is it rude to ask shadowing the day of?

[rkdsiddl]

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I work at the internal medicine office, so I get to work with all the doctors and doctors talk to me sometimes. After 2 months of working, I asked one of the doctor if I can shadow her for the last patient of the day on the day of. She seemed a bit surprised and asked what type of visit is it and said okay not very willingly.

Is it rude to ask for the shadowing on the day of even though I'm only asking to shadow the last patient?
Should I send a message on EPIC to give more time for the doctor to think about it?
Or is it better to ask in person, but the day before the shadowing day?

 

[Tomiee]

I work at the internal medicine office, so I get to work with all the doctors and doctors talk to me sometimes. After 2 months of working, I asked one of the doctor if I can shadow her for the last patient of the day on the day of. She seemed a bit surprised and asked what type of visit is it and said okay not very willingly.

Is it rude to ask for the shadowing on the day of even though I'm only asking to shadow the last patient?
Should I send a message on EPIC to give more time for the doctor to think about it?
Or is it better to ask in person, but the day before the shadowing day?

You should prob ask if they are available for shadowing in general and have some sort of rapport on that. In general, asking a day or so ahead is best practice.

 

[SpicyHotSauce]

Don't ask the day of. Nobody likes surprises.

If you're working there already, find a time where they are not busy (such as at the end of the day and they just finished seeing their last patient), just talk them a little and ask if you can shadow them for a couple of hours whenever it is best for them. It is common courtesy to let them choose the day and time that is most convenient for them.

 

[LunaOri]

Ask at least a day in advance. And don’t ask to shadow for one patient visit—shadowing is meant to have you see what it’s like to be a physician, which can’t be done in one patient encounter.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

The more time the better. It's the professional courtesy that matters. Also, you never know if that patient cancels.

 

[GoSpursGo]

I'm going to be more definitive--NO, you should not ask to shadow day of. Not because it's short notice, but because you're asking to shadow while you're also working. If you're working, then you presumably have a job that you're supposed to be doing, not shadowing.

If you want to shadow, take a day off in advance.