i don’t want to hear about your shopping
“Hello, I am a medical student. I have been assigned to join you for clinic today and afterwards, you need to fill out an evaluation of my performance that I need to take with me when I leave.”
[Fast forward 9 hours]
“And now that clinic is over for the day, here is my evaluation form. It should take no more than 2 minutes to fill out and seal in that envelope and then I will be out of your hair.”
How often do I find myself 2 minutes from being done for the day, and then the attending physician starts talking to the resident in the room about something ridiculous such as where they like to go shopping… For the next 30 minutes. Helloooo???? The evaluation form in your hand… Could you please fill it out? Just check off the lowest grade in each category–whatever–just let me get out of here–or at least talk about something medicine-related from which I might learn something.
Oh! You’re done–no, no, no, don’t start calling your spouse on the phone to see who’s picking up the kids! This will take you 2 minutes–15 seconds if you just mark off the lowest score for each and sign it.
Geez, that kills me. It’s like, does anyone here remember what it was like to be a medical student? I’m pretty sure I told you all 5 times that I have a big exam in 3 days.
I found myself in this situation a few days ago. After I sat through a 30 minute discussion of places to shop in Vail, Colorado, the resident left and the attending started to fill out my form. A minute later, the resident came back and the attending dropped my form–half finished, unsigned–so they could talk about something else.
Am I missing something here or is this as ridiculous as it seemed to me? When I mention this stuff to buddies who are in or have finished residency, the answer is: of course medical students get treated like crap–that’s just how it is. I never know if that’s a joke or not. Perhaps, there’s my answer right there. I hope when I’m a resident and, later, an attending I have the decency to not make my medical students stand there listening to me gossip or talk about personal (i.e. not related to patient care or medical education) matters with other colleagues. But then again, maybe I won’t because “that’s just how it is.”
January 27th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
haha,how true. even worse when you spent time waiting and all that came back was not what you deserved!