Estevan wasn't his first choice, but he's happy that he ended up here since the medical externship experience he gained in the Energy City is pretty well priceless.
David Woloschuk hopes he'll be able to add a Dr. in front of his name soon, but in the meantime, the third-year Saskatoon medical student by way of the University of Regina, Regina General Hospital campus, left Estevan last Wednesday with a treasure trove of medical experience gained at a local clinic and St. Joseph's Hospital.
With Dr. Andre Grobler as his preceptor, Woloschuk said he picked up some very valuable lessons in the emergency ward and operating rooms at St. Joseph's Hospital and diagnosis rooms at the Estevan Medical Group clinic. He also spent time with Dr. Medhi Horri as well as Grobler, learning various facets of operating room procedures.
Woloschuk was in Estevan from June 5 to Aug. 7 as part of the provincial physician recruitment agency's Rural Externship Program.
The program has been established to provide work experience for medical students who are between their second and third year of studies in a four-year medical degree program.
The purpose of the program is to get the students interested in medical practice areas outside of Saskatoon and Regina where they could be particularly useful while familiarizing themselves with real medical practice conditions. Making contacts within the medical and city community doesn't hurt either, it was pointed out.
Being able to apply some clinical knowledge to real-life conditions was a rewarding experience, said Woloschuk since Grobler and Horri allowed him ample room to explore his skill sets without compromising the safety and security of patients and clients.
He got to be the first contact with many patients and was able to provide a diagnosis that would then be confirmed or challenged by the preceptor or another attending physician. The young medical student was also given the opportunity to suggest required treatments but was never authorized to sign any requisitions or to prescribe drugs or provide any orders for treatments.
"I wanted a hands-on experience, and I certainly got it," said Woloschuk in an interview that was conducted just prior to his departure for Regina and another semester of studies.
He received a good introduction into rural medical practice but, he admitted Estevan was not his first choice, or even his second. He ended up here almost by accident.
"I heard Kindersley was a good location for a hands-on experience, but they were short of doctors who could be preceptors. My next choice was Moose Jaw, but they didn't have room and then Assiniboia. Same thing.
By that time Woloschuk said he was getting a bit concerned. His window of opportunity for an externship was narrowing down and time was running out. He then heard that Weyburn would be a willing centre and he quickly agreed to that placement only to get a phone call, while he was packing, wondering if it would be OK with him if he was placed in Estevan instead. So it seems the Energy City was sort of the fifth choice.
It turned out to be a great one after all.
St. Joe's found him some living quarters right in the hospital, allowing him to avoid the wicked local housing dilemma, and he stepped right into the medical fray with nothing but positive results.
Well, there was one thing.
"Your streets here were a bit of a shock I'd say, but I guess that's the price you pay for having all those trucks going up and down them all day.
"It was really an enjoyable time. I was a little leery about meeting people, but I found everyone here pretty open and inviting," Woloschuk said.
The Saskatoon native, with family also living in Yorkton and Raymore, said he was happy to step into a rural environment once again.
"It was gratifying to work with others and have people trust me and work with me. It turned out as I hoped it would with lots of hands-on training. We get so much talk about medicine in the lecture theatres, it's great to see things and translate it in reality."
Being able to cope with patients who are angry, worried, happy, frustrated some of them all of the above, was an interesting experience for the doctor-to-be.
Following his fourth year of study, Woloschuk will enter into a residency program for two years or more if he decides to specialize.
He thought he wanted to get into surgical work, but seeing how exciting a family doctor's practice can be, he's having second thoughts. He can add to his skill sets if need be, to add general surgery if he ends up wanting to pursue that end of the profession.
But family medicine, he is convince now, could give him a wider scope of practice. He will avoid being pigeon-holed into certain areas of expertise, and he definitely won't be bored.
Woloschuk said he's looking at Prince Albert next for his residency in family medicine since it will provide him with an ample core of work. He said he's pretty well convinced that a rural practice will be in his future, and Estevan is definitely in the running since he's already met some terrific medical personnel and patients, so assimilating would be a lot easier in three or four years.
"Estevan is a good-sized centre for a doctor. It's the right population if you want to get hospital and operating room and emergency room experience without going overboard," he said.
A winter of lectures and clinical teaching experiences in Regina will be followed by another hospital experience in January with more work on the wards, and with additional skills, he'll be able to prescribe medications and treatments, but still under close supervision. When it comes time to do that, Woloschuk said, "I'll ask to come back here to Estevan."
Doing the morning rounds with Grobler and getting exposure to operating rooms and clinic experiences was invaluable, he said. His emergency room experiences also introduced him to other medical professionals and doctors too.
"My skill sets improved. I was able to see a lot of Dr. Grobler's patients before he did, and then he'd follow up, and I would find out what I should have done or what questions I should have asked and didn't ask. It was all very rewarding. I had never had a chance to do that before.
"I had an idea of what I wanted to do and learn and they accommodated me in Estevan. If I wanted to scrub up and step into the operating room, I could. Pediatrics got me involved two, I experienced a couple of deliveries.
The doctors were open to letting me try things and get involved, so I appreciated that."
Before he wrapped things up, Woloschuk said he received some valuable advice from Dr. Grobler who informed him that there was more to medicine and more to being a doctor than just working with your head down to the job all the time. There was the need to provide a balanced lifestyle, which meant he would enjoy the job more.
Going on call and working emergency with hospital staffers who were good to work with provided a wealth of experience he'll be able to carry into the next phase of study.
"The people in this city were very kind and very inviting I expect to be back," he said, hoping against hope that Estevan's city streets will be just as inviting by that time too.
