Ross and I ended our lives of leisure today... we had our first day of orientation at Elim! The day went well, and of course had plenty of associated paperwork. We also began our CPI (Crisis Prevention and Intervention) training. We will learn how to physically protect ourselves/other students and restrain and redirect students with physical behaviors. It is a last resort to use, but definitely something that is needed at Elim. Don't think that all students are violent, but some do have that tendency, and some may occasionally respond that way if something is irritating them and they don't have the ability or skill to resolve their feelings appropriately.
Our training group consists of about 25 people, and it was nice to meet others with whom we will be working. I was able to talk some with a nurse and a COTA, and we both met several paraprofessionals. Ross and I will be working in separate areas of the school. He will be in the ACE program for students with autism, and I will be in the cross categorical program for kids with mulitple needs. The whole staff will be training next week, so we will meet the onslaught of the 300 or so staff members at Elim. Students will then start the Thursday before Labor Day. I won't start treating that first week. The PT staff and I will split the caseload, develop treatment plans, etc. Ross learned more about his role with the 18 and 19 year olds. His classroom is kind of a new development with life skills, and will involve a separate lunch room, the Wii, and various community outings, along with some "regular" school components. All in all, I think we are both excited about our jobs.
So our exploring will be slightly diminished as we begin work, but we do hope to continue biking along some of the local trails, and maybe downtown as well. Last Thursday we brought the bikes downtown and rode along the lakefront--which was amazing. The city of Chicago is accomodating for bikers, but the suburbs are still less than ideal. We did invest in a new bike lock after a Chicagoan informed us that he could cut our current one with fingernail clippers.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Attempting blogging again....
It's been a while since I tried this blogging thing, and a lot has changed! It is no longer winter in the midwest, I have not snowshoed since February, and I am no longer living in Mankato--or in Minnesota for that matter!
I finished my clinicals, found a job, graduated from school, took a board exam, got married, went on a honeymoon and a half, and moved to the Chicago area. Ross and I are now residents of the state of Illinois and have the drivers licenses and temporary voters cards to show it. We were both kind of sad to give up our identity in our native states, but have enjoyed exploring our new area. We have found--with success--the grocery stores, many Targets (unfortunately just one SuperTarget), bike trails, and easy-to-assemble furniture. We even took an afternoon/evening to be tourists downtown Chicago. Yes, we visited "the bean" and Navy Pier. We have not yet taken in Chicagoland sporting events, but hope to see the Sox and Twins later on this season. I hope to make some great friends with ticket connections for the Cubs.
Today we took the opportunity to have another Chicago experience. We received some coupons for Brown's Chicken, a local restaurant chain that specializes in fried chicken, as well as hotdogs, Italian beef, and chicken/beef burgers... and pasta. If you are craving fried gizzards, we found your place. Anyway, since we are Dutch, the time to check out a place is when you have a coupon. I really wanted to try the Chicago Way Hotdog, with onions, mustard, dill pickle, tomatoes, and peppers. Ross went with the Italian beef sandwich so we could utilize a coupon. When asked if he wanted it "Dry, wet, or dipped," he went with dipped, anticipating that they would give us a cup of beef juice/broth for dipping. We got home, pulled out the food... and his ENTIRE sandwich had been dipped in beef juice/broth and then wrapped up! I have no idea how he even managed to hold the sandwich, let alone eat it. After seeing that, we were curious as to how that differed from the "wet" option for the sandwich. And how is a wet sandwich appetizing to begin with?? But the fries were good and I enjoyed the hotdog. All I can say is that it is definitely a good thing we had a coupon. :)
Tomorrow we are headed to Michigan for a quick camping trip at Holland Beach State Park. Hopefully the thunderstorms are very scattered so we do not spend a lot of time soaking wet as we did in Boston. We are planning to spend some time with Ross's family and some college friends. We probably will not eat at Brown's Chicken.
I finished my clinicals, found a job, graduated from school, took a board exam, got married, went on a honeymoon and a half, and moved to the Chicago area. Ross and I are now residents of the state of Illinois and have the drivers licenses and temporary voters cards to show it. We were both kind of sad to give up our identity in our native states, but have enjoyed exploring our new area. We have found--with success--the grocery stores, many Targets (unfortunately just one SuperTarget), bike trails, and easy-to-assemble furniture. We even took an afternoon/evening to be tourists downtown Chicago. Yes, we visited "the bean" and Navy Pier. We have not yet taken in Chicagoland sporting events, but hope to see the Sox and Twins later on this season. I hope to make some great friends with ticket connections for the Cubs.
Today we took the opportunity to have another Chicago experience. We received some coupons for Brown's Chicken, a local restaurant chain that specializes in fried chicken, as well as hotdogs, Italian beef, and chicken/beef burgers... and pasta. If you are craving fried gizzards, we found your place. Anyway, since we are Dutch, the time to check out a place is when you have a coupon. I really wanted to try the Chicago Way Hotdog, with onions, mustard, dill pickle, tomatoes, and peppers. Ross went with the Italian beef sandwich so we could utilize a coupon. When asked if he wanted it "Dry, wet, or dipped," he went with dipped, anticipating that they would give us a cup of beef juice/broth for dipping. We got home, pulled out the food... and his ENTIRE sandwich had been dipped in beef juice/broth and then wrapped up! I have no idea how he even managed to hold the sandwich, let alone eat it. After seeing that, we were curious as to how that differed from the "wet" option for the sandwich. And how is a wet sandwich appetizing to begin with?? But the fries were good and I enjoyed the hotdog. All I can say is that it is definitely a good thing we had a coupon. :)
Tomorrow we are headed to Michigan for a quick camping trip at Holland Beach State Park. Hopefully the thunderstorms are very scattered so we do not spend a lot of time soaking wet as we did in Boston. We are planning to spend some time with Ross's family and some college friends. We probably will not eat at Brown's Chicken.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
A Mankato Weekend
I spent this past weekend in Mankato--and that's a first since I have been living here. Ross drove down for the weekend, so that was really nice. We spent Friday evening at the MSU/U of M hockey game. Both schools play division 1 hockey, but the U of M has a very strong tradition of beating MSU. We had standing room only tickets in the packed arena (we being Ross, myself, and some of his army buddies)... and the U of M proceded to lose quite soundly. We stood next to a younger brother of one of the U of M players, and that was kind of fun. The kid was really into the game and he yelled at the players some. His brother was on the ice for one of the U of M goals. (I'm pretty sure the final score was 6-2.) We almost had a fight break out in the stands next to us. A middle aged Gopher fan started yelling at an MSU student for grouping all Gopher fans together as the type to throw items onto the ice... it was rather ridiculous, and we wondered who the mature person in the argument should have been. Despite the unfortunate outcome, it was fun to be at the game. (Sidenote: the Gophers also lost on Saturday even though they played MSU at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis. I think that's the first time that MSU swept the U of M, but I could be wrong.)
On Saturday, Ross and I went snowshoeing! It was only our second time going, and first time this winter. The owners of the PT clinic that I "work" at recommended a park to me, and Ross and I loved it. The park is only a few miles outside of Mankato, and it runs along the Minnesota River. The trails were nice, but then we ventured off and had some really nice non-packed snow. My lower legs were sore at the end from lifting the snowshoes, but it was definitely worth it. We saw an eagle on our way to the park, but didn't see any other wildlife. We ventured out onto the frozen river and trekked on it for a ways. We did hear one crack in the ice while on the river. The temperature was above freezing, but it was only the second or third with temps above 32 since the beginning of December, so we weren't too concerned. After about an hour, we headed back into Mankato and to the malls to look at some bridesmaid dresses... and a John Deere toy store. In the evening we made soup with one of Ross's army buddies, watched the dismal end of the hockey game, and saw the movie Defiance.
On Sunday, Ross and I went to the church that is essentially in my backyard. My classmate's dad works there, and the church members were excited to find out that I am living with her family. The ladies that talked with us were really nice and welcoming. The church is a more traditional Lutheran one. I was hoping to use the green hymnals I remember from my Faith Lutheran School days, but it just wasn't to be. The afternoon was spent with wedding plans and relaxing, and counting down to the SuperBowl. We went back to Ross's friend's house for the game, and ate some good food, watched a good game, and some good commercials. It was really fun spending time with Ross's friend Nate and getting to know his roommates and some other friends.
So the weekend wasn't anything overly amazing or exciting, but it was great to relax and NOT WORK! This coming weekend should also be a good one--I'll be in California with family before heading to Las Vegas on Monday for a physical therapy conference. This will be my first trip to Vegas, so I am really looking forward to it. Seeing family before is a definite bonus to the trip, and I also hope to have some beach time in the sun.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
from Mankato
Things are continuing to go well for me in Mankato--despite the weather! The lows without windchill have been in the -20s, and last night a record low was tied. I think it's a bit ridiculous, but it is supposed to hit 10 above zero tomorrow for a high, so we will have a heat wave.
I haven't done too much exploring around the Mankato area. I've driven in the old downtown area, which would be fun to see. I've visited a couple doctors offices (with the PTs for marketing) and been to the grocery store and Walmart. I am hoping that someday I can have something more exciting to report on the blog someday.
PT clinic life is going well. I am accumulating my own patient load and working on my eval skills. When we are slow (or have multiple patients cancel because of the extreme cold and some icy roads), the PTs and I practice skills. I feel a lot better about some of my manual skills and special tests and am hoping to learn more strategies typically learned in continuing ed, not the traditional school classroom. We have had some interesting patients of late. We have had two older men--in their 80s--who have some balance and falls issues. One of them probably needs a neuro consult, and the other had a partial hip replacement and his recovery is complicated by dementia. We also had an adult with Down Syndrome complaining of symptoms that are not necessarily appropriate for PT, but it is hard to tell which symptoms she is actually having because of communication and cognitive difficulties. It is all very eye opening. I have eval'd a few patients with low back pain, and one of them was a textbook disk displacement. It's rare that things present in the "typical" fashion. Working with a few patients with partial knee replacements or repairs has been kind of fun. It's interesting to compare the different progressions patients have depending on their personality types and complicating factors.
And on a completely different note, I ordered my wedding dress today!
I haven't done too much exploring around the Mankato area. I've driven in the old downtown area, which would be fun to see. I've visited a couple doctors offices (with the PTs for marketing) and been to the grocery store and Walmart. I am hoping that someday I can have something more exciting to report on the blog someday.
PT clinic life is going well. I am accumulating my own patient load and working on my eval skills. When we are slow (or have multiple patients cancel because of the extreme cold and some icy roads), the PTs and I practice skills. I feel a lot better about some of my manual skills and special tests and am hoping to learn more strategies typically learned in continuing ed, not the traditional school classroom. We have had some interesting patients of late. We have had two older men--in their 80s--who have some balance and falls issues. One of them probably needs a neuro consult, and the other had a partial hip replacement and his recovery is complicated by dementia. We also had an adult with Down Syndrome complaining of symptoms that are not necessarily appropriate for PT, but it is hard to tell which symptoms she is actually having because of communication and cognitive difficulties. It is all very eye opening. I have eval'd a few patients with low back pain, and one of them was a textbook disk displacement. It's rare that things present in the "typical" fashion. Working with a few patients with partial knee replacements or repairs has been kind of fun. It's interesting to compare the different progressions patients have depending on their personality types and complicating factors.
And on a completely different note, I ordered my wedding dress today!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Whoops
Looking back at previous posts, I thought I had ignored my blog when I didn't update for a week... so this is pretty bad! My last week at the clinic up north was a bit out of the ordinary... I dealt with some crazy winter weather, lived in Duluth instead of Two Harbors, and missed 1.5 days in the clinic! Then it was back to the Twin Cities to work, off to Michigan for Christmas, and then to Washington for New Years, a belated Christmas, and a wedding! I had a wonderful (emphasis on the "full") Christmas break. Then last weekend, Ross and I drove down to Iowa so I could see my Grandma for her birthday and he could go to drill. (Sidenote--he only has three drills left!)
Now I am in Mankato, MN, which is about 1.5 hours southwest of the Twin Cities. It's a nice town and home to MSU. I "work" at an outpatient orthopedic clinic and live with my classmate's parents. It's going well so far. Tomorrow I have three initial evals so I can start building my own caseload! It's exciting but a bit scary. The PTs that I am working with are good. They answer questions and also challenge me. I think I will improve a lot on evaluating patients and providing them with appropriate treatments--which is obviously huge in PT. The clinic gets a variety in patient population, but I have seen quite a few patients with neck/back pain, shoulder pain, or post-op following a knee or foot/ankle surgery. This clinic gets more post surgical patients than my previous clinic, so I am learning a lot as far as precautions go following surgery. This is also my first experience with half-hour treatment times. Half hours are pretty standard in the orthopedic world, but I have been spoiled with having an hour to work with patients. The clinic is private practice (like the one in Two Harbors), so I have already had some more experience with marketing and meeting with doctors. It's interesting, but I usually stay pretty quiet during those meetings.
So now I need to go re-educate myself on low back pain to prepare for tomorrow. Hopefully this post will be the beginning of re-semi-updating.
Now I am in Mankato, MN, which is about 1.5 hours southwest of the Twin Cities. It's a nice town and home to MSU. I "work" at an outpatient orthopedic clinic and live with my classmate's parents. It's going well so far. Tomorrow I have three initial evals so I can start building my own caseload! It's exciting but a bit scary. The PTs that I am working with are good. They answer questions and also challenge me. I think I will improve a lot on evaluating patients and providing them with appropriate treatments--which is obviously huge in PT. The clinic gets a variety in patient population, but I have seen quite a few patients with neck/back pain, shoulder pain, or post-op following a knee or foot/ankle surgery. This clinic gets more post surgical patients than my previous clinic, so I am learning a lot as far as precautions go following surgery. This is also my first experience with half-hour treatment times. Half hours are pretty standard in the orthopedic world, but I have been spoiled with having an hour to work with patients. The clinic is private practice (like the one in Two Harbors), so I have already had some more experience with marketing and meeting with doctors. It's interesting, but I usually stay pretty quiet during those meetings.
So now I need to go re-educate myself on low back pain to prepare for tomorrow. Hopefully this post will be the beginning of re-semi-updating.
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