The Intern-al Journey

Long ago, when the new order world was being formed.. the wise men came to a conclusion that a healer or otherwise known as a ‘doctor’ is an essential part of the human society-[sigh] and thus the birth of the world of medicine.
So what does it take to be a doctor? A brief overview for non medicos.

First year...
A tough year where u have to get used to dead bodies soaked in formalin, the pervading smell of formalin itself, get used to the voluminous books and an undiscovered world of medical jargon.
Anatomy - study of normal human body. Both macro and micro versions!
Physiology - study of normal human functioning.
Bio Chemistry - study of normal human metabolic cycles, cellular structure, genetics etc.

Second year....(actually it is more than a year)
Just when u give yourself a pat on the back for making it thru first year…things start to go wrong. Actually this is the year we study about what all can go wrong with the human body. so...

Pathology - The abnormalities that take place in different organs of the body and cause disease..
Microbiology – The micro organisms that affect the body and cause disease.
Pharmacology – Drugs and medicines used to treat the diseases.
Forensic Medicine - Criminology, medical laws, toxins and poisons, autopsies….you get it!

Third year... This year is actually 2 years. These two years is what the lay man thinks MBBS is all about.

Preventive and Social Medicine – Medical Statistics, national and international medical programs, self explanatory actually…

Otorhinolaryngology – Diseases of the ear, nose and throat and management of the same.

Opthalmology – Diseases of the eye and its management.

Medicine – Diseases of other organs  and their management

Surgery – Operative management of diseases.

Paediatrics – Children, their diseases and management.

Obstetric and gynaecology – Management of women both pregnant and non-pregnant.

So that is 1+1 1/2+ 2 = 4 ½ years of mind boggling amount of knowledge. An approximate 25.7 kg of textbook weight! (And this is the bare minimum).

You’ve just waded through a sea of knowledge and you see the glistening white sand of the snow…
‘Ah! I have reached my destination,’ you think. The pristine shore beckons you. The land of ‘Doctordom’! But just as you step on the sandy beach of ‘Doc-Land’….OUCH!! Internship!

Internship is the interim period between being a medical student and being a registered medical practitioner.

The proverbial sandy beach joining the sea to the land. The scorching sand, which leave blisters on your feet. And so we interns have to hobble, skip, jump, stumble, limp, through internship.

Internship by the way lasts for 6 months for dentists and 12 months for MBBS students.