Edward T. Carey ’14

Let the games begin… Wednesday evening my physician mentor and I received the remaining majority of our data, signaling that our project has fully begun in earnest. I spent all of Thursday going through data and records to file in our working spreadsheet for the project. We’re looking at component separation, a specific, somewhat new method of repairing complex hernias. I spent the day doing data entry and reading up on this type of procedure. My doctor and I got lunch and had an interesting conversation on how he found his way to medicine and how he adjusted to life in the US after coming here from Nigeria.

After lunch, I went back to the office and did some more data entry. I then went to our weekly internship seminar, two of us each week present on a social or ethical topic surrounding medicine. This week we discussed Down’s Syndrome (trisomy 21) and how prenatal testing plays a role in detection and the pregnancy process. Definitely an interesting and emotionally charged issue to start us off, but it was an interesting topic and we had a great discussion. Throughout the presentation, I kept thinking about the experience I have with Holy Cross Goes Unified Special Olympics sports. After the presentation I went back and did a little bit more work before going back and going to the gym.

I spent Friday with my doctor in his office, shadowing him around and seeing him work in the office setting. We had an interesting discussion, as he said that as a surgeon, without compassion and the ability to connect with patients, you can have all the knowledge and technical skill in the world but still might have an upper limit to your success. This is because so much of a surgery’s success falls upon post operative compliance and trust. If you can’t get the patient to buy in to connect and trust you, you might run into problems. This resonated with me, particularly since the way he interacts with patients is superb. I’ve enjoyed all of his tips and occasional discussions as to what it takes to be successful and make a difference in medicine.

I was going to go up to Holy Cross this weekend, but turns out my family has Mets tickets in Philadelphia. Some might say that since they are so bad I made the wrong choice, but it may be my only chance to see a game this summer. I came home yesterday after I got out, and went to the movies with some friends. We’re leaving today (Saturday) around noon, so it should be fun.

Keep you posted.

ETC

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Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Week 3: The data is in

So midway through my third week in Hartford, I’m finally starting to find my way around the hospital and the areas I am working. There are a number of skybridges around the complex, and I have finally been able to figure out where they begin and end, luckily in time to get out of the rains we’ve been having this week. Monday I was able to shadow in the morning, and entered the rest of our original data cohort. The last couple of days I have done a bit more shadowing and worked on doing some more background reading to prepare for receiving the rest of our data set, which should be happening soon. I’m pretty interested in pediatrics, so I’m trying to spend a day or two this summer at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (CCMC), which is right across the street from Hartford Hospital. I sent out a couple emails today to see if I can set something up. Hopefully that will work out and I can do some work in pediatric medicine in the next few weeks.

Overall, I have really enjoyed working and observing around the hospital these past few weeks. Observing surgeries has been exciting, and I think it is something I could see myself doing if all goes according to plan. It’s a lot of standing for long periods of time, but lots of running and Frisbee practices have given me steady legs. Besides that, which isn’t really an issue, I’ve greatly enjoyed my clinical time so far.

Tonight after I got out I went to the hospital gym in our building for a while, it felt great. They were selling yoga mats there for $5, which caused big internal debate as to whether to buy one. I got into yoga a bit on an immersion trip this past fall, so this could be a good way to continue that practice.

As for the social scene, Monday night a couple of the other interns and I went out to dinner to watch the Bruins game. As a proud transplanted New Englander, I was happy to see the Bruins come out on top. We had a good time, and I enjoyed getting out and exploring Hartford. Here’s to hoping they can get another tonight.

Hope you check back in soon.

ETC

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Week 3: Midweek report

As promised, I’m writing today to share the end of last week and the past weekend. I went in to my physician- mentor’s office Friday to continue my work on hernia repair research. I still have a lot of data entry ahead, but we’re making solid headway in the initial data set. It has been interesting to work on this end of the medical world, and it seems like an important other side of the coin to see. I’m excited to see where this project will take us and what conclusions we might be able to draw. I have some edits and changes to make today in preparation of receiving the rest of our data set early this week, but its looking up from here.

Although my internship is interesting, this blog is about my whole summer experience, so here’s a little bit about how I spent my weekend. After I got out on Friday I met Paul Hovey ’14 and Ryan Hallisey ’14 for dinner in West Hartford. Both are living up at Holy Cross this summer, but were home in Hartford for the weekend. It was good to see both of them and catch up as we walked around town for the evening. We got dessert and even got to see a live band performing in the center of town. West Hartford is a fun area that I plan on continuing to explore this summer.

I spent Saturday at Ryan’s house in Wethersfield, CT, as we watched the US Open golf coverage from Philadelphia, PA. We got dinner at Doogie’s, a hot dog stand in Wethersfield that has been documented on the Travel Channel’s Man vs Food. It was a cool place, and we got these massive hot dogs they are supposedly famous for.

The famous hot dog

After dinner we watched the Bruins game, which was pretty exciting. I was excited to see the B’s pull one out after a rough start.

Today we went to mass and then met Kelly Nedorostek ’14, who is another Hartford resident and is also doing the same program as me at Hartford Hospital. We all met for lunch at a cool outdoor taco place in West Hartford, so it was a fun afternoon.

Overall, lots of solid Holy Cross interactions this weekend. It was good to see everyone I did, and thanks to Ryan for his hospitality. Now its time to do some research work and follow the rest of the US Open. This week I’m planning to shadow my doctor some more and hopefully see some procedures. When the rest of our data gets in I’ll definitely spend a good amount of time on that. I’m also hoping to try to shadow some other doctors around the hospital this week, so we’ll see if I’m able to squeeze that in.

You stay classy,

ETC

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Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Ending week 2, starting week 3

As my second week up in the capital of the Constitution State is drawing to a close, I can already tell that these ten weeks are going to fly by. After a little reflection at home over the weekend, I realized how cool and exciting the first week was. Hopefully it will be a harbinger of things to come. Last week the other interns and I really enjoyed seeing the hospital’s helipad and state of the art simulation laboratory. The “sim center” had manikins for practicing medical techniques, and what are essentially surgical video games to practice surgical procedures and dexterity. We were all impressed by their ability to simulate real human conditions.

I dove right back in this week, as all of the other interns and I, as well as some other new Hartford Hospital hires, spent all of Monday in hospital orientation. Lots of lectures and packets, but it’s good to have a firm knowledge base and a solid foundation to move up from. We also got a free lunch out of it, which was a plus. Afterwards a couple of us went down to the hospital fitness center in the building where I am living to get the blood pumping after sitting in an auditorium all day. Having a gym in my building is incredibly convenient, as I learned from living in Loyola Hall last fall.

After Monday, I am on my own and done with training. I have been shadowing my physician mentor, a general surgeon, both around the hospital and in his office. The past few days have been fun and exciting, and the doctor I have been working with is a tremendous caregiver and mentor. The past few days have been a challenge in navigation, as I try to make my way around this enormous hospital without getting hopelessly lost. Luckily I have avoided the look of walking around the hospital with a map in my pocket, but its gotten close. Another challenge has been learning to breathe in a surgical mask (not as easy as you might think. Hint: try to look like a duck).

Today I got going on my research project with my mentor. We are looking at complex hernia repairs, his specialty, which is pretty interesting. I did a bunch of reading before the internship, but am also learning a lot on the fly to keep up with him and the research. This morning I had a long meeting with one of the hospital’s clinical data managers about the specifics of our project and how to get it off the ground. So its encouraging to have some progress there, and I am planning to work on it some more tomorrow.

After a long day in the office today, I went out to dinner with two of the other interns at 5 Guys in West Hartford. Although it was only three guys (myself, one from UConn, one from Trinity) at Five Guys, it was a good time. It was pouring out, but it was really nice to get out and explore a bit. It also totally reminded me of my monthly pilgrimages to the ones back in Worcester.

Talk to you all soon. Check back in for my weekend plans.

ETC

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Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Week 2: Diving In

Hey friends,

So after a fun few days of golf and a wedding, I moved to Hartford last Sunday. With some help from my family, I moved into a dormitory that is part of the Hartford Hospital complex. A number of us in the program are living here, so I think it will be a convenient and fun place to live for the duration of the program. The room is pretty cozy, and I even have a balcony, which is a solid feature.

The first few days this week have been an exciting mix of orientations, tours, and making new friends. There are seventeen of us in the program, including five Holy Cross Crusaders (myself included). Most of the other summer interns are from New England schools such as BC, UMass, and UConn. This week we have gone through computer, statistics, and library trainings to get acquainted. We have also gotten a number of tours around the hospital, seeing just about every department and how they all work. Hartford Hospital is a first class, big, urban hospital, so it is exciting to see how many opportunities there are for us to shadow and see almost any area on a first hand basis.

At nights after work, it has been nice to relax with some of the other summer interns. A few of us went running at Trinity College the other night, and have also just kind of walked around the area immediately surrounding the hospital. It is a nice way to unwind at the end of the day and get my bearings straight. There is also a really nice gym in the basement of our building, which I used last night with a couple of the other guys in our program. I’m sure that will become a regular routine for us as the summer goes on. We also got ice cream after our workout, which was fun, but in hindsight might have negated our workout.

Since we have a half day tomorrow, I am planning to go back home for the weekend. It should be a nice way to relax and see some friends. I also realized within my couple days here that I forgot a few things at home, so it will be helpful in that sense, too.

We have one more day of orientation on Monday, and jump in head first from there on Tuesday. I’m looking forward to it. Keep you posted.

All the best,

ETC

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Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Getting Started

Hello all!

As the blog title indicates, my name is Edward Carey and I am a rising senior here at Holy Cross. This summer I will be interning at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, CT, primarily in their colorectal surgery department. I am excited for this new adventure and opportunity. I see it as a way to fully immerse myself in the medical field, which I hope to enter after graduation. The application process was intense, requiring an essay, interview, two recommendations, and a decently lengthy application. Since this is a competitive program, I am happy I got in and am excited for the summer. I will be shadowing doctors and assisting in various ways around the hospital, with a focus on colorectal surgery. I am also excited to be conducting research in the department. Part of my interest in surgery comes from taking comparative vertebrate morphology this past fall, where I enjoyed learning anatomy and working academically with my hands. Overall this summer my foremost goal is to learn as much as I can about medicine and test out my future ambitions. I also look forward to doing medical research and learning as many new things as possible. I am excited to explore a new city in Hartford and to make new connections and friends through this program. I also plan on getting up to Holy Cross to visit friends doing summer research, as well as to Boston, which should be fun.

I have had a solid last few weeks between the end of the semester and the start of my internship. A bunch of my high school friends and I are in a local softball league, so I have played a few games there. I also worked with my local town pool to help set up the facility for Memorial Day weekend, and have lifeguarded a few days since. I have also played a little bit of golf, and played well too, both of which I hope to be able to continue once I get up to Hartford.

The next few days will be busy, between attending a cousin’s wedding Saturday, moving up to Hartford Sunday, and starting work Monday. Looking forward to the next few days and getting started.

Until next time,

ETC

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Welcome

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