The VA

Today I got to spend the day in the outpatient internal medicine clinic at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Iowa City. I must admit, I like it. I spent three weeks there doing vascular and general surgery over the summer, another three weeks there for inpatient internal medicine around Thanksgiving, and now I'll be spending several days this month in their acute adult care clinic. Here are a few reasons I like the VA:

1) While the facilities don't look as fancy and expensive as the University Hospital, their logistics, electronic medical record, and pharmacy are much, much better.

2) The vets. These guys are the best patients to learn on. They don't care how bad their situation is -- they don't complain, and they're always pretty forthcoming about their problems. They're also pretty complicated, which appeals to my nerdy, budding internist desires. You get to learn some crazy stuff, too. For example, today I learned from a patient that (allegedly) the US Airforce Special Ops Unit known as Pararescue is much "bad [explitive, explitive, explitive]" than the Navy Seals. Granted, this was from a guy in the Air Force, but hey . . . I'll buy it.

I also learned all about spurs, their proper use, the best cowboy boots to fit them, and a little bit about horse training.

Oh, and I got to manage some complicated medical problems on top of that, which is fun for me.

3) The food. They really take care of the doctors (and med students) at the VA. Food is pretty much free if you're working the right shifts and in the right department. And it's not bad -- sometimes questionable -- but enough salt and grease can make anything taste good.

4) This guys' new picture hangin' in the entrance-way: