I have finished week 5 at UPMC Shadyside and I have
loved it here! They are a genitourinary and a bone/soft tissue specialty
hospital. There are two PA’s at this
facility. One grosses all day and is available to answer questions from the
student and residents, and the other PA is on frozen section service so what
they get done during the day varies depending on the surgery schedule.
I have grossed a lot of “firsts” here! I got to gross a leg amputation for a giant
cell tumor, a portion of femur for osteosarcoma, a few soft tissue sarcomas, a
testicle for tumor, a bunch of kidneys, and a ton of bladders! For a while, all
the bladder specimens consisted of cystoprostatectomies from a male where they
take the bladder and the prostate in one specimen so I have gotten really good
at those, but this week I got two cystohysterectomies! Both of these specimens consisted of the
bladder, uterus, bilateral fallopian tubes and ovaries, and a portion of
anterior vaginal wall! I was pretty
excited to get that specimen under my belt as well! The genitourinary specimens get triaged and
fixed overnight. For kidneys and
testicles, that means we bivalve them and place them back in formalin. For bladders, we measure, ink, open, probe
the ureters, and pin out the specimen on a cork board. Here at Shadyside, we get a lot of experience
grossing and triaging which is a good skill to have!
I can’t believe it is getting closer to graduation
already! My classmates and I have been
having job interviews by phone and onsite! I know of at least one person who
has even accepted a job offer which is super exciting! It’s that time of year so more exciting
things are going to keep on happening!
Keep us in your thoughts as big decisions are being made!
