Where are you placed this year?
Kaiser Permanente – Union City (East SF Bay Area)
Describe your "typical" day (or lack of "typical" day)
Our clinic serves a large and diverse population in the Bay Area, so every day is unique and challenging. A typical week at Kaiser will have me on adult/pediatric audiological evaluations for 2 days, adult/pediatric hearing aids for 2 days, and 1 day of specialties which may include cochlear implant programming/assessment, vestibular assessment (VNG + vHIT), ABR diagnostics, newborn hearing screenings, and osseointegrated devices. We also have monthly meetings with the ENT team and a quarterly meeting with a multidisciplinary balance clinic. I've obtained temporary licensure in California that allows me to have my own patient schedule for audiograms, which are reviewed by my preceptors. Eventually, I will have my own hearing aid patient schedule too. I love the degree of independence this provides and the opportunity to establish patients under my care while still having support available when needed.
What's something important that you've learned at your placement so far?
As a student extern, you may have a planned schedule for the day, but what you end up doing may be very different. Cancelations, sudden SNHLs, last-minute ototoxicity monitoring, walk-in hearing aid "emergencies", and challenging pediatric patients may require your attention. I've learned that while it's important to prepare for the day, it's also important to prepare for not being prepared. Our training has given us all the tools we need to be successful, so don't be afraid to say "yes" when an opportunity presents itself even if you're not feeling prepared in that moment.