My LTC rotation was located at St. Francis Hospital. Each morning, I would meet with my preceptor whose medicine service consisted of nearly 60 patients. He would assign me 4 to 5 patients daily, and I would conduct my own history and physical examinations, and create my assessment and plan. Since I had note writing ability on EPIC, I was able to type a full H&P, which was then reviewed by my preceptor and cosigned by him. This allowed me to gain great experience with EPIC and being comfortable writing notes as a future certified PA.
The patients I saw were in the emergency department, telemetry units, and critical care units. Most of my patients presented with common geriatric complaints, such as altered mental status, falls, and urinary tract infections. In addition, I also saw and helped treat patients with congestive heart failure, COPD, osteomyelitis, strokes, septic shock, hyponatremia, and various cardiac, hematologic and respiratory conditions. Overall, this was a great learning experience and I recommend this site to future students to better understand and gain confidence in medicine.