Is 3rd year going to get easier?

[han14tra]

---

Members don't see this ad.

It's my first week and I'm exhausted. I'm on OB night float. I have to be there at 6:30pm and I don't get home until 10am. That means I'm working 15.5 hours a day. There's barely enough time to sleep. I have no life at all right now, and I can't even study for the shelf.

Is this what the other rotations are like?

 

[McGillGrad]

That's what a crappy rotation is like. Not all rotations are like that and not all hospitals are total tools to their students.

Plus, being your first rotation, your body is absolutely NOT ready for the hours.

It gets easier as time passes. Just try to squeeze in some sleep here and there during the day.

 

[RySerr21]

Ob night float sucks dude, no way around it. We had similar hours ( i just finished Ob). Just try to learn from the experience as much as you can. Get involved with triage patients, deliveries, etc.

The rest of Ob was not nearly as time consuming (8-5 more or less when in clinic...i even had some half days in there), but on my first L&D week i put in 96 hours.

 

[OveractiveBrain]

It's my first week and I'm exhausted. I'm on OB night float. I have to be there at 6:30pm and I don't get home until 10am. That means I'm working 15.5 hours a day. There's barely enough time to sleep. I have no life at all right now, and I can't even study for the shelf.

Is this what the other rotations are like?

3rd year is hard. Its mostly long hours. Every program has one that REALLY sucks and one (or two) thats REALLY awesome. The rest of the time you hurry up and wait for long hours. The cool thing is, if you listen to things being said, even if you dont follow everything, you learn ALOT.

Then, fourth year rocks out. Like whoa. Then residency is like 3rd year again. Only worse hours, more responsibility, but WAY more fun.

It does get better. You'll be on a better rotation and you'll have better control of the swing of things. Don't be surprised if you are totally miserable on a rotation (hours, resident, subject), but do expect to loving something about every one.

 

[2012mdc]

It's my first week and I'm exhausted. I'm on OB night float. I have to be there at 6:30pm and I don't get home until 10am. That means I'm working 15.5 hours a day. There's barely enough time to sleep. I have no life at all right now, and I can't even study for the shelf.

Is this what the other rotations are like?

Only Surgery (or if you have a $h!tty IM rotation) will have hours that approach the suckiness of L&D nights or days.

Peds is ok depending on how much inpatient you have. FM and Psych especially are cake

 

[finns86]

I agree with the posts above. Your body will definitely get used to the longer hours and other rotations are cake in comparison to OB/GYN (i.e. family, pediatrics, psych). Internal medicine and surgery are typically the most difficult though.

 

[bioteach]

You just got stuck with a bad first one. My longest hours were on surgery (usually 6am until 7 or 8 pm, sometimes longer) and L&D night float (6p until 10:30 am, but I usually was able to get at least a couple hours sleep during the nights). Everything else was much closer to 8-4 type hours. I even had one of my 3 week long IM rotations average about 3 hrs a day. So you'll see a HUGE range in your hours.

 

[ShyRem]

Wow. 3 hours a day on IM?

Agreed, hours vary widely. Most of my rotations in 3rd year were from 9-15 hours a day. I had 36 hour calls and sometimes every other weeekend off. But mostly it was 80 hour weeks. I did get 2 weeks off for Christmas - that was HEAVENLY. 4th year was much better. Those were mostly 8 hour days with weekends off. Except EM. EM was hours all over the place.

 

[bioteach]

Wow. 3 hours a day on IM?

I know! It was weird, but it was the very last three weeks of a 10 week IM block and also the very last three weeks of the year in June. The interns were just ready to be done with intern year, the senior was ready to be done with residency, we were ready to be done with 3rd year. Our attending didn't teach at all and he preferred table rounds. So....we came in, saw our patients, rounded, and left. It was strange, but seeing as how it was the end of the rotation and the year, we just wanted to get home and study...otherwise I'd have been a bit peeved with the minimal amount of teaching by both attending and residents. (Of course, I had my share of 8 hr rounds and 12 hr days in IM earlier during that rotation, so I definitely didn't feel slighted!).

And my family med averaged about 12 hrs a day...so I had some really unpredictable rotations...

 

[2012mdc]

I know! It was weird, but it was the very last three weeks of a 10 week IM block and also the very last three weeks of the year in June. The interns were just ready to be done with intern year, the senior was ready to be done with residency, we were ready to be done with 3rd year. Our attending didn't teach at all and he preferred table rounds. So....we came in, saw our patients, rounded, and left. It was strange, but seeing as how it was the end of the rotation and the year, we just wanted to get home and study...otherwise I'd have been a bit peeved with the minimal amount of teaching by both attending and residents. (Of course, I had my share of 8 hr rounds and 12 hr days in IM earlier during that rotation, so I definitely didn't feel slighted!).

And my family med averaged about 12 hrs a day...so I had some really unpredictable rotations...

8 hr rounds? Dang. We always finished before lunch but some of my classmates weren't so lucky

12 hrs AVERAGE on FM 😱. Never hit more than 10 hrs. Usually 9, rarely 10.

 

[ArcGurren]

8 hr rounds? Dang. We always finished before lunch but some of my classmates weren't so lucky

12 hrs AVERAGE on FM 😱. Never hit more than 10 hrs. Usually 9, rarely 10.

My average day on FM was 10 am - 4 pm lol. It was cake.

 

[physics junkie]

If you could believe it I am on ob/gyn right now and only have 7 hours of hospital time this week. I had ~20 hours last week and ~20 hours the week before that.

I am envious of your opportunity to learn. I sit around all day reading blueprints wishing that our preceptor didn't quit the first week of my rotation. 😡

 

[PokerDoc]

There is no easy way around it, this year will test you in every way. You don't just get to come home and relax after a grueling day, you have to study some stupid $$$$ so you can pass a lousy shelf exam too.

This was by far the most difficult year of my life, back problems aside, in both terms of my general health, my immune system and my energy levels. Am I glad it's over? F yes.. Am I glad I made it, you better believe it.

I honestly don't even know how to offer advice for surviving third year. I slammed my alarm clock every morning, got up, sucked it up, and made it through the day. That's just what you gotta do. But just know that you're not alone, your classmates feel the same way.

 

[badasshairday]

OP is lucky. I had to get in at 5:30am and leave at 7:30am the next day when I was on OB a few months ago. 6pm to 10am on L and D is cake.

 

[2012mdc]

OP is lucky. I had to get in at 5:30am and leave at 7:30am the next day when I was on OB a few months ago. 6pm to 10am on L and D is cake.

So you would work 26 hrs straight and then get 22 hours off? So you would have one day on and then one day off?

 

[badasshairday]

So you would work 26 hrs straight and then get 22 hours off? So you would have one day on and then one day off?

True. Post call was sweet day. This new 16 hr shift thing is even more terrible now that I think about it.

 

[isoquin]

Not all rotations are like that, nor should you assume it gets easier either. Luck's a chance but trouble's sure. So when you hit the good fluffy rotations that are M-F 9-5, enjoy them. Otherwise, prepare for 12-15 hour days and be pleasantly surprised when you're let out "early." Fourth year, however, does get easier.

 

[mrwesticles]

Not all rotations are the same, in the same sense not all specialties are the same.

Not only will it get better, but you will be better informed on what to focus on for your choice of lifestyle.

 

[2012mdc]

Not all rotations are like that, nor should you assume it gets easier either. Luck's a chance but trouble's sure. So when you hit the good fluffy rotations that are M-F 9-5, enjoy them. Otherwise, prepare for 12-15 hour days and be pleasantly surprised when you're let out "early." Fourth year, however, does get easier.

At my school only two rotations have 12+ hr days - OB and Surgery. plus medicine call q4. The large majority of 3rd year is easier than OB

 

[mandinca]

There is no easy way around it, this year will test you in every way. You don't just get to come home and relax after a grueling day, you have to study some stupid $$$$ so you can pass a lousy shelf exam too.

This was by far the most difficult year of my life, back problems aside, in both terms of my general health, my immune system and my energy levels. Am I glad it's over? F yes.. Am I glad I made it, you better believe it.

I honestly don't even know how to offer advice for surviving third year. I slammed my alarm clock every morning, got up, sucked it up, and made it through the day. That's just what you gotta do. But just know that you're not alone, your classmates feel the same way.

As long and difficult as the days can get (I'm on Surg first), I keep thinking that I might as well get used to it so that I can handle intern year without dying ;-)