36 hour shifts?!

[OSUdoc08]

I personally prefer tea. It's milder and there is more of a variety in flavor. You should try it some time.

Agreed. I drink tea by the gallon.

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[Trismegistus4]

You get new patients that you have to examine, admit, write orders for, etc.

These patients that are new in the middle of the night... I'm assuming they come in via the ER, correct?

Patients get sick at different times. And yes emergencies come in 24/7. People aren't always considerate enough to have their gunfights or heart attacks or car accidents or respiratory distress, or apendicitis or babies during the 9 to 5 work day. Go figure.
(If your post was serious, you really should find a way to shadow a doctor or volunteer someplace in the hospital overnight. You will be enlightened.)

Perhaps; that's an interesting prospect. I've never thought of doing that before.

Don't get me wrong; I'm not assuming that people only get sick or have accidents during the day. It's just hard to fathom that even in the middle of the night, the frequency of emergencies/things that need to be attended to immediately is so great that you literally never get a spare minute all night long. At least, on some services. I mean, if you're doing obstetrics or trauma surgery, obviously, but general internal medicine?

 

[MarzMD]

I work in the ER right now. The patient flow is like any other job. Very slow early in the morning, gradually getting more and more busy until it peaks at around 1-3 pm. Also, less people tend to come in on holidays and during bad weather. You have to remember that a good chunk of ER visits are people that should be going to their PCP, and come in with some symptom x several weeks. Because of this, they pick the most convenient time to come in. Yes there are traumas that come in late night, but how many people are actually out driving or shooting someone at 4 am?

*note that this is in a small city

 

[riceman04]

Do they seriously make residents and doctors work for 36 hours like on ER? I can barely stay away for 8 hours and I hate coffee. I am in trouble!

hell no
Resident at HUP (UPenn's Hospital) ER work 12hr shifts...hahahaha...36 hours

 

[dbhvt]

I am a PGY-4 general surgery resident. I am not a coffee drinker.

You just became my personal hero. How the hell do you do it?

 

[Law2Doc]

Yes there are traumas that come in late night, but how many people are actually out driving or shooting someone at 4 am?

*note that this is in a small city

Big cities are different.

 

[Law2Doc]

At least, on some services. I mean, if you're doing obstetrics or trauma surgery, obviously, but general internal medicine?

All those patients in the various ICUs aren't going to stick to a schedule in terms of when they decide to crash. They are all IM patients. If you have enough of them, someone is always in crisis.

 

[-Goose-]

I work in the ER right now. The patient flow is like any other job. Very slow early in the morning, gradually getting more and more busy until it peaks at around 1-3 pm. Also, less people tend to come in on holidays and during bad weather. You have to remember that a good chunk of ER visits are people that should be going to their PCP, and come in with some symptom x several weeks. Because of this, they pick the most convenient time to come in. Yes there are traumas that come in late night, but how many people are actually out driving or shooting someone at 4 am?

*note that this is in a small city

HA!

I work in an ER of a level 1 trauma center and I can attest that this place is nothing like what MarzMD described. Very variable from location to location.

 

[MarzMD]

HA!

I work in an ER of a level 1 trauma center and I can attest that this place is nothing like what MarzMD described. Very variable from location to location.

Yea, it gets pretty boring here for me. Im pretty sure it is a level 1 trauma center also. I cant imagine working somewhere like Grady Hospital though.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Yea, it gets pretty boring here for me. Im pretty sure it is a level 1 trauma center also. I cant imagine working somewhere like Grady Hospital though.

Especially since they pay less than a resident makes..

 

[Rafa]

I don't drink coffee. Not going to start just because of med school.

 

[Law2Doc]

I don't drink coffee. Not going to start just because of med school.

You will come over to the dark side in time...

 

[OSUdoc08]

I don't drink coffee. Not going to start just because of med school.

I quit drinking coffee when I quit working as a paramedic to start medical school. The only time I got less than 7 hours of sleep in my first 2 years of medical school was when I stayed up late watching sports or out at a bar.

 

[dbhvt]

You will come over to the dark side in time...

Yep, the MCAT did me in. I was an occasional coffee drinker for years. As of last summer, I'm addicted.

njbmd, HOW DO YOU DO IT?!

 

[xholliesterx]

I quit drinking coffee when I quit working as a paramedic to start medical school. The only time I got less than 7 hours of sleep in my first 2 years of medical school was when I stayed up late watching sports or out at a bar.

Holy crap, I hope I can get that much sleep in med school...I NEED MY SLEEP!

 

[xholliesterx]

Right. You ARE talking to premed students... we're smart people. We're not all "dinguses", but it's true there are plenty of people on here who are very critical of other people. It's to your benefit, however; these are the kind of criticisms that will pop up in your interviews and on your rotations. School of hard knocks -- have to learn to take it in stride and deal with the topic at hand instead of the people who are being critical.

It's not about asking questions -- people ask questions all the time -- but I think others have an issue with your comments and tone. You've started a couple different threads that sound a lot like, "Everybody look at me! I'm going to be a cardiologist! Look! Look!"

You would be annoyed if someone did that to you too. It's great that you admire the heart. But you may become a cardiologist. You may get the fellowship. Just acknowledge the uncertainty and say you're hopeful like the rest of us.

You're just as sick of hearing "Well, we'll see how you feel about it once you're in medical school" as people are sick of hearing "If I don't become X doctor, MY LIFE IS OVER." Your life would not be over. There's no reason to be that dramatic except to draw attention to yourself. It's futile anyway -- it's not like someone is going to let you be a cardiologist because they feel bad for you... "Oh, she said she'd die if she couldn't be a cardiologist, we should make her one." There are better ways to show that you are passionate about the field.

I would hope you could just be cool about it. If people ask you, you can say, "Yes, I intend to apply to med school and follow my interest in cardiology." No one will hold that against you.

And if you still think I'm an dingus, I don't know what to tell you. Just my perspective, for better or for worse, from a guy who KNOWS he doesn't know everything.

Well I'm sorry if I am too passionate about what I want to do for you people. If I came off as trying to draw attention I certainly am not, I just got on studentdoctor.net and have a lot of questions. I am finding out a lot of things I did not know so I won't stop asking a million questions because I am annoying people, that is for sure! I am a very determined person and I just meant that I know I will get whatever I go for because I want it that badly.

 

[SoCuteMD]

Well I'm sorry if I am too passionate about what I want to do for you people. If I came off as trying to draw attention I certainly am not, I just got on studentdoctor.net and have a lot of questions. I am finding out a lot of things I did not know so I won't stop asking a million questions because I am annoying people, that is for sure! I am a very determined person and I just meant that I know I will get whatever I go for because I want it that badly.

Seriously chica, TONE IT DOWN. News flash: we all want it that bad.

 

[deleted50541]

Yes there are traumas that come in late night, but how many people are actually out driving or shooting someone at 4 am?

I rarely responded to MVCs in the evenings when working the 6pm to 6am shift as an EMT. There were a handful though and bad ones at that too. What I really hated were the calls that woke me from a nice slumber to attend to some drunk minor.

My favorite call was the one where a 16 y/o girl had been drinking a little too much JD and she passed out so her friends drove around in a convertible with the top down, in winter mind you, to wake her up. Hence, when we got to the scene, we now had a minimally responsive, hypothermic patient on our hands.

Genius idea, kids.

 

[Bluntman]

Well I'm sorry if I am too passionate about what I want to do for you people. If I came off as trying to draw attention I certainly am not, I just got on studentdoctor.net and have a lot of questions. I am finding out a lot of things I did not know so I won't stop asking a million questions because I am annoying people, that is for sure! I am a very determined person and I just meant that I know I will get whatever I go for because I want it that badly.

Seriously chica, TONE IT DOWN. News flash: we all want it that bad.

I second what socuteMD said!

 

[penguinophile]

Well I'm sorry if I am too passionate about what I want to do for you people. If I came off as trying to draw attention I certainly am not, I just got on studentdoctor.net and have a lot of questions. I am finding out a lot of things I did not know so I won't stop asking a million questions because I am annoying people, that is for sure! I am a very determined person and I just meant that I know I will get whatever I go for because I want it that badly.

Before you post new threads, try searching the forums. chances are about 95% of your questions have already been answered.