Is this clinical?

[MyOdyssey]

Like many others, I'm still finding it hard to find face to face clinical volunteering opportunities.

Are any of the following "clinical"?

1. greeting hospital visitors/patients as a hospital "ambassador"

2. changing bedsheets in the hospital

3. doing hospital paperwork

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[LizzyM]

Use your critical thinking skills:

Are you in a setting where there are people who are in the role of "patient" (not retail customer, diner, audience member, etc)?
Are you in the presence of these patients?
Are you in close physical proximity to them?

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

Like many others, I'm still finding it hard to find face to face clinical volunteering opportunities.

Are any of the following "clinical"?

1. greeting hospital visitors/patients as a hospital "ambassador"

2. changing bedsheets in the hospital

3. doing hospital paperwork

Changing bedsheets right after patients have left is clinical. In my application, that's how I characterized it. The other two are probably not.

 

[xffan624]

Changing bedsheets right after patients have left is clinical. In my application, that's how I characterized it. The other two are probably not.

Why wouldn't #1 be clinical? You're in a hospital environment and assisting patients directly (helping them find their way etc). As noted in another thread, you don't have to be performing a surgery to qualify something as a clinical experience.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

Why wouldn't #1 be clinical? You're in a hospital environment and assisting patients directly (helping them find their way etc). As noted in another thread, you don't have to be performing a surgery to qualify something as a clinical experience.

I guess if you want to stretch it.

 

[Proudfather94]

Like many others, I'm still finding it hard to find face to face clinical volunteering opportunities.

Are any of the following "clinical"?

1. greeting hospital visitors/patients as a hospital "ambassador"

2. changing bedsheets in the hospital

3. doing hospital paperwork

None of those really count. Would you be opposed to being a CNA? that gets you great clinical experience. That or scribing.

They don't want to just check off that you were in a hospital. They want you to do something where you interact with patients substantially. It also helps if you can do something where you can see physicians interact with patients too. Being able to talk about how your experience reaffirmed that you want to be a physician based off of what you see them do will make your experience matter more.

 

[MyOdyssey]

None of those really count. Would you be opposed to being a CNA? that gets you great clinical experience. That or scribing.

They don't want to just check off that you were in a hospital. They want you to do something where you interact with patients substantially. It also helps if you can do something where you can see physicians interact with patients too. Being able to talk about how your experience reaffirmed that you want to be a physician based off of what you see them do will make your experience matter more.

I've already lined up another job.

I would say that greeting patients on their way to receiving care in a hospital is clinical experience, especially if it also involves helping them find their way.

Paperwork is not clinical.

Changing sheets and wiping things down would count as clinical if it also involves some face to face interaction with patients but not if the activity entails cleaning out a room that's already been emptied.

 

[MyOdyssey]

Changing bedsheets right after patients have left is clinical. In my application, that's how I characterized it. The other two are probably not.

So the patients were no longer in the room when you entered to tidy up?

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

So the patients were no longer in the room when you entered to tidy up?

yep. You could still smell the patients though lol.

 

[Proudfather94]

I've already lined up another job.

I would say that greeting patients on their way to receiving care in a hospital is clinical experience, especially if it also involves helping them find their way.

Paperwork is not clinical.

Changing sheets and wiping things down would count as clinical if it also involves some face to face interaction with patients but not if the activity entails cleaning out a room that's already been emptied.

I guess that technically counts but I'm just saying it's going to be hard to talk about how telling someone how to get to the labor and delivery floor reaffirmed that you want to be a doctor. The interview that I did that was open note commended my experiences with patients and the physicians interactions with the patient. I think that was a big reason why I got accepted.

 

[MyOdyssey]

I guess that technically counts but I'm just saying it's going to be hard to talk about how telling someone how to get to the labor and delivery floor reaffirmed that you want to be a doctor. The interview that I did that was open note commended my experiences with patients and the physicians interactions with the patient. I think that was a big reason why I got accepted.

I agree. I have about 500 hours clinical volunteering where I had a chance to, for example, feed patients who wouldn't feed themselves. That shut down in March 2020 and hasn't reopened.

I'm kind of disappointed with what I've found so far, which is why I posted this thread.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

I guess that technically counts but I'm just saying it's going to be hard to talk about how telling someone how to get to the labor and delivery floor reaffirmed that you want to be a doctor. The interview that I did that was open note commended my experiences with patients and the physicians interactions with the patient. I think that was a big reason why I got accepted.

I doubt that's why you got accepted. Clinical experience is mainly used to reaffirm that this is the path you are sure about.

 

[Proudfather94]

I agree. I have about 500 hours clinical volunteering where I had a chance to, for example, feed patients who wouldn't feed themselves. That shut down in March 2020 and hasn't reopened.

I'm kind of disappointed with what I've found so far, which is why I posted this thread.

If you did stuff like that during your volunteering you should count that. Did you do anything like grab vitals, turn, or clean up patients?

 

[MyOdyssey]

If you did stuff like that during your volunteering you should count that. Did you do anything like grab vitals, turn, or clean up patients?

No but I transported them post surgery to a waiting area to be with family members. I monitored nutrient intake for patients and brought them food and, as I said, helped feed them too.

 

[LizzyM]

No but I transported them post surgery to a waiting area to be with family members. I monitored nutrient intake for patients and brought them food and, as I said, helped feed them too.

You've got it covered. Anything else you do shows that you did not do the other stuff just to check a box. Having some ongoing involvement, even if it is not "hands on" shows that you interested in the clinical environment and want to help out.