Preliminary Project Thoughts

Essential Question: How can I realistically predict the use of technology in operation rooms in the future?

What I will need to know: I will need to know, of course, what the status of the most current innovations in surgical technology is. I’m trying to research what a general setup in today’s nicest OR’s is like, and through this research try to narrow down on a certain branch of surgery. For example, the phacoemulsifier machine is the cotton gin of cataract surgery; a huge time-saver and accuracy booster for the operation. I will need to find out more about upcoming projects, and then start making my own predictions and hypotheses afterwards.

How will I use technology to showcase my project: I plan on using a computer and an animoto/squidoo/prezi like program to create an aesthetically appealing presentation. I also plan on doing some sort of handout of brochure, but in a way that it’s not like every other brochure. I hope to also come across another type of technology where I could somehow virtually create a model of my ideas.

What will I do for my real inquiry: I will first and foremost “interview” my mentor for his ideas and thoughts on upcoming technology, as he’s the one who helped prompt me to do this as a final project. I can then ask some of the PA’s, AA’s, or non-busy MD’s around the surgery center for their opinion on the future of technology. I will document all of my findings. From here I can conduct “normal” research and start a pathway to new ideas and answers.

Struggling With Lies and Envy

Envy. One of the most widespread and rampant sins in the bible, and to this day a sin that everyone struggles with. While envy is far from what we as humans should feel, Ms. Rubin was correct is pointing out that the emotion can lead us to discover important truths about ourselves. An example I have is my on and off envy of my friends’ parents who don’t ride and pester them so much about school, but I have discovered that I would be much lower on the academic totem pole if it wasn’t for that persistence. When it comes to lying, I’m guilty of absent-mindedly telling half-truths to my parents about various things, and it’s made me realize that the trouble that comes after doing such would be much easier to avoid if I had just told the truth. Even if a self-evaluation is tough to do, like above, it definitely opens your eyes to a side of your own personality that you would never know normally.   

New Year/New Word

OPEN

Open is my word of the year simply because it highlights one of my biggest fears: failure. This year I will yearn to be open to new ideas and projects, and to escape my “norm”. I will be open to others; to be someone they can relate to and get along with. I will open the doors that provide the risk of trying something new, even if it means failure along the way. 

Thoughts on What's Broken in our Society

I really enjoyed Seth Godin’s take on “broken” things because I can relate to his experiences of seeing something and saying “WHAT?” Personally, I’ve always questioned the placement of certain Braille characters, especially in places where I highly doubt a blind person would be. One time I even saw Braille on a sign marking a janitor’s closet.Yeah, a blind janitor would make sense. Another thing that makes little sense to me is the use of the yellow “Caution: Wet Floor” signs. Assuming that the slippery part of the floor extends farther than the sign, using more than one of those things practically turns the area into a minefield. All I see are the little yellow signs, and I have to tiptoe around them, hoping I don’t slip up.

            When it comes to modern day education, almost the entire thing seems broken to me. How many times have I been taught something and thought to myself, “Self, when am I ever going to use this?” I’m an advocate of narrowing down career choices at an earlier stage. Why do we consistently waste time learning stuff that may never pertain to us? I do understand certain aspects of learning seemingly random stuff, but I also often wonder how much time I’m wasting. I also think school is broken in the way that it has become unappealing by its redundancy. I feel that there are other ways to approach education besides the boring mess that it is now. I don’t think that school should be something that anyone should dread. More interaction and different classroom settings are things that would extend the already short attention span of the average teenager. While I am a proponent of “not fixin’ it if it ain’t broke”, school is something that should be constantly changed for the betterment of its pupils. Why settle for anything less?    

Essential Questioon

Essential Question

How has modern technology sculpted the operating room, and how will I implement it into my life in the future?

Q: Why did you select this as your essential question? As I have experienced different procedures at GSC this year, the thing that has caught my eye in each was the “super-fancy” machinery that has assisted each doctor. It’s easy to take advances in medicines for granted, and these robotic-life savers deserve credit. It’s scary to imagine a life void of the technology that allows my body to be cut into without much pain and effort on my end. Technology is always advancing and moving forward at a rapid pace, especially in the medical field, and I’m interested in what health professionals have in store for us.

Q: What excites you most about finding the answer to this essential question? The introduction of new surgical devices compares much to the anticipation of the next iPhone or virtual game system. I know over the course of my life that my body will experience much physical harm, and it’s exciting to imagine a day where breaking a leg is as painless to fix as slapping a band-aid on a cut. I look forward to seeing the ideas that people have dreamed for a much more efficient and safe future in healthcare. I’m also hoping to formulate my own ideas for a product that could change our future dramatically, whether I could realistically make it or not. The future is an exciting, and these advances are some of the reasons why.

Q: Do you feel that this question accurately reflects a desire/need that you have to find out more about this topic? As I stated, healthcare technology is constantly and upgrading. Researching all that there is in the world of health is a never ending process that will consistently lead me to new technology that will fry my thinking mind. I’m very interested in learning of the history of technology in the operating room. It will be interesting as to how it will affect my life, whether I’m the one using the power saw or the one being mutilated by the power saw. When I’m an old man, will I have my own robotic assistant to help me each day? Will doctor’s offices be outdated, and everything be available from the comfort of our homes? These are questions I hope to answer, and hope will lead me to the answer of my own essential question.

Thoughts on Modern Schooling

One of the saddest parts in a human life is the sometimes obvious wastes in natural talent and passion. Dr. Robinson made valid points on why our education system needs reformation. There are too many cases of people milling through life unhappy, yet afraid to make any radical change to their career. A lot of this has to do with the school systems way of sheltering the youth from experiencing how many different careers are out there, and how there’s more than just being an astronaut or a fry cook. Mentorship’s and other high school career programs have quickly become the leading cause for the drop in the usual “indecisive twenty-something’s” and the increase in confident, experienced, and prepared new-generation workforce.

            What would I study/pursue if I had unlimited time and resources? I would definitely take my musical interests and abilities to the next level. For over 3 years I have been dedicating late nights to learning the guitar. I have recently gotten involved in a “band” with some friends, and I enjoy it immensely. My main problems are lack of time and space to practice. If I had unlimited funds I would build a studio and new equipment and spend my days playing, writing, learning, and producing. This would be something that I would wake up super early everyday to do.

            Which has more influence, Aptitude or Attitude? This is an easy answer and goes back to what I said at the beginning. Attitude makes all the difference. Many people have the aptitude and ability, but don’t have the drive/courage to pursue what they’re good at. It’s easy for someone with aptitude to sit around and achieve nothing, but someone with the right mindset and always accomplish their goals.

             What is the purpose of someone who is going to start a massage school to annotate a book? This is the fundamental problem of school nowadays. Too much emphasis is put on learning the standard that years of schooling has brought forth and not enough of tailoring each individual student at achieving what they were born to do, even if that means being a farmer. Kids drop and flunk out of school not because they are lazy and apathetic, but because they don’t understand how what they are doing will ever help them achieve what they want to be doing. The school system needs to rid itself of the “standard”, and divulge in discovering the secret talents its pupils possess, even if this means no books get annotated.

            My mentorship has helped me tremendously on allotting my time and effort and figuring out how to compact a booked schedule to keep me from being bald from stress. I’ve learned how to communicate with professionals and schedule my time in a way that is efficient for school, work, mentorship, and of course my thriving high school social life. While some weeks are hectic, what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger, and I’ve definitely seen myself mature in the three plus months I’ve been in the program. Hopefully at the end of the year I will have a much better grasp on my future, and walk into it with confidence and appreciation.

Analysis of Collegeboard Survey

            The hard part of the college-picking game is figuring out which college has which program to offer whatever it is I want at a price I can handle. The problem is that there are too few colleges in the U.S. to be nit-picky about where to go, but enough that I can find the ones that very closely suit my needs. I took the college survey on collegeboard.com, and picked my preferences to their detailed question (there were a lot that I couldn’t even be sure of my preference on). Collegeboard spat out some solid colleges in north Georgia that tailor to the future plans that I have laid out as of now.

            I’m looking heavily into North Georgia College and State University, but am also weighing my options with Kennesaw State and Georgia State. These colleges and 10 others came up as possible choices from the survey. They all offer Bachelor Degrees in nursing, and some of these are online. NGCSU’s BSN program is approved by the Georgia Board of Nursing and accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission. North Georgia has roughly 5500 students, and I prefer a smaller class size. It’s located near my house, accepts HOPE scholarship while at an already reasonable entrance price. They also award undergraduates 71% of student aid through scholarships.

            NGCSU is a smaller college and doesn’t receive much national spotlight. It’s ranked at a solid #56 (southern region; calculated by school size, funding, etc…) in the USNews.com rankings, but has over the years earned the title of “military school”. After speaking with three different doctors at my mentorship, however, the school was number one on all three of their lists on where to attend for a nursing degree. They said that with the low number of nurses in the U.S., getting a BSN at North Georgia almost guarantees a job right out of the gate. Considering that I’m not attending college for the experience, this sounds right up my alley. I plan on visiting those three colleges in the near future, and hopefully making a good decision on which is the best for me.