Thursday, January 4, 2018

back to the reality of being frustrated

I officially kicked off a new term of dental school this week. I was already worried about getting back to the reality of starting this trimester because I have to deal with this not so little issue . Also, I get to begin studying for the second part of the national board exam. Class just began on Tuesday and there is already so much stress and drama, ha! So please don't mind my little rant below. I just have to get this out so I don't scream because contrary to this smile, I am beyond frustrated with dental school right now. Here's why....
The school shortened our Christmas holiday this year. Fine. But the schedule for the new year wasn't done on time and we ended up with only 90 minutes of class on Tuesday and an hour of class on Wednesday. Really? We came back 2 days early for 2 hours of class. It's just a waste not to consolidate that into next weeks' schedule and give the students a much needed break. I for one, would have planned to spend more time with my husband that lives 700+ miles away. But wait, it gets worse. We've had a this massive winter storm with snow and ice that we are just not equipped to deal with here in the South. Since we have some autonomy over our own schedules, I made an executive decision on Wednesday to cancel all of my patients for Thursday. I figured that if I had to be at the dental school today, so be it. I used to live in Boston and Philadelphia, I have experience driving in these conditions. But its not something I was going to ask my patients to do.  Because of our strict cancellation policy, many were afraid to cancel themselves. So I would deal with the consequences of this decision, whatever they would be. Turns out, I made the right call because the dental school was indeed closed today. But they announced it a whooping 19 minutes before class and clinics were to start. Many of my classmates were already there or en route. But more importantly, patients were already making their way to the dental school too. I'm disappointed with this whole situation and how it impacted everyone, particularly the patients. Thankfully, Friday was called as snow day as well because the roads are still horrible and there will be freezing rain tonight. We got news this evening, so that's a bit better with enough time to give proper notice to patients. On one hand, I get to enjoy an extended winter break after all, but I'm also so frustrated with these last minute decisions and poor planning. I'm trying to stay positive because the term just started and its a new year and I am so very grateful to be in dental school pursing my dream job and blah blah blah. But I can't help but to also feel so frustrated by this scenario. Hopefully, getting to rest up tomorrow can help me get out of this mood. How do you guys tackle a frustruating situation and change up your attitudes when you're in a bad mood? 

2 comments:

  1. Oh, girl, I'm so with you!
    We drove from CT back to OH through the night (a 14 hr drive) because Theo had to be in court. Court lasted 4 MINUTES. Seriously. Then, I totally get you on these cancellation/weather issues- Heavenly has been out of school for four days now and they keep cancelling school right at 6am. I'm beyond frustrated- I'll just drive ALL the kids to school lol. Hopefully tomorrow there will be school!
    Hopefully your week is going much better than last!

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    1. Wow that's ridiculous. I mean, I know you never quite know how long court will last but 4 minutes? I think there are too many consequences for the school to cancel which isn't fair because not everyone is as lucky and has a mama like you that can stay with them, some parents would need enough notice to get a sitter

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