altering schedule during M3

[EMmedic]

Just a quick question for those of you who are in the middle of rotations right now:

I just found out tonight that one of my best friends is engaged and will be getting married in a year -- I will be in my M3 rotations. How difficult is it to arrange your schedule so that you can attend an important event for your friends and family? I really would hate to miss this and my friend would be very upset. Are the attendings pretty flexible about this kind of thing if you talk to them ahead of time and arrange to make up the hours?

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[MrBurns10]

Be up front with whoever does the scheduling for all the students. Usually, they can put you on an easier rotation at that time, one that most likely wouldn't require you to be there on the weekend. Those are usually the same rotations that won't mind if you need to take a day off for the wedding. And when you get your schedule, make sure you let your attending know well in advance. I had a wedding I was in while I was on psych, so I emailed my attending before I started the rotation to ask if I could possibly miss that Friday. He was totally fine with it.

 

[BigRedBeta]

Since you know already, I'm assuming this is going to be a summer wedding. As soon as you know you're third year schedule, find the administrative person in charge and e-mail them, asking as nicely as possible for some accommodations. The earlier the better. I had two weddings during third year that I was a member of the wedding party - one during peds (got put on the week of newborn nursery - which is super easy at my school), and one during OB/GYN (was paired with an outpatient preceptor who didn't have clinic at all on Fridays).

If it's just a wedding you're going to (especially if it's nearby) I'd look to see if you really need special scheduling - this is where talking to the M3's and M4's at your school will help. If you're on an inpatient service where students are expected to come in on weekends, you might need to make a deal with the other student on your team to get the time off. You know better than we do the types of students at your school if this will work or not. The only problem might be if you both need that weekend off...

 

[Law2Doc]

Just a quick question for those of you who are in the middle of rotations right now:

I just found out tonight that one of my best friends is engaged and will be getting married in a year -- I will be in my M3 rotations. How difficult is it to arrange your schedule so that you can attend an important event for your friends and family? I really would hate to miss this and my friend would be very upset. Are the attendings pretty flexible about this kind of thing if you talk to them ahead of time and arrange to make up the hours?

Totally depends on the rotation and the attendings. I've seen situations where it was no big deal, I've seen people who got killed with make-up day requirements, and I've seen people who were simply told that there was no way to give them the day/weekend off. So while it's worth asking about, I wouldn't just assume you can do it, wouldn't put any non-refundable money down on tickets etc. Many many folks will tell you you are going to miss more than your fair share of family and friend events during the clinical year. That's just the way it works.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Does your school give you any control in picking your 3rd year schedule? I had an out of town wedding I had to go to in September and purposefully made sure I had a light rotation then. I also contacted the clerkship coordinator well in advance and made sure it was OK that I missed a day.