I really should call this a WEEK in the life of a Geriatrician- because we are involved in so many different things and often practice in various settings throughout the community! Everyday can be different. For those of you who are not familiar with this field, Geriatrics is the practice of caring for the elderly population and their unique needs. A little background- currently there are about 35 million older adults over the age of 65 years. By 2030 (which is not too far away), this is projected to double... to about 72 Million!! There are certainly not enough providers equipped to handle this volume right now. Caring for the older adult is different, and requires understanding of not only the medical aspect of their health, but also the social, psychological, environmental, functional aspects that all play into part of healthy aging.
The older adult may be in different stages of their health, and often transition between settings. Many are healthy and functional enough to live at home independently, but others are in long term care settings like nursing homes, assisted living facilities, memory care units, etc. I care for the elderly in all of these settings, therefore each day may be a little bit different.
I do work at an institution affiliated with a medical school and residency program, so I am able to work a lot with the medical students and residents- who actually, in my opinion are MY best teachers because they encourage me to keep learning. They keep me on my toes.
Mondays- Mornings are filled with patients to see in the outpatient clinic. I try to dictate all my notes between patient messages and phone calls, all the while trying not to spill my coffee or lose my stethoscope. Most of my patients are above the age of 65 y/o, but occasionally I will see some young folks too (these are usually visits associated with acute illnesses). Over the noon hour, I facilitate the geriatric fellowship core curriculum and teaching didactics. Various topics in all of Geriatric medicine are covered during these meetings. The afternoons I staff our geriatric fellows in their clinic, and occasionally will do some teaching/goofing off :)
Tuesdays- Primary care internal medicine conference are held in the mornings, followed by a day of administration work for fellowship planning, course directing, and research.
Wednesdays and Thursdays- These are usually full clinic days. However, this may vary as well depending on what's on my calendar that day. Last week for example, the afternoons I taught a course to the medical students on history taking. Next week will be covering rounds in the subacute rehabilitation facility. The week after will be admitting new patients at a nursing home. Every week is a surprise! If things aren't too busy over the noon hour, I'll call Aaron (who works for supply chain at the same institution) and we'll grab "Happy Lunch" together- which is usually sushi or something at a local food court :)
Fridays- By this time, I am totally ready for the weekend :) I stumble through the day trying not to be haphazard, but for some odd reason- the sickest and most complicated people want to come in on Fridays... at 4:30PM... right before things are starting to wrap up. So I'm usually sticking around pretty late on Fridays :)
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The evenings are a battleground with the kids. Aaron and I would usually get home around 5:30PM. Immediately after opening the door, we are greeted with happy screams of delight, followed by frantic cries of "where have you been??". We are so very fortunate to have wonderful parents who are around to watch the kids during the daytime and prepare delicious food for the family :)
The next couple hours are filled with food flying everywhere, chasing the baby around, bribing our toddler to eat her dinner- which usually ends up with her in the time-out corner throwing a fit. Trying to brush her teeth... which also usually ends up with her in the time-out corner
Nathan is super easy to put down. You just give him his milk, throw him in the crib and he's out in 5 minutes
Grace.....
Ends up again, in the time-out corner before she finally is too tired to complain and agrees to go to sleep. After we read her monster book at least 8 times...
After she has her mandatory cup of milk....
After she requests to find all the animals on her animal book
Then Aaron and I give each other sighs of relief.. and we end the day with a nice episode of our latest television/Netflix show. Right now it's Fear of the Walking dead. ANYONE ELSE WATCHING THIS??
So.. in a nutshell, my week in the life of a working mom and Geriatrician. Rock on.
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