Start of Third Year!

Hello 🙂

As I sit and type this blog in my new University room I start to think I can’t actually believe I’m a 3rd Year!!! To start with where did the time go? It only seems like yesterday that I was being interviewed by a variety of Universities and being made offers! And now I’m sat here about to go on my first placement block of third year… CRAZY!!

I would say I don’t know how I got through my first two years but that would be unrealistic. I know I’ve worked hard on both my academic and clinical placement blocks and have achieved some amazing results. My basic hope for 3rd Year is to pass and get a job 🙂 Obviously a nice classification grade would be the cherry on the cake however for Radiography do you really want a department full of purely academic staff? The answer to that is a simple no. Radiographers need to have a mix of patient care, communication and academic knowledge that can be applied. Having that mixed skill base is the difference between a average and excellent radiographer.

I’m just going to continue to be me- hard-working, positive, caring and all done with a smile on my face, because somehow that’s worked for me for the past two years and so it can continue to for my final year.

Final thought- Let’s make this year count!!

With Love.

Sarah x

p.s Will do my summer elective update soon

Summer Elective

Hello 🙂

Just a quick update whilst waiting for an amazon parcel before jetting off to the airport…

Tomorrow i’ll be off on an adventure to Canada and I am soo excited!! We are encouraged at University to undertake an elective between the 2nd and 3rd year of our degree so that we can see different techniques that we wouldn’t usually or to visit other departments. My University does offer an exchange program to a department in the far east however I decided that I wanted to do something different! This meant I applied to a department in Vancouver and they accepted me!!

I’ll spend two weeks in this centre and through organisation with the clinical link there we have already organised what I’ll be seeing and the areas I will be spending my time. My main aim is to have a good general understanding of how they care and treat patients in Canada looking at the similarities and differences to enable the comparison to our care system in the UK.  I can’t wait to tell you all about it! My two week elective will be followed by a weeks holiday so that I can enjoy visiting places within the city and fill up on pancakes with maple syrup…nom.

So far I’ve had a good summer off and received news at the beginning of the month that I’ve passed my exams and that they are taking me back in September… are they mad 😉

Hope all is well and fingers crossed for me for a flight with minimal turbulence,

Love S xx

Be Kind, Always..

Hi Guys,

This is a post I wrote in draft a couple of months ago after the circulation on Facebook over the phrase “Be Kind, Always”.

This quote prompted and reminded me that we all face problems, issue, concerns and worries over numerous subjects such as health, happiness, money, work and just general living. At the end of the day we are only human and we continuously face life’s different complexities. Everybody has their own battles and struggles although these may not be expressed or formed so that we can physically see them.

It is easy in life to judge and make assumptions however sometimes it’s better to take a step back and listen to what people have to say. We should always aim to show kindness and support to try and have a better understanding. At the end of the day we will never be able to fully understand the problems others are facing however we can certainly try.

Just a little thought for the day

Love S

xx

Second Year Mayhem!

Hi All,

Time between blogs are longer then I wanted currently, but University life has been extremely busy and time consuming. Therefore, this has left me with little free time/energy to update my blog in between all my academic demands and placement blocks.

I am currently a two thirds of my way through my third (and last) placement block of the year. Yesterday I had to undertake a breast assessment where I had to ensure correct localisation of the patient, set up and then delivery of radiotherapy. When I write it down like that it seems to be so simple but as with any assessment there is always more to it then meets the eye! I felt pretty chilled about it all day and after having a good 2 weeks on the machine that deals primarily with patients undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer meant that I recieved plenty of experience. I am very happy to say that I passed! This was my last clinical assessment completed for the year and now I’ve just got a few competencies to sign off to ensure that I’ve seen and been able to set up a variety of patients. It’s been a busy year clinically too and I’m fairly happy to say I’ve completed a Breast, Head and Neck and Skin assessment as well as spending two weeks in Radiotherapy CT and also a week in physics/dosimetry along with time spent on machines to complete my competencies. Finishing touches will be my Clinical portfolio which needs to be submitted at the beginning of May and then fingers crossed I do not have to go back out into clinical recovery.

February and March were jammed packed with a variety of different deadlines for a few units. I had to complete a 3,000 word essay, submit a  project proposal, complete an inter-professional task with other healthcare professionals to produce and present a poster plus many other deadlines. Throw in the common feeling off how am I going to pass this year/ I can’t do this and as you can see it’s been an absolute delight hehe. I’ve definitely felt stuck in treacle at times or on a train that’s on a long journey and stops at every single station !!

The end of year two is nearly drawing to a close and although I’ve been told not to waste the time away I honestly can’t wait for this year to be over. I mean in the month of May I still have to get through a job interview, physics assignment, a talkthrough on my breast assessment as well as three exams which I really don’t want to fail. Amongst the crazy may period I’m just casually adding in a trip to Germany for a wedding because I’m not going to miss this very special and happy occasion 🙂 Oh well I certainly don’t do things by half do I 😛

I’m just trying to continue to balance out the stress of University with lovely things that I have planned over the summer like spending time with friends and family plus an AMAZING summer elective (more news to follow soon). However, I’ve learnt that I’m always going to worry and stress about my work/exams/placement because I care and want to do well. I just want to be a fantastic radiographer…is that too much to ask?

With Love,

S x

Happy New Year :)

Hello,

A very Happy New Year and warm welcome into 2015! I think my new resolution should be to update my blog a little more often, think I definitely need to wipe away the cobwebs and start writing 🙂

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year!! Since September I’ve had quite a crazy/hectic/fun time at University. Although stressful at times and definitely challenging I still LOVE the course so much.

Some updates on the course:

• First 6 weeks in September were spent in an academic block with lots of biology and physiology, physics, work based learning and inter-professional skills. I knew that the brain was complicated but I never understood how complicated it was until I started to learn and re-write my lecture notes 😛
• Then 5 weeks of placement- my favourite part!! I managed to complete a head and neck assessment as well as a skin apposition assessment. I was really pleased at how these assessments went and it was great getting positive feedback about my communication with patients. I might not always have the best academic knowledge but I can learn those parts. It is a lot harder to teach someone how to communicate and interact with patients, this is something that comes more naturally to me and so hopefully helps me in the steps to become a good radiographer 🙂
• On this placement I also attended review clinics and so started to understand side effects of the treatment and different ways we can help patients either from medicine/holistic approach/help from charities like MacMillan. I also got my first ever thank you card (and some chocolates) from one of my patients.I know its silly but for this is a really lovely gesture and an achievement in the fact that I helped someone and they wanted to show me.
• Back to University for 4 weeks. My first ever 2,500 word essay!! And also the scary fact that it counts this year! Anyway that is submitted now and the results are scheduled to be released the day after my birthday.. yay.  I also had my talk through of the two assessments I completed on placement. These went really well in the end and so some good marks go towards my work based learning module.
• Although I’ve been working hard I’ve still managed to have some fun with my friends. Had a really good time for Halloween, spending time cooking, having drinks and going for a dance. I also joined Cinema Society this year which has been  a lot of fun and I’ve watched some films that I wouldn’t have considered before. We had a nice Christmas meal, trip to Harry Potter Studios in London, watched the latest Hunger Games and had a white t-shirt social.

So all in all a good start to the academic year! Next stop 4 weeks of placement 😀

2014 was a great year for me. I passed my first year (which was my main concern) and I got to see my brother graduate in the summer, really proud of him. I was also constantly supported by my amazing friends and family plus all you lovely readers. For this I want to say a massive THANK YOU! Here is to 2015, I have a feeling it’s going to be a fantastic year!

Love S

xx