Hello to everyone! I hope you enjoyed your summer and are ready
for what appears to be a great fall season!
I was able to relax a bit, recharge, hike some trails back home,
and be the first person at the top of Mt. Mitchell (highest point
east of the Mississippi at 6,683 feet) for sunrise one morning
during a hike. The view was incredibly beautiful and being able to
sit, think about the past few years of school, the challenges,
rewards and decisions to come while watching the sun rise over the
southern Appalachians was one of the more peaceful moments of the
past few years of my life.

At the same time during the break, I caught up on some personal
reading that I had put off for over two years as well as some
reorganizing, consolidating and reducing for the inevitable move in
about 8 months.
Now, for the homestretch in clinic!
Here is how the Naturopathic Clinic is currently structured:
- 6th Trimester - Observation
- 7th Trimester - Hydrotherapy Shift
- 8th, 9th, 10th Trimesters - Main Clinic
Previously, 8th Trimester interns could only see other students,
not the general public. This left many students with seeing a new
intern every four months as ONLY 8th trimester students could see
other students. So, when an Intern moved to 9th trimester, they
would transition the student patient to a rising 8th trimester
intern.
Now, students and the general public have the opportunity to see
interns beginning in 8th trimester, and, if the condition warrants,
remain with that intern for up to a full year. This helps to build
rapport and trust with the patient as well as helps the Intern with
seeing a resolution to more ailments than was previously
possible.
Finally, the most appealing aspect to this new structure, in my
opinion, is that now our naturopathic medicine students are
spending half of their education in a clinical setting! Again, in
my opinion, nothing trumps experience and "hands on" training when
learning a new skill!
Time to get back to the books! Talk to you next week!