The Woman for the Job

We received our internship assignments today. I, as student “G”, was assigned to Community Nutrition at the Health Department first, then to Management at Bryan East, then to Clinical at Madonna. I didn’t have any specific places I really wanted to go and I didn’t have any problems with where I’d been assigned, so I smiled, nodded, and didn’t think much of it. Then Dr. K said “I’ve assigned Rebekah and Zainab to Madonna because they’re going to be really busy with getting all the state and federal paperwork ready and all that, so they really need highly-motivated self-starters with some experience. They’re pretty much going to train you a couple of weeks and then for the rest of the rotation, you’ll just handle a normal caseload. So I thought Zainab and Rebekah would be good matches for that facility.”

I was certainly honored to be thus singled (doubled?) out among my peers, but what gave her the impression that I’m that good? I haven’t had a lot of interaction with Dr. K so far–I wasn’t a PeerNet student and I’m not one of her advisees. I met her twice before entering the program but didn’t really talk with her much. And even now, all she’s really seen of me is at our weekly meetings (and I don’t really feel that I’ve put forth my best side at those either.) So what makes her think that I’ll be qualified for such a thing?

Did I misrepresent myself somewhere on my application for the internship? Or maybe one of my references said more about me than I would say for myself. Or did my lengthy resume give the impression that I’m more experienced than I really am? I don’t know.

It’s not that I don’t think I can do it. I’ll study hard this semester and rise to the occasion. I’ll make Dr. K and the program proud. But why should I somehow be more qualified or experienced to jump into independent work in clinical dietetics than the rest of my classmates? That’s what I’m not sure about.

Well, one way or another, I have been chosen. So now, I have the opportunity to rise to the challenge. I now have even more impetus to practice my enteral and TPN calculations, to learn and memorize those lab values, to develop effective reference materials for myself. I have a reason (or more of a reason) to practice going through the nutrition care process and charting material. I now have even more of a reason to learn to speak (and read and write) medical terminology as second nature. Because I’m going to prove that I AM the woman for the job.