how long should i shadow a doctor?

[AestheticGod]

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i want to shadow a doctor at a hospital but not sure how long I should ask for. I'm asking in terms of how many hours in a day and total time. I figure most students shadow for about two months??

 

[t5Nitro]

I can tell you what I've done so far, and I'm sure it's far from what some of these other people have done.

I have 86 job shadowing hours in throughout various departments.
My hours with a physician were typically 8-12 or 1-5.
The most I've been with a physician was 10 hours per day.

Your best bet -- and this is what I have done -- was get into contact with your local hospital/clinic student programs coordinator.
If you're lucky, like the one I have here, that person will be able to contact doctors in the departments you'd like to shadow and arrange dates/times for you.

 

[wizedw]

I shadowed a neurologist for 20 hours in 2 back to back 10 hour days

 

[StudyShy]

They usually suggest 50-100 hours, however it would be nice to see it in a variety of places. 🙂

 

[mimelim]

I can only tell you what I know/have seen. For surgeons, I would say that more than 5-6 full days worth of time is excessive. You don't know enough at this point to appreciate what is going on beyond the very basic.

How long you spend shadowing should be dicated by what your goals are for the shadowing. If you want to get an idea of what the life of a particular type of MD is like then a couple of clinic + OR days is more than sufficient. Spending months following someone around is a waste of time and energy.

 

[ShenanigansMD]

I remember watching a morning surgery (started at like 7 or 7:30 am, totally slammed the starbucks for that one), and then being like: This is so cool!!! It was straight ortho so there were saws and all this crazy stuff.

Then the day just went on... and on... and on... more surgeries... and the surgeon was like "yo dude you can go home whenever man" and I thought there's no way I can be pre-med and just bail, so I stayed...

And then it was 8pm and I was exhausted just from watching for 13 hours, and I realized that I'm gonna have to sacrifice the TV and video games if I want this cool job, but I'm totally set on it now.

I would try a week or two with a surgeon, it just gives you an idea of the endurance you'll need. Assistants will leave the OR whenever, but the surgeon stays the whole time; it just looks like such an awesome job.

 

[Doctor Strange]

I shadowed about twelve hours a week for an entire summer with a cardiothoracic surgeon. Eight or so of those hours were in the OR, while the remaining four were his clinic hours.

 

[Mokthraka]

how do you get set up with a surgeon? I guess I could ask someone at the hospital I work at, I just have no idea who.

 

[StudyShy]

how do you get set up with a surgeon? I guess I could ask someone at the hospital I work at, I just have no idea who.

Just ask. The worst that they could do is laugh in your face. 😛

 

[Mokthraka]

Just ask. The worst that they could do is laugh in your face. 😛

😀! I will ask my supervisor monday. or tomorrow in the PACU. I know they at least have monitors you can watch surgeries on.

 

[StudyShy]

😀! I will ask my supervisor monday. or tomorrow in the PACU. I know they at least have monitors you can watch surgeries on.

I wish you luck. Knock em dead! 🙂

 

[Doctor Strange]

how do you get set up with a surgeon? I guess I could ask someone at the hospital I work at, I just have no idea who.

Volunteer services might be able to help you. They hooked me up pretty nicely when I first started.

 

[UnclePhil]

Most doctors that I've met at academic medical centers like having students shadow them. That being said, I've found shadowing as a medical student to be way more insightful than shadowing as an undergrad. For one, the doctors tend to engage you more, you know way more about what is going on, and you are allowed to do stuff.

Shadowing during surgery is ok, it's really only worth it though if you can scrub in. Otherwise you are just standing there, off to the side, not really knowing what is going on for several hours.

 

[Mokthraka]

Most doctors that I've met at academic medical centers like having students shadow them. That being said, I've found shadowing as a medical student to be way more insightful than shadowing as an undergrad. For one, the doctors tend to engage you more, you know way more about what is going on, and you are allowed to do stuff.

Shadowing during surgery is ok, it's really only worth it though if you can scrub in. Otherwise you are just standing there, off to the side, not really knowing what is going on for several hours.

Aren't you just standing to the side anyways?

 

[ShenanigansMD]

Aren't you just standing to the side anyways?

Haha, I was shadowing at an academic hospital and they didn't know what to put on my ID, so it just says Medical Student.

It was funny to pretend how smart I was. Then they'd ask a real question and I was like 😕

 

[greatnt249]

Aren't you just standing to the side anyways?

There's a difference between standing to the side while still being at the operating table and being forced to the back because you aren't scrubbed in; usually, you can see a lot more of what's going on at the table. Unless, of course, you're on retractor duty, where you sometimes have to hold it at such a weird angle that you aren't even looking at the surgical site anymore.

 

[UnclePhil]

Aren't you just standing to the side anyways?

No, being scrubbed in puts you at the operating table. Otherwise, if you aren't sterile, they just stick you at some random place somewhere in the OR where you won't get in the way or contaminate the field.

 

[yankee4life]

Most doctors that I've met at academic medical centers like having students shadow them. That being said, I've found shadowing as a medical student to be way more insightful than shadowing as an undergrad. For one, the doctors tend to engage you more, you know way more about what is going on, and you are allowed to do stuff.

Shadowing during surgery is ok, it's really only worth it though if you can scrub in. Otherwise you are just standing there, off to the side, not really knowing what is going on for several hours.

Haha this doctor who I shadowed today was trying to tell me the cause of diabetes as if it wasn't common knowledge

 

[birdy1]

I shadowed a surgeon for two weeks over the summer. Depending on his schedule, it was something like 7:30-5 on surgery days and 9-4 on clinic days. I also spent time with the residents and PAs when the doc wasn't around. I thought that it was just about the right amount of time--I became comfortable with the team, the procedures, and a bit of the background information, but it didn't give them time to get tired/annoyed with me.

 

[HughMyron]

Just ask. The worst that they could do is laugh in your face. 😛

When I was looking for a DO to shadow, I literally coldcalled 20 before I got one positive response. I got a lot of people saying stuff to the effect of "what is this I don't even."

It was only later that I found out that there is a DO mentorship program for students.


For an MD, I just shadowed a friend of the family.

 

[birdy1]

There's a difference between standing to the side while still being at the operating table and being forced to the back because you aren't scrubbed in; usually, you can see a lot more of what's going on at the table. Unless, of course, you're on retractor duty, where you sometimes have to hold it at such a weird angle that you aren't even looking at the surgical site anymore.

You're right--when I didn't scrub in, I was on pager duty. I'd have to reach into the doc and residents' pockets and answer their phones. I also got to take pictures of the surgeries for the doc, which was kind of cool. When I finally got to scrub in, it was a world different. The first time was tricky, I contaminated myself so many times, thankfully the RN was an incredibly patient human being and found me a bit funny! Also, I'm really thankful that my doc treated me as an undergrad the same (and sometimes even better) than the med students, who were only with him for a day or two while I was there for a few weeks!

Don't be afraid to ask questions. I shadowed in ortho, and I brought along an anatomy textbook with me so I could ask the doc or the residents about the procedures. They loved sounding smart and answering my questions, plus it showed them that I actually was interested, even when I looked a bit woozy after standing on my feet all day in the OR.

As for setting up the shadowing, having a doctor parent has its perks, because then you know every doctor in town. Start with any connections you have: friends, family, etc. and maybe they know someone. It can be hard to get into the OR and people are always more likely to help you out if you're a friend or a friend of a friend... that being said, not everyone has connections. Try asking your doctor (even an old pediatrician might have contacts) and see what you can come up with. My friend got a shadowing position by talking to her younger sister's classmate's dad at a school affair, who was a cardiologist.

 

[Croc]

Hmm, a bit of an ambiguous question to answer. I'm currently enrolled in a program in which I'm shadowing different surgeons in the OR. The problem is that I'm not shadowing one surgeon but multiple. Each doctor saw me maybe once or twice, and whether they know my name or not is completely out of question.

Since this is technically a program, should I write on my application that I was enrolled in such program or would it be better for me to list every surgeon whom I shadowed?

 

[pre med 2014]

I shadowed about twelve hours a week for an entire summer with a cardiothoracic surgeon. Eight or so of those hours were in the OR, while the remaining four were his clinic hours.

I am glad to see this post after reading all the previous ones. I have been shadowing a doctor all summer as well and was hoping they don't think I'm just showing up to see all the cool stuff and not really getting anything out of it anymore. haha

 

[DCGuava]

Since this is technically a program, should I write on my application that I was enrolled in such program or would it be better for me to list every surgeon whom I shadowed?

You're in a program...list it as such!

 

[cortana431]

Do medical schools look for consistency in the amount of time of shadowing of different doctors? I shadowed for the first time at a medical center (mostly walk in) this summer for only 30 hours total but I felt at the end I gleaned all I could about the doctors specific area and job from shadowing and with what I know currently.

 

[NonTraditional3]

Shadowed a cardiologist through a winter break alumni shadowing program at my school - 24 hours in 3 days.
Shadowed Heart Failure Specialist this summer (as well as NP's on the heart failure service) - ~4.5 hours a week for 10 weeks
Shadowed Neuropathologist: 2 days, 6 hours each - 12 hours. Will be continuing with this starting in september, about 4 hours a week.
Shadowing another HF specialist: 3 hours a week, for 15 weeks.


There is certainly no upper limit, but you should have spent enough time on some consistent interval, to show that you got pat the "bells and whistles" excitement part, and really learned about the physician-patient relationship, the healthcare team of nurses, doctors, PA's - be able to explain why you feel you are best suited to fulfill the role of a physician, and be able to discuss, meaningfully, the insight you gained to the problems physicians (and patients) are faced with.

Most importantly though: have fun! I love spending time in the clinic - I really feel in my element, and I enjoy the time I get to spend volunteering in the emergency room I help out at, but it's only when I'm shadowing am I learning about the physiology underlying everything, and its only when I'm shadowing that I am afforded the chance to talk with doctors on an intellectual level about that kind if stuff. It's fun - I'll probably shadow through my application cycle 🙂