Sandy Hook

As I woke up and got ready for my interview on Friday, I heard on the news about another shooting, but the details were murky. It was not until I was back in the car on the way home that I began to hear the extent of the tragedy. A truly heartening tragedy. I mean, this deranged guy called a bunch of kids in school. Where do we go with this? How do we move forward as a country?

This is a two part effort. It involves gun control and access to mental health services. Maybe people still slip through the cracks, but we need to make a much better effort to try to stop it from happening. Sadly, every time we talk about gun control after a tragedy, the gun lobby comes in to tell us that it's too early and we need to wait a little longer. At this point, I think now is the time.

As far as the mental health, I think there needs to be a better screening process. I think children in school should be screened for mental health issues and gotten the assistance they need. This also means that we need to stop stigmatizing those who need treatment. We need to accept that mental disorders are the same as chronic diseases and should be treated and continued with follow-up. Some might call this government oversight, but I think it is time we start looking into it. This is part of the government's responsibility to protect it's citizens.

The next issue to tackle is gun control. I have mixed feelings about this one. I am not against guns. I had owned guns growing up and still enjoying going to the shooting range with friends. That being said, I think oversight is needed. I propose a couple of things. I think anyone who has been screened for a mental illness should receive not be allowed to own a gun for a period of time (2 years) and then would only be allowed conditionally if they were receiving counseling and were compliant with medications. I think that anyone with schizophrenia should not be allowed to own guns. Period. Finally, all gun owners should have renewable licenses and should have to report to the local law enforcement to determine their mental status and ability to use and maintain a firearm. As far as guns themselves, I think large capacity clips should be banned. No one needs them and those who have committed these atrocities used them. This won't solve our problem, but it will be a start. 

This discussion will continue, but we need to start somewhere.

On a side note, I like that the media has decided to stop focusing on the shooter and start finding out more about the victims and their families. It probably helps that the victims are young children, but I'd like to think that they just want to do the right thing.

Winter is Coming

The title comes from the 80 pages of Game of Thrones I have read so far and the future pages I plan to read on upcoming flights for interviews. I'll get around to watching it... as soon as I can afford HBO.

I've been lucky to be a on a good rotation this month. I've been enjoying a reasonable patient list, a very instructive attending, a chill resident, and social medical students; this is the optimal setup. Interviews are still under way, although I have had a bit of a break until they pick up again in January. It's been tough scheduling, but I think I pulled it off for the most part. It'll involve another trip to the East Coast in the midst of Winter, which will only confirm just how cold it gets out there. Thanks to New York, I actually bought my fist overcoat to survive the cold. Apparently, my H&M jacket just won't cut it when there is real snow and real wind involved. As a Californian, I would have never known.

In other amazing news, I decided to buy new tires. After weeks of fretting (I wish that were a joke), I ended up with the Falken Ziex ZE-612, which happen to be quiet and responsive and exactly what I was looking for. I'm glad I pulled the trigger (even if it drained the bank account), as the winter rains are coming (even in Bakersfield) and I'm not a big fan of hydroplaning.

Resident is close (and far away). Seems like a crazy jump from being a medical student (where you don't real responsibility) and being an intern, where you don't know anything and are actually counted upon to make real decision. Help me! I'll be done in January, with about six months off before I start. I am come to the sad conclusion that I'll have a useless degree. I can't even do nursing work, I have little to no hands-on experience, and no one would hire me as a physician or something that resembles one. I think I'll have to revert back to tutoring and possibly doing research. KMC is rather limited, so I may end up at CSU Bakersfield to keep myself entertained and willing to wake up in the morning. A six month vacation sounds amazing, but I know I'll become bored and slovenly in no time.