Diary of a Girl from Seattle

No Man's Land

Dear Diary, 

I entered new territory today, explored the unknown inside the walls of Seattle Grace Hospital. I came right to the hospital from school, I walked since it’s only 8 blocks away. Walking through the doors I felt an overwhelming rush of excitement. I was supposed to be meeting Dr. Webber in his office, so I wandered through the hospital looking for where it could be. Finally I found it and went in to meet with him.

He explained the rules of my shadowing. I am allowed to shadow anyone I want as long they agree. I am allowed everywhere in the hospital except for the OR, but I am allowed in the gallery. I obviously can’t try to make medical decisions or suggestions to patients. I am allowed to put my school things in an unused locker, usually for interns, since I will be coming right from school. Then he asked me who I wanted to shadow. I told him I wanted to shadow Dr. Stevens, so he paged her to his office.

It turned out Dr. Stevens, or Izzie as she told me to call her, had a patient with prostate cancer who needed his prostate taken out. I told her that sounded interesting, and she explained the procedure as we walked to the patient’s room. When we got there he was being prepped for surgery. I noticed Izzie hesitate to enter the room. Dr. Bailey approached us and asked Izzie if the patient was being prepped. She said that she believed so. Dr. Bailey said that she would know if she had been in the room, and then went in herself. I followed Dr. Bailey into the room with Izzie close behind.

 I had just begun to take in everything going on around me when the patient started yelling for Izzie to get out of the room. At first I thought that he was talking about me but I soon realized that he was looking right at Dr. Stevens, who immediately left the room. I wasn’t sure where I was supposed to go, did I stay in the room or follow Izzie out? Dr. Bailey exited the patient’s room so I decided to follow her out.

 She and Izzie went into the office nearby while I waited outside the door. I overheard Izzie saying that she modeled for Bethany Whisper and the spread just came out. I couldn’t quite hear what Dr. Bailey said after that. While I was standing outside the office I glanced at the clock and realized that it was almost 9:00. When Drs. Bailey and Stevens exited the office I told them that I was heading home and that I would be back in the morning before school. They said goodbye and I headed to the locker room to grab my light blue backpack and walked the mile and a half back to my house of Brookstone drive.

I saw that my mom’s car wasn’t in the drive way when I approached our two story home, so I figured that she was still at work. My mom’s a lawyer and often works late hours so going to bed before she comes home isn’t an uncommon event. I walked into the kitchen with its red walls and granite countertops and opened up the fridge. I pulled out some leftover pizza and sat down at the island to eat. I talked to my dad for a little while, and even though I know he couldn’t hear me I still like to pretend that maybe he can. I know that if he knew I was shadowing at Seattle Grace he would be proud. I climbed into bed and that brings me to now. So goodnight!

-          Mattie

 Dear Diary (or piece of paper in the back of my geometry notebook),

I know I usually write at night but I feel like I need to write so I’m taking time during study hall to make a quick entry. I left my house this morning at 5:00. I said goodbye to my mom, grabbed my backpack, and hopped on my skateboard to ride over to Seattle Grace Hospital. I went straight to the locker room to drop off my stuff and figure out who I was going to shadow today.

 As I entered the room I saw pictures of Izzie from the Bethany Whisper shoot plastered to the walls. Every inch of the intern locker room seemed to be covered with Dr. Stevens posing in lingerie. The doctors were already in the room changing into their blue scrubs and laughing at the pictures surrounding them. The crowd suddenly became extra loud and I realized that Izzie had just entered the room. Alex was a complete jerk about the whole thing and I’m guessing that he’s behind the pictures. Izzie went off on him like lit dynamite.

 I admire her self-confidence and strength. So many girls and women would have reacted much differently. With that being said, I feel really bad for Izzie because she’s a great doctor and how she paid to go to medical school doesn’t need to be displayed over the entire hospital. Anyway study hall is just about over so more later on what this afternoon brings me at the hospital.              

-          Mattie