old child who ate the same food as his parents- only it was blended to a puree. Between vegetables, fruits, and meats, the child surely received enough nutrients. Later, we saw some older kids with regular cough/fever/stomach pains. Although some of the kids had slept for 12 hours, they still felt poorly. At that point, Dr. Emmet recommended that the kids take a medicine called Zofran to relieve nausea.
After a few visits with Dr. Emmet, I tagged along with Dr. Willey. I watched as she navigated the patient portal app on the practice ipads. Over the course of my work experience, I’ve learned a lot about the technological advantages of online medicine. Dr. Willey uses the iPad to respond to patient questions sent through the portal, look at growth curves, and use Rapid Connect. Rapid Connect is an app that allows doctors to communicate with specialists through HIPPA compliant texts. Dr. Willey loves using the application because she gets a response within a minute, allowing her to have easy access to other doctors when she need a consult.
In addition to working with the iPad, the doctors also have a seamless system to work with the nurses. The picture today shows the island where the nurses place the patient’s chart once the patient is in the room and ready for the doctor. The black file holder in the back left is for the sick visits, which are open to any doctor. I’ve only seen good things come from their system of checking in patients, seeing as the nurses move patients into their room quickly so they can be seen by the doctor.
Overall, today was an awesome day at Carolina Kids Pediatrics. The fun facts section really sums up some of the crazy and fun things from today. I’m so sad tomorrow is my last day. I’ve learned an insurmountable amount of information from not only Dr. Willey, but the rest of the crew at Carolina Kids. They treat all their patients with pure respect and care. I am so thankful to have been able to shadow so many doctors and learn about pediatrics with them. Although tomorrow is the last day, I can’t wait to learn more.
Fun Facts:
– Dr. Willey got a new phone!
– Keeping a pacifier at bedtime only can help ease kids off their habits and promote sleep.
– 72 degrees is the optimal temperature for a child’s bedroom.
– A one year old spit on Dr. Willey while she was putting fluoride on the teeth.
– Introduce toothpaste (only half a pea is necessary) to kids when they’re around 2 years old.
– A child found and consumed first piece of meat after finding it half chewed on the floor.
– When a child has extra digits, you just tie them off to restrict blood flow and eventually the area will die and fall off.
– The bags under a one year old’s eyes can be called allergic shiners.
– A dehydrated child’s belly will not bounce back when poked.
– A problem on the hearing test can be caused by a build up of fluid in the ears.