To-Do Lists

I often see junior doctors frantically running around with their pockets crammed full of paper and notes scribbled on all sorts of different things. These bits of paper can include blood results, investigation requests or patient details taken over the phone after being bleeped for the millionth time. It is often said that the most important scrap of paper carried by junior doctors, or indeed any doctor is their 'to-do list', anyone who has spent time with a junior doctor should know it well. A beautifully (if not neatly) presented list of, among other things; who needs bloods, who needs fluids, who needs other investigations and who needs a discharge summary done, each item followed meticulously by a little tick box to indicate when it has been completed. It can a disaster of apocalyptic proportions if this bit of paper goes missing and I've seen a few doctors searching frantically for this list which seems to define the working lives of junior doctors.

And so, in preparation for this, I've long been using my own 'to-do' lists, although admittedly without the wonderful tick-boxes, (I find scribbling out to be more satisfying.) At the moment my list is huge, it is longer than.....erm...well, its long! Full of necessary tasks which accompany leaving the country for the best part of 3 months, in fact, we may as well be going to Mars, it is so remote. Cancel this, cancel that, change address for the other, blah, blah, blah. Combined with; trying to organising moving out, finishing off my research project (which is starting to stress me out just a little, especially when 3 patients have to be deleted which messes up your statistics so they need to be done again, although at least I know what I'm doing stats wise now.) I don't seem to be doing much scribbling on my list, and for each thing that I do scribble out, 3 more things get added to the list! Then I start to get neurotic about having missed things off which mean I'm going to come back to a court summons for an unpaid gas bill or something just as stupid. At least I have someone to take care of my emails and stuff in-case of any unexpected foundation application deadlines which may come and go whilst I'm away.

Who thought going on holiday could be so stressful? Oh, and if anyone has any tips on where I can find a fetal heart ultrasound for free, in the next 3 weeks, to take to the hospital, let me know. (One company have offered me a huge discount but I was hoping for a little more) Oh, and if possible, they want some anti-fugal medication too for ringworm...help.