A few shadowing questions

[V781]

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A doctor responded to my email request that I can indeed shadow them. They wanted to know how often I would like to shadow them as well as whether I would prefer to shadow them in the clinic or in the hospital.

-As far as how often, what would be reasonable to request? I want to stack up hours but don't want to turn them away by requesting to meet too often.

-How many hours should you acquire with one doctor before moving on to another of a different specialty?

-Is it appropriate to express that I would be interested in shadowing in both the clinic and the hospital? Or are they expecting one or the other?

Thanks

 

[charactercomic2]

I would express interest in both clinic and hospital so YOU can get a feel for how both operate. I don't think requesting upwards of 4 eight hour shifts would be out of the ordinary. It's all about what YOU get out of the shadowing. For example, I was able to shadow in the emergency department or about 40 hours these past couple months, and scheduled for more. But I felt I got what I needed out of it and any more would be redundant, and asked to see if other departments were open. Hope this helps!

 

[husky_doc16]

1) I would schedule one full day with him at the clinic and another day at the hospital. That way you can have a wider scope of what he does. If you like your experience, you can ask to come back, or thank him for his time.
2) I do not believe that there is a minimum/maximum of shadowing hours. Med schools want to know that you know what a doctor does. I would say a >40 hrs of shadowing (can be multiple doctors) is appropriate.

 

[V781]

I would express interest in both clinic and hospital so YOU can get a feel for how both operate. I don't think requesting upwards of 4 eight hour shifts would be out of the ordinary. It's all about what YOU get out of the shadowing. For example, I was able to shadow in the emergency department or about 40 hours these past couple months, and scheduled for more. But I felt I got what I needed out of it and any more would be redundant, and asked to see if other departments were open. Hope this helps!

1) I would schedule one full day with him at the clinic and another day at the hospital. That way you can have a wider scope of what he does. If you like your experience, you can ask to come back, or thank him for his time.
2) I do not believe that there is a minimum/maximum of shadowing hours. Med schools want to know that you know what a doctor does. I would say a >40 hrs of shadowing (can be multiple doctors) is appropriate.

Would you say once per week?

 

[charactercomic2]

Would you say once per week?

I wouldn't do more than twice a week, so once per week spread out over a month should be good!

 

[cj_cregg]

You need ~50 hrs of shadowing and it should be spread across multiple settings and specialties, including about one day with a PCP. I would do one day inpatient and one day outpatient with this doc, and then move on to some other opportunities in other specialties. If you want to do more after that because you just really had a good experience with this person, go for it, but get the stuff you need first.

 

[Eun-Sol]

A doctor responded to my email request that I can indeed shadow them. They wanted to know how often I would like to shadow them as well as whether I would prefer to shadow them in the clinic or in the hospital.

-As far as how often, what would be reasonable to request? I want to stack up hours but don't want to turn them away by requesting to meet too often.

-How many hours should you acquire with one doctor before moving on to another of a different specialty?

-Is it appropriate to express that I would be interested in shadowing in both the clinic and the hospital? Or are they expecting one or the other?

Thanks

Just curious, how did you go about getting “yes” for shadowing request during pandemic? Which speciality are you shadowing for?

Im in middle of searching for physicians to shadow and getting “no” because they do not provide shadowing these days.🙁

 

[husky_doc16]

Just curious, how did you go about getting “yes” for shadowing request during pandemic? Which speciality are you shadowing for?

Im in middle of searching for physicians to shadow and getting “no” because they do not provide shadowing these days.🙁

A good start would be your own PCP or pediatrician! It definitely takes quite a bit of emailing to finally find someone who will let you shadow.