merely looking at you weirdly and making you feel bad doesn’t mean anything. you need something objective that he did - like unprofessional conduct, interference in anesthesia, etc. this is what builds a case and it’s important that you object even if nothing comes out of it. you need to see if there’s a pattern of mistreatment.
the way i would handle it is via email - you can say that you refuse to cover his cases electively but you’d be glad to do so under emergency or special circumstances.
this isn’t the first or last time you’ll come across a difficult personality by the way. they’re everywhere and it has more to do with them than you…
just a few weeks ago, i was assigned at a new site and worked with a surgeon i had never heard of before and at 645 im about to roll back and do the block in OR for shoulder - he goes “why are we changing what we have been doing for 5 years?” meaning he wanted the block in preop. patient extremely nervous in preop and wants to go sleep [you know not everyone likes a 4 inch needle right next to their neck]…don’t know where the intralipid is…i opt for blocks in OR as we go to sleep whenever possible for variety of reason…including immediate monitoring. besides when, where, how the block is done is my call.
i wasn’t upset that he wanted the block in preop..i was upset the way he raised his voice in the middle of preop area and made me return to do the stupid block and waste time. this was a non issue but he acted petty. sure.
in return, the whole day i treated him like dust on my shoes…didn’t even look at him once…he got the hint…and he couldn’t say anything because all 8 of his patients were happy with their blocks (it was 1:2 medical direction).
let your work do the talking.
after the day was done i told the practice that assigned me there that do not assign me to work with that surgeon - they were disappointed but i cited the same reason. i only work with surgeons that i have a good friendly and collegial relationship with…we have each others back…
in your email you can cite liability issue saying that you cannot effectively or safely work with him. which is true - in case something bad happens, these are the people who will readily throw you under the bus first. you’d be surprised how often this happens and how quickly you’d be blamed for something you didn’t do or was very minor and not that cause from your side
send your chair an email; cc HR, Chief medical officer, and if you have balls - send it to him and his chair. cite specific reasons for your decision.
keep it light and non personal. no long emails. no explanation needed. say things like “not a good fit”, “likely to affect patient safety due to lack of professional relationship and poor environment”. cite one or two examples showing his poor conduct or in professionalism issues.
shame him. he’s not above you. you also went to medical school, no need to feel inferior or be timid.
you’ll see in 6 months every one will start respecting you because you respected yourself and defined your boundaries.
on the email, threaten to leave and say that you’ve already considered exploring other employment options. quietly start looking for other jobs. it’s very easy these days.
your anesthesia group will lose their mind and will take you seriously. last thing they want is to lose a good worker over nothing.
good luck
