How accurate is peds as represented in Grey's Anatomy?

[frodohobo]

I'm thinking of going into peds/critical care but I havent exactly seen first hand what pediatric surgeons do vs pediatricians..sadly the only representation i've seen is what alex karev does on greys anatomy but he seems to do everything and I doubt that's true in reality.How much do you actually do, other than surgery, as a pediatric surgeon and vice versa for pediatricians?

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[Homunculus]

i quit watching the show early on when the surgical residents brushed aside a cavalier pediatrician (who missed some obvious diagnosis of a set ot triplets or something), saved the preemies, and then stood by and slept by and managed the kids in their isolettes. total BS.

so, i haven't seen the show to comment. but peds surgeons are for the most part less dingus-ish than their adult colleagues, and in general know a little more medicine. but not as much as the transplant peeps. a peds intensivist does everything except operate. peds surgeon will not manage (with the exception of post op stuff) meds, vents, lines, etc. they are pretty mutually exclusive for the most part.

--your friendly neighborhood grey's boycotting caveman

 

[Pipers]

Grey's is not very accurate in terms of scope of practice for pediatric surgeons vs pediatric hospitalists. I about died when the surgical residents were managing a peds patient who didn't have a surgical problem…and was actually suffering from Kawasaki disease. They didn't diagnosis it very quickly and there I was, as a future pediatrician and MS4, yelling at the tv.

 

[mvenus929]

The representation on Grey's Anatomy is completely false all the way around. Except the fact that peds surgery is a rotation for the surgery residents and it requires a fellowship after general surgery. But they get half the other surgical subspecialties wrong, so...

The peds surgeons will do some management of surgical patients... how much will vary by institution. At some, the pediatricians manage them on the floor (one peds program I looked at had automatic peds consults on every child under the age of 12 on a surgical service); at others, they have NPs or PAs doing the floor work, and at still others, they'll do it themselves. They will sometimes manage kids with multiple medical problems that have been surgical patients in the past or have a problem that can be managed with surgery (but will try medical management first), and may manage trauma patients, depending on the severity of the trauma (and the age of the patient). Generally, though, the medical management of the patient falls to the pediatrics team.

Pediatric intensivists, as mentioned above, can do just about everything up until and after the surgery. They can intubate, put in lines and tubes, etc. General pediatricians generally don't do as many procedures.