Advice for incoming chief residents

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ketameme said:
Please post any advice you have. I foresee various challenges with navigating the role, maintaining balance, etc. What makes a great chief? Thank you
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Well if you want to be remembered beyond just this year I recommend being more on the side of your fellow residents than the faculty. Once the year is done, and you move on professionally, references and referrals from your peers will speak volumes about you and lead to better things in the future. If your peers resent you, expect the opposite.


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Treat your co-residents in a fair and courteous fashion. Do not abuse the power granted to you to take extra vacation, schedule 3 day weekends by taking Thursday calls, give yourself all the “paid moonlighting” shifts and don’t be a d!ck. I watched as chief residents abused their coresidents for three years and it sucked.
 
PainDrain said:
Treat your co-residents in a fair and courteous fashion. Do not abuse the power granted to you to take extra vacation, schedule 3 day weekends by taking Thursday calls, give yourself all the “paid moonlighting” shifts and don’t be a d!ck. I watched as chief residents abused their coresidents for three years and it sucked.
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Strange. I can barely remember the names of my chief residents. I certainly don’t remember who was on call when. All those things that seemed so important in residency will fade rapidly once you are a month out....
 
PainDrain said:
Treat your co-residents in a fair and courteous fashion. Do not abuse the power granted to you to take extra vacation, schedule 3 day weekends by taking Thursday calls, give yourself all the “paid moonlighting” shifts and don’t be a d!ck. I watched as chief residents abused their coresidents for three years and it sucked.
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I think we have a call counter here!

The former chiefs will understand.
Jr resident storms into your OR. “I have been put on call 6 Tuesdays and only 2 Wednesdays. TWO. That’s BS! Do you know you have 3 Wednesdays in a row next month?”
— “What?” <oh man, here we go...> “You know what, come find me later I’ve got to pay attention in a minute here.”
 
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At first you think it’s an honor to be picked chief. Then you realize that it’s a thankless job and regardless of how transparent and self-sacrificial you are, there will still be residents who complain or criticize. For those who complain/criticize, talk to them about it face-to-face. Many are emboldened by email/text but would not argue in person with a cogent and sincere explanation.

If you find yourself frustrated and exhausted by the role at Christmas time, you’re probably doing a great job!
 
Unfortunately it doesn't change much when you are chief of your group in private practice haha

As far as advice...be comfortable with the fact that you won't be able to please everyone. You will have your "call counters" and nonsense requests. You will quickly see who the good residents are and who the below average ones are.

I think it is valuable on a resume. Shows you are well liked by your peers and respected for your skills.
 
UscGhost said:
Unfortunately it doesn't change much when you are chief of your group in private practice haha

As far as advice...be comfortable with the fact that you won't be able to please everyone. You will have your "call counters" and nonsense requests. You will quickly see who the good residents are and who the below average ones are.

I think it is valuable on a resume. Shows you are well liked by your peers and respected for your skills.
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Strangely in my program we got to "vote" for who we wanted to be chiefs, except those who won were those who we had no idea were even in the running. We realized the process was a sham and it was just whomever the PD wanted were the chosen ones. That being said, being a chief is great if you have the aspiration for having a seat at the table sort of and enjoy sucking up 😎 . I enjoyed being a grunt, going home with no admin headaches or schedule making fun, felt sorry for those having to cater for a program with 80 residents.
 
Haha ... same here with the difference that residents in our program didn’t even vote one year ...
 
IlDestriero said:
I think we have a call counter here!

The former chiefs will understand.
Jr resident storms into your OR. “I have been put on call 6 Tuesdays and only 2 Wednesdays. TWO. That’s BS! Do you know you have 3 Wednesdays in a row next month?”
— “What?” <oh man, here we go...> “You know what, come find me later I’ve got to pay attention in a minute here.”
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So there were only two chief residents who were downright terrible out of the seven I went through in my residency. I was a year behind them and they basically abused their power and ruined their relationship with everyone in the program. One made an extra 25K by giving himself every moonlighting shift and then lying to everyone and saying “there aren’t any moonlighting shifts available because people already took them”. When confronted they said some BS like “well I have a family”, as did about half of us in residency. The other person did the schedule and both never did a holiday and almost no weekend call that year. I am never one to complain and I didn’t then but it was an abuse of their position and it wasn’t fair to the rest of us.

When you get into practice these are the same personality types who ruin groups. They cherry pick their cases, slip out early leaving non call folks holding the bag, etc.
 
Being chief is one of the worst jobs out there. In my personal experience, you can go from having a great relationship with most attendings to being held accountable for the entire residency group. Realize that your voice and opinion no longer matters as you have to speak for your entire cohort, particularly the weaker/lazier ones. It's a thankless job, particularly by your class. But if you're a good chief and take the younger classmen under your wing, the relationships you build will last and people will appreciate you.
 
Ronin786 said:
Being chief is one of the worst jobs out there. In my personal experience, you can go from having a great relationship with most attendings to being held accountable for the entire residency group. Realize that your voice and opinion no longer matters as you have to speak for your entire cohort, particularly the weaker/lazier ones. It's a thankless job, particularly by your class. But if you're a good chief and take the younger classmen under your wing, the relationships you build will last and people will appreciate you.
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I took over last month as chief resident, and I have realized that very quickly. Since then, I have put most of my effort in educating, mentoring, and helping out underclassmen. I already got tired of trying to do the right thing for my class. I am going to keep things fair, but I likely wont go the extra mile for them when they show no appreciation for what we do, and some that wanted the position are openly uncooperative.
 
It’s A LOT of work. Scheduling, committees, angry/lazy residents, picking up the slack/ pinch hitting.

I do think I got a couple things out of it. You do seem to be respected a little bit more than other residents. That can translate to more freedom inside and outside the OR. You do get to see how an anesthesia department is run and managed. You can have a direct hand in recruiting for and promoting your residency program.

Anecdotally, I’ve heard it can help you get a job but it never came up in any of my eight interviews when I was shopping for a job.

Keep doing the things that got you the position and you will be fine. I don’t know what makes a great chief, I was probably average at best.

Be fair and don’t play favorites. Everyone gets screwed the same amount. Including you.

Don’t try to be everyone’s friend, but don’t be a d*ck.

Don’t be negative. It’s probably going to suck for you more than just about anybody else with all the extra bull you have to deal with. But the residents feed off of you. I’d you are down they will be down. Everyone is always looking for a reason to complain. If you do, they WILL. Set the example for others to follow.

SQUELCH the rumor mill.

If you screw something up (resident schedule) own it, then make it right.

Stand up for your residents. Even if they are sh*itbags. Unless they are dangerous.

don’t try to fix every problem. Run it up your chain of command. In the end you are still a resident. They don’t pay you enough to get **** on with every little problem that comes up.

LEARN YOUR JOB. LEARN HOW TO BE AN ANESTHESIOLOGIST. If the being a chief is getting in the way, quit being chief or take on fewer responsibilities.

In the end, some of your residents will think you are amazing and some will think you are a douche. The truth is somewhere in the middle... and sometimes both.
 
DocMcCoy said:
It’s A LOT of work. Scheduling, committees, angry/lazy residents, picking up the slack/ pinch hitting.

I do think I got a couple things out of it. You do seem to be respected a little bit more than other residents. That can translate to more freedom inside and outside the OR. You do get to see how an anesthesia department is run and managed. You can have a direct hand in recruiting for and promoting your residency program.

Anecdotally, I’ve heard it can help you get a job but it never came up in any of my eight interviews when I was shopping for a job.

Keep doing the things that got you the position and you will be fine. I don’t know what makes a great chief, I was probably average at best.

Be fair and don’t play favorites. Everyone gets screwed the same amount. Including you.

Don’t try to be everyone’s friend, but don’t be a d*ck.

Don’t be negative. It’s probably going to suck for you more than just about anybody else with all the extra bull you have to deal with. But the residents feed off of you. I’d you are down they will be down. Everyone is always looking for a reason to complain. If you do, they WILL. Set the example for others to follow.

SQUELCH the rumor mill.

If you screw something up (resident schedule) own it, then make it right.

Stand up for your residents. Even if they are sh*itbags. Unless they are dangerous.

don’t try to fix every problem. Run it up your chain of command. In the end you are still a resident. They don’t pay you enough to get **** on with every little problem that comes up.

LEARN YOUR JOB. LEARN HOW TO BE AN ANESTHESIOLOGIST. If the being a chief is getting in the way, quit being chief or take on fewer responsibilities.

In the end, some of your residents will think you are amazing and some will think you are a douche. The truth is somewhere in the middle... and sometimes both.
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So.... Where is the benefit in this position? Sounds like a lot of dirty work, and no extra pay to boot. And likely not much benefit post residency. Why would one willingly sign up for this?
 
BIGphysician said:
Well if you want to be remembered beyond just this year I recommend being more on the side of your fellow residents than the faculty. Once the year is done, and you move on professionally, references and referrals from your peers will speak volumes about you and lead to better things in the future. If your peers resent you, expect the opposite.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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who is asking for a recommendation from someone you were a resident with?
 
2Fast2Des said:
So.... Where is the benefit in this position? Sounds like a lot of dirty work, and no extra pay to boot. And likely not much benefit post residency. Why would one willingly sign up for this?
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My residency did pay an extra 2k which is something I guess.

Being involved in department matters, residency/hospital leadership face to face time, junior leadership/management. Could be helpful to those that haven’t ever served in a leadership capacity or are interested in administration.
 
ketameme said:
Please post any advice you have. I foresee various challenges with navigating the role, maintaining balance, etc. What makes a great chief? Thank you
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Be honest, be fair, don't play favorites. Lead by example. Be the general in front of the troops, not hiding behind them.

Do everything as if it would show up in tomorrow's newspaper.
 
2Fast2Des said:
So.... Where is the benefit in this position? Sounds like a lot of dirty work, and no extra pay to boot. And likely not much benefit post residency. Why would one willingly sign up for this?
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Nothing good comes of this.

My first 2 years of residency we had chiefs who gave themselves and their closest friends an exceptionally large amount of the moonlighting shifts, long weekends, extra PL days, and whatever else they wanted. If a resident complained, they got blackballed for the test of the year.

Been much better this past year, but even with WAY better chiefs, there are still people complaining all the time, never satisfied, always calling, texting, emailing at any hour of the day. It is seriously a thankless job. I am friends with one of this year's chiefs and I have seen first hand just how bad of a job it is to have.

I would rather enjoy my time with my family when I leave the hospital. When it came time to 'vote' for chiefs for next year, I rapidly told everyone to not vote for me because I had no interest.
 
I've seen one generation of chiefs (my generation) who literally sacrificed themselves for everybody else. For example, if a resident got sick, one of them would just cover the call, no questions asked. They truly lead by example, really nice people (that's how they were since their CA-1 year, not just as chiefs). Those guys inspired an almost fanatical following (if they rarely asked you something, you jumped). About 10 years later, I still feel a tremendous respect for them.

The generation before them were lazy dinguses. They protected themselves to the max, played favorites, took a lot of incentivized calls. I don't think anybody will forget them either.
 
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There is some great input here. Being Chief is so hard, and even unintentional things can seem personal with regards to the schedule. Our chiefs got paid a PGY level higher and took no night or weekend call which led to a lot of resentment (they were on “backup call” in case of call outs or excessive emergencies but always were nasty when called it). Ran the ML schedule and helped their friends, not others especially those that spoke up.

Big point - be transparent as possible. Squelch rumors. Try to maintain privacy but if you have people leaving the program or major issues you need to let people know what is going on. Also if a big change is coming let people know EARLY.
 
For a time in my residency we had excellent chief residents. They would pick up the slack if they couldn’t find coverage. I think that position is a lose/lose. You’re a middle man between faculty and residents. You’re going to disappoint one or both sides.

I had no interest as it had nothing to do with anesthesia education and I had been a manager in previous work experiences. Not worth the headache at that level of pay.
 
I could write a few thousand words on this, but will try and keep it as brief as possible.

-The saying "you'll know you're doing a good job when everyone is angry at you- faculty and residents" is pretty accurate.

-The single hardest thing to do was to be fair to the people I couldn't stand. My year 3 residents accounted for 90% of my admin headaches, and as tempting as it was to deny their call requests arbitrarily, make them work extra holidays, etc, we worked very hard to be fair to them as well.

-The erosion of your clinical education is very real. Think of the attendings in your department who primarily do admin work/research- how strong are they clinically? You're about to find out the reason they tend not to be as sharp. Work extra hard to make sure you graduate at the top of your game, whether you plan to do fellowship or go straight out to practice. I didn't, and I regret it.


Overall, I thought it was a formative experience that I grew a lot from as a leader. I never would have said this at the time, but it was worth it.
 
I personally wouldn’t do it again.

My advice:
1. Do what’s fair for everyone. Be utilitarian.
2. Learn to say no, and don’t feel guilty about it.
3. Accept that you will come to dislike the “call counters”, complainers, pot stirers, etc, and try to still be fair.
4. Make a good relationship with the administration. Residents are not always right.
5. Lead by example. Take a call if you need to. But don’t make a habit out of it. It’s a fine line before your the only one covering people’s calls.
6. Don’t ask people to do things via mass email. Pick a resident, talk to them in person if you need them to take a shift or do something, your success rate will be much higher.

when you get depressed after a couple months, just remember the medicine people do a whole extra year of residency to have the honor of doing this **** 🙂
 
IlDestriero said:
I think we have a call counter here!

The former chiefs will understand.
Jr resident storms into your OR. “I have been put on call 6 Tuesdays and only 2 Wednesdays. TWO. That’s BS! Do you know you have 3 Wednesdays in a row next month?”
— “What?” <oh man, here we go...> “You know what, come find me later I’ve got to pay attention in a minute here.”
Click to expand...

YES! This BS of being good to your residents, blah, blah, blah is usually spouted by call counters and people who argue over the most petty things. Being chief is difficult because unless you fall to your knees to worship the ground your residents walk on, some will call you a bad chief or abusive or a multitude of other names. Many programs are filled with entitled residents who've never worked a day in their life prior to med school and so no matter what happens in residency, they think they're being abused.

Now that said, obviously don't be a jerk. Don't treat them differently than you would want to be treated. Don't abuse them or assign call out of spite. But in my experience, most chiefs are honestly trying to do a good job with no ulterior motives and residents still bitch.
 
JiPo said:
That is your definition of “excellent” chiefs?
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I’ll elaborate.

they were fair to everyone. And it showed when they themselves would work the call shifts people didn’t want. I didn’t count calls, but I would see them working them. Not all the time. They weren’t doormats by any stretch, they also didn’t abuse their power. If they made a schedule error, which happened a couple times, they would fall on the sword.
 
Something I found really useful was to send out an excel file each quarter (easily importable from amion) which showed exactly how many calls each individual was taking (we also assigned each call a specific numeric value based on a group consensus of how much misery it was likely to produce).

By doing this, it showed that even though you might believe your call schedule to be S***, at least the S*** was being spread around evenly, thus leaving less room for complaining.
 
dipriMAN said:
I personally wouldn’t do it again.

My advice:
1. Do what’s fair for everyone. Be utilitarian.
2. Learn to say no, and don’t feel guilty about it.
3. Accept that you will come to dislike the “call counters”, complainers, pot stirers, etc, and try to still be fair.
4. Make a good relationship with the administration. Residents are not always right.
5. Lead by example. Take a call if you need to. But don’t make a habit out of it. It’s a fine line before your the only one covering people’s calls.
6. Don’t ask people to do things via mass email. Pick a resident, talk to them in person if you need them to take a shift or do something, your success rate will be much higher.

when you get depressed after a couple months, just remember the medicine people do a whole extra year of residency to have the honor of doing this **** 🙂
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Ah yes the IM Chief year. Biggest scam job next to OB fellowship. Can't a secretary do the same job as an IM Chief? They really don't do much clinical and pretty much did admin stuff when I was a med student. What a waste of earning year for them
 
2Fast2Des said:
Ah yes the IM Chief year. Biggest scam job next to OB fellowship. Can't a secretary do the same job as an IM Chief? They really don't do much clinical and pretty much did admin stuff when I was a med student. What a waste of earning year for them
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These people will do anything to match GI I guess. As for the others doing it? I can't even imagine what is going through their heads.
 
I am aware of one large academic East Coast program where the anesthesia chief resident job is an extra year. To the best of my knowledge they are paid a full attending salary for that year though...Otherwise I don’t think anyone would take that job. Not aware of any other anesthesia residencies that do things that way
 
Hork Bajir said:
I am aware of one large academic East Coast program where the anesthesia chief resident job is an extra year. To the best of my knowledge they are paid a full attending salary for that year though...Otherwise I don’t think anyone would take that job. Not aware of any other anesthesia residencies that do things that way
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if the ca-4 chief resident gets paid a full attending salary, i assume they will be expected to take call and cover ORs just like a regular attending, and the chief duties on top of that. Sounds like a terrible deal for residents unless they get at least 2 non-clinical days off a week to do chief work, with fewer calls.

The only people that would take this offer is if they were weak residents and want to stay in academia or pursue fellowship. You never see the cream of the crop IM resident pursuing chief year. Those residents go straight to fellowship.
 
JiPo said:
if the ca-4 chief resident gets paid a full attending salary, i assume they will be expected to take call and cover ORs just like a regular attending, and the chief duties on top of that. Sounds like a terrible deal for residents unless they get at least 2 non-clinical days off a week to do chief work, with fewer calls.

The only people that would take this offer is if they were weak residents and want to stay in academia or pursue fellowship. You never see the cream of the crop IM resident pursuing chief year. Those residents go straight to fellowship.
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How does the chief year make them better candidates? How does them proving how great at paper pushing for a year make them better at showing their candidacy for gi\cards?
 
2Fast2Des said:
How does the chief year make them better candidates? How does them proving how great at paper pushing for a year make them better at showing their candidacy for gi\cards?
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Clinically, it doesnt. But from what I have heard, chief year for them is a nice “feather in the cap.” Even if it doesnt make them more competitive, they certainly will get more consideration for in-house positions.
 
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2Fast2Des said:
How does the chief year make them better candidates? How does them proving how great at paper pushing for a year make them better at showing their candidacy for gi\cards?
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As crazy as it sounds, it’s basically a 1 year junior faculty position and can be competitive. And despite the title, they aren’t residents at all. It is viewed favorably by fellowships to an extent and makes an applicant appear more “academic.”

That said, the competitiveness of IM fellowships is a bit of a myth if you are an average allopathic AMG so I tell residents that it’s not worth it.
 
Hork Bajir said:
I am aware of one large academic East Coast program where the anesthesia chief resident job is an extra year. To the best of my knowledge they are paid a full attending salary for that year though...Otherwise I don’t think anyone would take that job. Not aware of any other anesthesia residencies that do things that way
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Yes the MGH anesthesia Chief year. Leave it to MGH tk be the only program to make their resident do an extra year.
 
Chief resident in my opinion need to have their personal life in order. You will neglect your family you will neglect your life outside of medicine. You may wake up 1 year 2 years later and realize what did you miss at home. Would I have done it again absolutely. Do I enjoy managing others and making schedules absolutely. Does it open doors probably. Do it to be a good chief not as a stepping stone to get to Y fellowship. Their is almost certainly a way to get to y spot without becoming chief.
 
Somewhat different experience. I'm sure chief responsibilities vary from one program to the next. My year as chief did not seem like a ton of extra work. Small program size of roughly 30 residents total, so making the schedule wasn't too arduous. Took a couple hours to make a 3 month block. A few extra meetings to attend, most of which were during regular work hours anyway. I didn't think it detracted much from my clinical time or learning. Sure, there were headaches from disgruntled residents, who couldn't be pleased no matter how fair everything was. Not sure how much it really helps with getting a job afterwards, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

Best advice - Be as transparent as possible. Don't take advantage of your position, especially in regards to scheduling. Have an open door to your fellow residents to hear their concerns, and be sure to bring them to the appropriate staff when necessary. Some will complain and be unhappy with you, no matter what you do. You'll figure out who those people are pretty quickly, so don't let them bother you.
 
ketameme said:
Please post any advice you have. I foresee various challenges with navigating the role, maintaining balance, etc. What makes a great chief? Thank you
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First of all. Congratulations on your upcoming term. Whatever the selection criteria used by your program, I'm quite sure you've earned your spot by going beyond your peers with respect to ability, professionalism and leadership. And while there will likely be times in the next year you will wonder why you said yes, this is something you should be proud of. You are going to get a crash course in developing leadership and management skills that will serve you well in the future no matter what you choose to do with your career.

The advice I can give you comes in two flavors. Advice for how to be a good chief, and advice on how to personally cope with what's ahead.

A few things on how to be a good chief:

- Be fair. And fair doesn't always mean equal. The schedule and math will undoubtedly cause some residents to take more call than others and some residents might have to do two months of a hard rotation instead of one. Prioritizing for vacation requests will always be difficult. So if you have a process for determining these things that is fair...stick to it. If seniors get priority for vacations over juniors...stick to it. Because the CA1 that complains now will benefit from that policy later. Special accommodations to complainers will indirectly punish your classmates that quietly show up and do their jobs. Consider strategies like that running spreadsheet of total calls taken that was suggest above.
- Involve your admins (APDs and PD) to adjudicate special situations. In the vacation example above. If a CA1 is getting married and has a vacation conflict with a CA3 who should get "priority," kick it up to your PDs. The more you can remain fair and impartial in the eyes of your classmates, the more effective you will be. If you allow residents to think you are playing favorites, things will become more difficult for you. Sometimes it pays to let your admins be the bad guy.
- Remember that your role is to make the program better, not necessarily to make it easier. If you have didactics that aren't working out, find a way to improve them rather than suggesting they be eliminated. If you turn the job into trying to enable every wedding invitation and buddy trip, you are losing sight of the big picture. Hold your class accountable for representing the specialty and resident physicians in the best possible light. Don't give people a reason to doubt the skill, commitment and ability you all have shown to get to this point in your careers.
- Don't ask anyone to do something you aren't willing to do yourself. Or in other words, be an example because everyone is looking. Personally, I don't think covering for each other is exclusive to Chiefs. Stepping up to help classmates in a pinch is something all good colleagues should be willing to do. Resist the temptation to give yourself overly favorable schedules or stacking your own rotations in an obvious way. That creates doubt about your intentions. More below on a better way to "reward" yourself.
- Be confidential. You are going to learn a lot of things about your classmates. Things about their academic performance, things about their private lives, things about their families. Your classmates need to feel that you are the Fort Knox of secrets.

How to personally survive the Chief year:

- This year is going to be relentless. Depending on how big your program is, there will be some problem to address 24/7 365. Set boundaries early. Make it known that outside of emergencies involving jail or something compromising patient care, no one should expect a response to texts and emails past 8pm. There is no reason someone has to know if their vacation request is approved at 11pm. Learning to prioritize is important. Figure out what needs to be done right away, and what can wait until after you put your kids to bed and you have date night with your spouse.
- Mentally prepare yourself for disappointment. Unfortunately, you are going to experience lack of professionalism in some of your classmates (and even friends) that will surprise you. You are going to see this out of faculty as well. Just know that it's part of the job.
- Sanitize your social media. A picture of yourself at the pool at 2pm is viewed differently as a Chief than it was when you were a resident. Its not worth opening yourself up for cheap shots from the peanut gallery.
- Vicariously enjoy the things you make possible. Remember that this is a job about making things better for others. You are probably thinking about things you want to improve right now. Teaching juniors, recruiting medical students, making the experience better for your classmates, being able to address longstanding issues in your program. Enjoy the victories when they come. The benefits of being a chief are not limited to personal growth, or the additional doors that open for you when it comes time for jobs and fellowship applications.
- MOST IMPORTANTLY...communicate with your PD about how things are going personally. Are you falling behind with your studying or clinical skills? I can make sure you get some time to catch up. Having trouble with the some of the additional duties? We can do it together or I can get you the help you need. If you are feeling overwhelmed and just need a day to decompress? I can call your site director and tell them I need you out of the OR to "address an important residency issue" that can be done while eating pizza on the couch or playing fetch with your dog. Don't take it upon yourself to schedule it yourself because fellow residents and faculty members won't understand. Several years ago, our Chiefs really wanted to go on a weekend trip to celebrate their year together. We sat down and found a weekend that worked for all of them, and magically all of them had administrative duties on the same Monday.

Obviously this is somewhat generalized and most issues will fail to fit neatly into any box. Without a doubt, this upcoming Covid-affected year is going to present unique challenges to your administration. But as you can see, the majority of former Chiefs on this thread are glad that they did it and I'm sure they'll be glad to serve as resources. Congratulations again and good luck.
 
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The whole chief position makes no sense. You are asking a CA-3, who by definition has one foot out the door, to go above and beyond, listen to everyone’s problems, make the schedule, invest in improving the program etc. Why? The schedule could easily be handled by the secretary/program coordinator. Improving lectures, dealing with problem residents and faculty complaints should best be left to the program director.
 
dannyboy1 said:
The whole chief position makes no sense. You are asking a CA-3, who by definition has one foot out the door, to go above and beyond, listen to everyone’s problems, make the schedule, invest in improving the program etc. Why? The schedule could easily be handled by the secretary/program coordinator. Improving lectures, dealing with problem residents and faculty complaints should best be left to the program director.
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PD's don't have time for that because they're spending 16 hrs a day coming up with unintelligible acronyms, inventing new resident competencies and subcompetencies, and making snazzy slides on powerpoint to justify their jobs

1591145553207.png



😛
 
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Chief year makes sense. If you like seeing your collegues grow and facilitating the growth process certainly step into the role. When I was in that role I struggled with the motives of others. It did prepare me for leadership down the road. I feel as staff the best compliment I hear is I am happy. Also if you reward people and recognize their strengths they certainly help out when things get difficult.
 
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