My Psych rotation was at Mindful Urgent Care in west Hempstead. The clearance process was very straight forward. I met with Nick on the first day and he showed me how to use the system called DR. Chron’s.  I was assigned my own office with a personal computer and I started to see patients on my own immediately after I arrived. After presenting each patient he gave me feedback and helped me adjust accordingly. He tested me on the drugs prescribed  and we went over other possible differential. At first, I was overwhelmed, but by the end of the day I started to adjust to the flow. As the week went by the rotation became much easier. The rotation itself was 5 days a week, with 10hour shifts, but the day never felt that long. I would have never thought I’d enjoy psych, but this rotation changed my mind. This was all because of Nick, who is an awesome preceptor. He would find fun ways to teach and help us remember important concepts in Psych. I feel after being exposed to his passion and great teaching skills, allowed me to look at psych in a whole different way. I had heard from previous students about their experiences at Mindful, but I still had my doubts. The idea of a psych urgent care did not make much sense to me before my experience. However, after working at Mindful I realized it isn’t just an emergent medication refill stop, its actually much more. For patients who needed mental help and don’t know where to start, Mindful provides a bridge to care they need. During my rotation I met children, parents and spouses whom were so very thankful for the care they received at Mindful. I met people who walked into the office feeling hopeless about their situation, and I watched Nick give them hope. I was also able witnessed patients coming off of medications, once they were ready and felt more stable.

The best part about this rotation was you were able to feel like a real provider and not just a student. I would see the patients first and after I developed a plan Nick would see them and initiate the plan. He emphasized the importance of feeling like a true provider, especially since it was my last rotation. He really puts a huge effort into preparing us for the real world and I admire that about him. Leaving this rotation, I feel so much stronger in terms of psych medications, diagnosis, interventions and how to interact with patient with different mental conditions. It was not until my last week until I realized how much I had learned. During my last week Nick said something to me that will stay with me through the rest of my profession. He said “ Toor your compassion for patients is your strength and it’s what makes you a great provider”. My goal is to stay compassionate and empathetic towards my patients throughout my profession no matter what I chose to go into. The amount of gratitude I received from patients after encounters showed me how important it is in the medical profession. I will continue to work on my skills as a medical provider throughout my profession as a PA, and I am thankful for all the experience I gained throughout my rotations.

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