Ins and Outs of Being an Intern

Question

How will things change as I transition from medical student to intern?

Response from Graham Walker, MD
Chief Resident, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, New York

As an intern, you are the primary patient data collector. It's probably the most important part of the team. Welcome to the role.

Your first days as an intern may seem like just another medical school rotation; you're still writing notes, but what you write matters much more now. Your team will rely on you to know your patients and their numbers inside out, so if you say the creatinine is trending down, it better be.

Transitioning to INTERNSHIP

In less than 60 days, I will be going into internship and most of my posts will also be transitioning about internship and hospital duty. Thanks for your continued support.

MedicalStudent soon to be MedicalIntern... Hopefully...

Post-Exam Remorse and Realizations

PhotoCredit: Well.Blogs.Nytimes.com

I just made it out of an Exam this day and I just woke up right now. Being in Medical School, the stress of taking an exam and the usual remorse of not studying enough is not an unusual feeling. You can say that it's a cycle that will repeat over and over again and nothing will ever make you become immune of it. It's become of this that I realized a few things that I'd like to share to everyone that you may not or may have realized already:

1. Things don't always work out as you planned in Med School. I've realized this lesson each time I do things and in fact I can fairly conclude that it should be part of a Medical Student's life. It is the norm rather than the exception. There are far too numerous factors that can be in play that will make our lives as uncertain as it's already is ranging from self-deserving consultants, toxic-bringing residents, inconsiderate professors, unsupportive classmates, uncooperative family or your own lazy self. 
2. You cannot give up. After a disappointing exam, you pick yourself up and move on. There is basically nothing you could do about it anyway that you should have done before the exams. It's already too late to undo things that have past and energies are better spent on preparing for things to come. So stop moping, eat your comfort food or have a satisfying sleep, then get over it.

Accepting the Inevitable

All are in the mood of merrymaking, decorations are everywhere, I hear carols on the radio, even the TV is singing Merry Christmas, and yet here I am, with my handy dandy notebook, notes, highlighter and ballpen - STUDYING for my exams on the day our vacation ends.


It's not uncommon I guess for medical students to miss out on important events, be late on occasions or having no idea at all of happenings all around them. With the constant wave of exams and lectures, with the unending reports and case studies, it's easy to say that medical students cannot afford to care for anything else than studies. It may be depressing to think about it but it's the reality of being and wanting to be a doctor. In fact, it can safely be concluded that it would be terribly worse during internships, residency or even after practicing as consultants. 

The Art of Expectations in the Emergency Room

This article caught my attention as an intern once relayed to me his experience in the Emergency Room wherein the patient, after all that had been done for them, complained and maligned the interns and the staff of the ER. As unfair as it may seem, the disconnect between patient's expectations against hospital protocol may well be the very reason of this incidences. Or I may be wrong... nevertheless, this article is worth reading...


The Art of (Emergency) Medicine

Jeffrey Wonoprabowo, Medical Student

I had seen the patient. I had come up with my assessment and plan. I discussed it with a senior resident and now it was time to present it to the attending. As I wrapped up what I thought was a fairly decent patient presentation, my attending asked me what the patient wanted. I stammered. What the patient wanted? Wasn’t that obvious? They come in to the Emergency Department with a chief complaint and we’re supposed to fix it. Right?

Pre-Clerkship Exposure Duty Rotations

PhotoCredit: MedObserver.Com

          Our exposure duty this year had been extended to 6 months instead of the usual 3 months as a result, I presume, of the first ever student consultation spearheaded by our first alumni dean of the college. The purpose of which is suppose to orient us and make us be prepared for our upcoming internship duties in a few months to come.
          One thing I learned about these duties are they are basically WORTHLESS. Basically we don't do anything and instead we answer to the whims of the residents on duty. We do whatever they say in the absence of real work that may prepare us for the grueling work we will do as interns. It's good for those like me who had hospital experiences during our pre-medical course but for those who haven't, it's totally a purposeless.
          For the benefit of those who would otherwise learn from these experiences, I will try to give out some tips to make it a rewarding and a learning one:

Recovering from a Bad Evaluation

Question

I received negative feedback from my most recent rotation, and I'm trying not to freak out. What should I do?

Response from Alisa R. Gutman, MD, PhD Psychiatry Resident, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

It's no secret that medical students are used to doing things right, so there are few things as difficult as being told that you've done something wrong. Even worse is getting serious negative feedback in writing. Here are some tips for learning from a negative evaluation without letting it rewrite how you see yourself.