01 January 2001

case files


student dr. blaze



CC: “mwms is trying to kill me”
HOPI: onset July 2006. self-induced. many aggravating factors, few relieving factors.
PMH: too much school, too many illnesses.
SHX: social life? what social life?
FHX: complicated.
O: there’s no such thing....
A/P: self-induced torture. grit teeth, hold on tight, & try not to drown.




j.p.



CC: “seattle is not boston
HOPI: onset July 2006. self-induced. many aggravating factors, relieving factor: mars hill. potential duration unknown.
PMH: lived in boston just long enough that nothing else compares.
O: trying to figure it all out.
A/P: seattle adjustment disorder. turn living room wall into mural of boston. find competent doctor.



mr. dr. do



CC: “pts have a hidden agenda”
HOPI: began in medical school; constant. aggravating factors: seeing the same pt sitting in the waiting room multiple times. alleviating factors: humor, solving a case.
PMH: medical school, residency, family practice.
FHX: mrs. dr. do & baby.
O: pcp in NAD. young enough to be student dr blaze’s sibling.
A/P: cynical, but kind. laugh more. hope that baby soon sleeps through the night.



mrs. dr. do



CC: “mwms treats adjunct faculty like crap”
HOPI: onset 2004 to 2006. aggravating factors: administration & medical students who can’t tell the difference between a bell and a diaphragm on a stethoscope. relieving factors: quitting.
PMH: medical school, residency, family practice, & lots of teaching.
FHX: mr. dr. do & baby.
O: strong woman, excellent teacher. young enough to be student dr. blaze’s sibling.
A/P: a woman & mom in family medicine, treated poorly by mwms. find another way to teach students, who desperately need & miss her.



dean honey



CC: “medical students are getting stupider”
HOPI: onset: many years ago. mwms. duration: extensive. aggravating factors: students. relieving factors: lounging in pool with a cold beer.
PMH: military service & a doctorate in anatomy.
O: couldn’t determine--was too busy hiding from him.
A: grouchy old man who refers to female students as “honey.”
P: retire.



super blaze



CC: none.
PMH: has jumped off a water tower in a single bound. runs, bikes, jogs, surfs, & performs other miraculous feats of a physical nature. takes incredible photos.
SHX: has fun.
FHX: has an awesome fiancee.
O: unable to observe. moving too fast.
A: super blaze.
P: keep going!


the godfather



CC: "you're thinking too much!"
HOPI: began last semester when he realized how detailed my outlines were. ;-)
PMH: has a DVM and a PhD in physiology. grew up in the sudan. possesses incredible generosity of spirit, hence why the pbl group named him the godfather.
FHX: with a wife and four daughters, he's always commenting on the unbelievable amount of estrogen in his house.
A/P: no problems. keeps reminding his students to take it easy.





a little disclaimer...

i'm a medical student. just a student. so please, don't take anything i say too seriously. remember that i was an english literature major as an undergrad, so there is much fiction to be found in these pages. do you think i'm telling a story about you or your illness? more likely, you're tapping into my sense of "everyman"--that is, your story resonates with what i write here because it's not so uncommon after all. need help? please, please go see your physician. <--i'm not her. yet. ;-)