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After 7 years, and 6 surgeries and 2 years of schooling, I'm about to go back into working mood. Next week fall quarter of school starts up and I go to clinicals for 3 months. To say I'm nervous is a true understatement. As some of you might remember I started school in the spring of 2018 to become a Pharmacy Technician. After flunking out, LnI seeing that it wasn't any thing I did wrong, said I could change my course of study . So I did! I started spring quarter this year in Hemodialysis technician class. It was a challenge to say the least. This covid crap shut down the school and we had to attend on line classes, which is no easy tast. Especially when you need to be drawing peoples blood for the phlebotomy part of the class. It's imposible to stick a needle in someone's arm when you can't be closer than 6 feet. LOL 

  But the classes went far better than I could have hopped for. I missed a 4.0 GPA by .3 ! Yes you read that right!! I had a 3.6 GPA for spring Quarter, good enough for me to make the schools vice presidents honor list.  The summer quarter was a lot better, not grade wise, but because the school had deemed us important enough that we could get back on campus and get hands on in lab.  So that opened us up to be able to draw each others blood. I needed to do 30 blood draws using different types of needles. Myself and a girl tied for best in class with only 3 missed veins. It's funny because with my right and dominant hand being fused together, this is what scared me the most. But it turns out my hand being fused as it is, was definitely a blessing. Anyway I closed the quarter with a 3.4 GPA missing the vice presidents honor list by .1 ! 

Tomorrow I have a meeting with the manager of the dialysis clinic I will be doing clinicals at for fall quarter. I need to get in 300 hours in 3 months to pass the quarter. Last day is December 15th. Hopefully they will see my potential and offer me a place on their team before my run there ends.  If not... well... I can always fall back on phlebotomy, they make more anyway. 

But that's where, and why , I've been missing the past few years. Just trying to do right for my family and get through school.

Never thought I'd be back in school at 55! And it's funny being the oldest in all my classes Even older than the teachers, well, except my Algebra professor. LOL

When we drew each others blood, we had to treat it as if we were real patients, and the person drawing would ask us our names and birthdates. The student I tied for 1st place with is a running start kid. 17 years old, she drew me one day and asked my date of birth, I told her... she said holy cow! your 20 years older than my dad! 

thanks... thanks a lot! HAHAHAHAHA

Here I am doing mock Dialysis in lab... sporting my Stone Pony Mask!!

 

 

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 "Hey man, did you see that? His body hit the street with such a beautiful thud" 

 

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Last edited by ESTRTBNDFAN
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@desa33 posted:

Glad to see you back. 

Best of luck to you.

Good to be back!

Now that all the book stuff is done for a while. Ive been watching your posts the past few years... great job!

I think Oats still is ahead of you though. 

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 "Hey man, did you see that? His body hit the street with such a beautiful thud" 

 

@IvanNF posted:

Careful where you poke that needle, Todd!

And don't put that catheter in until the patient is asleep!(My main request before my lung cancer surgery, lol)

WAIT....WHAT? 

Holy hell Ivan! was it a transplant? prayers to you bud! 

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 "Hey man, did you see that? His body hit the street with such a beautiful thud" 

 

@Karen posted:

Great news, glad you finally found something you want to do. I know all those surgeries set you back big time.

I think Jerry G said it best!

"What a long strange trip it's been!" 

How you doing? I texted you a few times, with no reply, did you change your number or something?  And I did! I felt like I was forced into the pharmacy class by LnI, so I was never really compoftable in it. But this one I researched and I really felt like I belonged in the class. I really loved all aspects of it. The patients didn't ask or choose to be in Dialysis, I on the other hand did choose it, and I really want to be able to help them. 

glad to see you back as well!! 

 

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 "Hey man, did you see that? His body hit the street with such a beautiful thud" 

 

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