You Can Call Me Mouse

Well the title of this post is no lie- and it is not talking about me, it is a direct quote from one of the patients I saw at the VA. I wasn't sure how to pronounce this patient's name so I asked her and she told me to call her Mouse. That left me speechless to say the least and that wasn't the last of weird events of the day. We had to start out with a PA of #24- I feel pretty confident with PAs considering that is all I take at work. I explained to her what I was doing and why and she replied with, "I already know what you are doing" in a very sarcastic, annoyed tone. After that I knew it was going to be a long appointment. She started out very rude and cold. She needed anesthetic and she was nearly impossible to get numb. She also need nitrous. She was nearly impossible to get numb and needed multiple carpules to finally get her comfortable. She had a large amount of calculus on the lower anteriors and she ended up being a Class III on the mandible and a Class II on the maxilla. About three fourths of the way through the appointment I heard a cat meowing and my first thought was that "Mouse" was hiding a cat somewhere in her- that gives you an even better idea of what kind of patient she was. I started looking around but she told me to keep going. Finally I couldn't hold it anymore and I had to stop because I couldn't contain my laughter. I don't know why it struck me as so funny but it did then "Mouse" started laughing with me! I couldn't believe it! It ended being the notification on her phone for when she gets a text message- what a relief. But the meowing cat ended up being the trick to cracking her. She not only laughed with me but started to talk to me instead of ignoring me. She told me about her wife and why people call her "Mouse"- she has small round ears. I had to leave some deposits on the interproximals of the lower molars because she was starting to get uncomfortable but my professor said she was good to go. I didn't necessarily learn much instrumentation wise but patient management I learned a ton. I can't be timid and I need to realize that sometimes it takes a little bit to break patients in. "Mouse" will definitely be a patient that I will never forget. She made for an interesting day but I learned a ton. Until next time..