Again today we saw a plethora of wellness checks and sick cases with visits today we saw kids aging 2-16. When I first arrived today I got the chance to observe a positive strep test (see picture below). It was interesting because it applied both old and new techniques to analyze. While in biotech I had already learned about agar, plating, and streaking but the strep test allowed me to see these happen in a real world scenario. Today; however, I felt I’ve learnt a lot more about the parents then I have the children. Other than minor viruses and coughs each kids examination went pretty much the same. It was the parents, though who allowed the difference in appointment. With ranges in parenting struggles and first time parents Dr. Seidel sees it all. We were able to meet with several parents who had concerns and issues with each of their children and it was really interesting to see the way Dr. Seidel would deal with each one. Some of the parents required more of a therapy approach where she would hear out the issue and provide feedback, while others needed a more direct approach i.e. “this is what you need to do”. As my time goes on, it has also become easier for me to spot first time parents from those who have gone through this before. Usually their appointments include many more questions as well as concerns and general need to be reassured. Overall today was a great day with a lot of repetition (which is good for my understanding) as well as a great learning experience. Dr. Seidel is a great teacher who takes time before, during, and after each patient to educate me on their background – both medically and family – as well as defining and clearing up any unknown medical terms or conditions. I can’t wait to see what the rest of the program holds!
this is a positive strep test, the clear circle around the dot with the A on it indicates that the test was positive for strep.