What a difference a day makes…and resisting temptation.

Most of the patients we care for on the medical team are on the eighth floor (it’s a nine story building) of the hospital.  This is a view from the stroke ward window on the eighth floor.  Not too shabby.  In the US, we would say it’s the 9th floor, because we call the ground floor a ‘first’ floor, and we call the floor just above that the second floor.  Here, as in much of the world the ground for is, well, the ground floor (it’s marked ‘G’ on the elevator), and the floor above that is the first floor.  It’s not that bad, once you get the hang of it….

Today it snowed.  It was particularly cool this morning when I walked to work, and it started to drizzle half way through my five minute walk.  I noticed that most people here don’t bother with umbrellas for a drizzle, like what we experienced this morning.  I didn’t bring my umbrella not because of any newfound New Zealand toughness, but rather because I hadn’t bothered to look at the window before I left.  But I’ve been impressed that the local folks are in general not impressed by mildly inclement weather.  Perhaps only one out of ten people I saw this morning had an umbrella out, and I can’t believe those without the umbrella were all as thick as I, not having looked at the window before they left.  In any case, about midway through our morning rounds we looked outside the window (I suppose I shouldn’t say I was daydreaming looking at the window during rounds, but then I was running the rounds, so it’s probably OK), we noticed it was snowing.  I’m happy to report I wasn’t the one who first noticed the snow (it makes me feel better, at least, since it was the medical students who noticed the snow first.  On the other hand, it makes me wonder if they were paying any attention to what was being said in rounds).  And, I find it reassuring that when we all stopped rounds (the poor patient, whose acute heart failure was upstaged by the weather) to admire the snow, everyone was quite excited.  To me, if snow is that novel for the regulars, then I’m not as worried about having to slog through a foot of snow for days on end in the dead of winter.  The snow didn’t stick to the ground, and by the time I left the hospital the skies were partly cloudy (as seen in the photo above).  But is was a good deal colder today (high temperature only in the 40s) than yesterday (high temperature maybe in high 50s).

This bells sit on the nurses station.  I was sorely tempted to ring it because it says ‘For nurses use only’, and I’m just that kind of guy who would want to ring it and see what happened.  But I’m new here, and judgement interfered with my impulse.  Perhaps tomorrow, though.

Here’s another thing I noticed today; none of the doctors here wear a white coat.  Back at home, I don’t wear a white coat either, but overall I’m in the minority there.  Here, I just fit right in (though I do wear a tie, which very few of the doctors wear, so maybe I don’t fit in as well as I’d like to believe).

There are A LOT of posters on the walls of the hospital.  I thought it would be fun to share a few of them.

Didn’t get to the shopping today (as promised).  I wimped out because it was too cold.  But I will, I promise.

cheers,