Spring Break 2010: Anesthesia Version

After finishing finals last Friday, I flew to Seattle to attend the AANA annual meeting (American Association of Nurse Anesthetists).  Otherwise known as: Spring Break 2010: “Anesthesia Students Gone Wild”.

Most people don’t realize that anesthesia school is a bit different that most grad school programs.  Summer vacation? Never heard of it.  Spring break?? You wish! Semester breaks? None.  Usually we’re back in the hospital at 5am the day after our last final at the end of each semester.  We are so generously allotted fifteen vacation/sick days for the entire two year program.

All us girls, first night out.

So it should come as no surprise that when given the choice of either A) attending clinicals for five days or B) going to Seattle for five days for an anesthesia conference, most of us chose B.  Alas, it was not all fun and games- we were instructed/threatened to actually attend the conference, along with some rules from our program director.

1. Do not dress like prostitutes.
2. Do not call me at 2am, I do not bring bail money.
3. Do not swim in a public fountain at 3am.

I believe all us made it through without breaking any of those rules.  I’ve been incommunicado due to all the drinking learning we did at the conference.  Not so much book learning as much as street learning. Usually whenever someone says “I’m not book smart, but I’m street smart”, all I hear is, “I’m not real smart, but I’m imaginary smart”.

Seattle by Sailboat

I’d say we were all imaginary smart this week.  Despite my lack being edumacated this past week, I did manage to walk away with some lessons learned.  You may or may not be able to apply these into your own life.

1. Pharmaceuticals are so expensive now days not due to the extensive research and development but because the drug reps are picking up bar tabs for thousands of anesthesia students.
2. When staying in a hotel room with multiple people, make sure to close your suitcase at night.
3. It is probably the multiple tequila shots last night, NOT the lemons in your beer that made you hung over.
4. When talking to six state association presidents at the bar, it might behoove one to not drop the F-bomb in reference to our schools educators.
5. Guy pushes your friend into the bar? Just pour a drink down his back.  Should take care of it.  You might also want to exit bar quickly as to not getting beaten up by now wet guys friends.
6. Always make sure to wear a headlamp to bed.  If for nothing else, so your friends have something to laugh at when they come home and find you passed out in bed with a head lamp on.

So maybe I didn’t learn as much as I thought I did, I was however thoroughly entertained by all my fellow students.  I of course was in bed by 930pm every night and only heard about all this crazy stuff.  I don’t even like the taste of beer…er…that’s my story and I’m sticking with it.

The annual banquet we were forced to attend for $75/head.

I’m currently in Ohio for some good friend’s wedding, then back to the grind on Monday morning.  Can’t wait.

Tagged as: Anesthesia, School, Travel