Chapter Twenty Two - "Just About Managing"

Well, I’ve finally got round to writing an update on my blog. Thanks for waiting.

As I begin to type this, it is becoming ever more apparent that the ‘n’ key on my keyboard is beginning to play up (I think I must’ve got some fluff or something trapped underneath), so apologies for any bad ‘n-related’ spelling errors that crop up. I’ll try my best to eradicate these, but sometimes it’s worth admitting that some things are just out of my control.

You may recall that I finished my last entry with a bit of a teaser about the Friday of my week at a specialist heart and lung hospital. What I was going to say was that conversations about God came up, including a breakfast chat about creation, and a chance encounter with a Jehovah’s Witness. Both gave me reasons for prayer, but rather than share in depth about the day’s events (as I originally intended) I need to move on to more recent happenings. I did, however, finish the day on a high – with a leaving celebration; a tube busker called Gareth (playing the James Bond theme-tune in the style of an Irish jig) on the way home, who unfortunately left before my stop at the end of the line; and Graham’s birthday Chinese takeaway.


More recently...

Back at placement we faced a difficult time. The exam results for the re-takes had just come out, and it turned out that our course was, as David described it, a matter of “survival of the fittest” in light of the latest news. Having passed my exams first time, I was thankfully spared from the torment of these results. However, out of my three coursemates at placement with me, only two got through to the third year, and this singled me out as the only Christian in our group. It won’t be the same without him, and it is still taking time to sink in. I think we all agree that it’s a poor loss. However, I would like to see him graduate, albeit with the year below. All is not lost.

Shortly after we’d heard this news, our lecturer visited the site to fill us in on what would be required of us over this last clinical block. I was made aware of how little time I thought I had (until December) to obtain competencies, and it worried me slightly as I thought about the areas in which I struggled. As I raised my concerns she assured me that students in years past had had the exact same feelings, and she had every confidence that I, along with my friends, would be fine. She encouraged us to be proactive, taking an x-ray form from the box and attempting it, no matter what it was. With this mindset, I spent the rest of my week doing everything from hips to feet series (which I really enjoyed, but everyone else seemed to hate for some reason), to even the occasional spine. On top of this I found myself ‘ruling’ the mobiles, practically doing Friday’s procedures with minimal assistance. It made for my most enjoyable week so far, and I went away with many competencies: modified chests, femurs, knees, feet and ankles amongst them.

This positive outlook continued into my next week, a practice week for my week-long management assessment, which I opted to undertake in the A&E department. In addition to running the area, working in A&E provided useful for obtaining experiences and competencies for uncooperative patients and modified techniques. Two birds with one stone.

It’s worth mentioning here that there were quality moments to be had during work that week. One colleague stated emphatically that “tuna is not really a fish – it’s more like an animal”, though this has absolutely no bearing on radiographic practise, and another found himself backing off when faced with a crying three-year-old. Additionally, to his credit, he was hailed as “the nice man”, while I was demoted to “the other guy”. Maybe once I’ve qualified things will be different.

Meanwhile, placement aside, work on my dissertation was also looking up. Having met with my tutor I knew exactly what needed to be done, regarding my questionnaires and my introduction, methodology and literature review. The aim of my study was now clear to me, and as things began to fall into place I actually began to enjoy my work. As I wrote on Facebook, “I wonder how long that’ll last...”, though a friend prayed that the enthusiasm and enjoyment would remain right till the end. Amen to that! If all goes smoothly I hope to have my first draft ready in time for Christmas.

Christmas; it’s too soon to be thinking about that now.

Last week saw the arrival of new students to Kingston Uni. It was Freshers’ Week, and the Christian Union had a stall up in the marquee. I was disappointed to be in placement this time round, so I was unable to help out, but from what I heard, a good number of people signed up. Peter, my newest housemate (and one of the new leaders of the Christian Union) seemed positive about it all. It’s an exciting time.

A few weeks ago we set about putting bottles of orange squash in the kitchens of the various Halls of Residences, with stickers inviting the new students to the welcome meeting on September 30th. (What a fun time that was!) As I thought about the new people moving in, I texted a friend to ask for the mobile number of a girl who was starting radiography at Kingston, and additionally left a message on Facebook with my personal welcome to the university. However, as it turned out, I was a year too early, as she still had a year of school to go. How embarrassing. On the plus side, it would be cool to be working in a placement hospital (for real) when she comes to study. I reckon I would enjoy teaching others...

Back to last weekend, Friday night saw my housemate Jan’s 25th birthday party. When I was looking for a suitable card, I wondered if 25 was a significant year. Even though I couldn’t find any specific age-related cards, I figured it must be, as you can’t get to 26 without it! (Though paradoxically, I had my 21st birthday twice, and turned 18 and 21 in reverse order!) I acted as the doorman, and succeeded in locking myself out before the start, much to Joel’s amusement. Eventually I sat inside the house, and waited for people to come to me instead. The photos can be seen at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=537842&id=777915320&l=cb1bff1457

Saturday evening was the date for a Phatfish concert in Chessington. It was an enjoyable and stirring event, with some memorable songs. It served to remind me of God’s brilliance, and that he still remembers my desires and has great plans.

Yesterday at Church we welcomed some new Freshers. I also found myself stepping in to play morning bass again, this time on my own amp - which Jon wanted for the Street Band rehearsal, following the service. Incidentally, I was disappointed not to be involved myself, but considering the arrival of the new students, it felt more appropriate to be spending the afternoon welcoming them. It also helped me to remember that playing in the worship band shouldn’t be all about me, so not being involved would probably help me to be more humble. I’ll have my opportunities in the future, I’m sure. This time it was Jon’s turn.

During the afternoon I got chatting to the new people and got to know the faces a bit better. It was a pleasant experience. Open Home was in full swing again, with extra curry, and it was certainly an enjoyable day. I hope we made a good impression and encouraged people to come back next week. Time will tell.

Finally for now (and to reach this point, I’ve had to abridge certain earlier parts), today was the start of my real management week in the hospital’s A&E department. I took it in my stride, and enjoyed the excitement that came with organisation and planning. David was also in the department, which meant I got to tell him what to do; though we did work together on numerous occasions. As we waited for our tutor for our afternoon meeting, I managed to carry out facial bones projections. Just as the images came up on the screen he walked in, and I managed to impress him. We left for the meeting in a very positive frame of mind. Time continued to pass quickly, and we spent an hour or so saying not a huge amount to Marcus – overall, things were going well. And by the way, our next exam is in December, not September. Phew!

I can’t wait to be back in department tomorrow, to see what’s in store for us, but I figure that if I don’t stop typing soon, I’ll still be here in the morning.

And what’s more, I think my laundry’s done.