Peer Responses:
- Length: A minimum of 180 words per post, not including references
- Citations: At least two high-level scholarly reference in APA per post from within the last 5 years
- Relate to another journal reading
So far, I’ve nothing but positive things to say in my recent clinical rotation. There were a lot of cases that I was exposed to that can be considered memorable. Out of the many cases, the most interesting one was when I had to perform a simple trephination with my preceptor. Although it may sound as a simple procedure to others, it was my first time and one of the highlights during this rotation. Subungual hematomas are injuries of the nail bed in which bleeding develops under the nail. Patient experience pain due to post injury of the finger, blood enters the space and applies painful pressure to the nailbed (Pingel and McDowel, 2023). Releasing the pressure relieves the pain and saves the nail from further injury. Nail trephination is the name of this particular procedure. After the procedure was done, the relief on the patient’s face was noted. Some key points to consider that I’ve learned about nail trephination is to always assess the patient’s sensation, the range of motion at the interphalangeal joints, and capillary refill first prior to proceeding the procedure. Sometimes x-rays may be required first to confirm any contraindications such as possible tendon injuries, fractures (displaced or intra-articular), dislocations, such as open dislocation, significant finger avulsion, extensive laceration involving the proximal fold (eponychium) or amputations with significant bone exposure (Pencle et al., 2023). I wouldn’t probably change any approach on this particular patient encounter.
Looking at my progress chart, I believe I’m in a good position for having diverse cases. For my next rotation, I would prioritize more to see cases that can fill-up the spots required in each categories. The focus will be to get as many wellness visits for pediatrics at the same time women’s health visits as much as possible in my next clinical rotation. However, I would still take whatever my preceptor asks me to do as being exposed to different cases, despite their age group, will be beneficial for my student and professional growth. Based on my tracker, I still need 1 geriatric case, 3 wellness visits for pediatrics, 1 HEENT (adult), 1 CV, 1 musculoskeletal, 1 derm, 1neuro, 1 diabetes and 2 women’s health.
References
Pencle, F., Doehrmann, R. and Waseem, M. (2023, July 17). Fingertip injuries.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK436006/
Pingel, C. and Mc Dowell, D. (2023, July 25). Subungual hematomas Drainage.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482508/
