Is this shadowing? Clinical experience? At my discretion?

[brockhamptonfanacct]

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[brockhamptonfanacct]

@Goro @LizzyM @gyngyn Your thoughts would be appreciated! Thank you!

 

[future_doc9898]

I think you should list the hours specifically shadowing as shadowing experience and the hours taking HPIs and conducting patient interviews as clinical experience.

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

I think you should list the hours specifically shadowing as shadowing experience and the hours taking HPIs and conducting patient interviews as clinical experience.

By the way, were you part of the UIC GPPA program?

I'm not really sure that there were any designated "shadowing" hours. I watched my physician interview a patient once or twice and then pretty much took off on my own from there. In the psych class, I didn't interview every week, but I wasn't really shadowing a physician either -- I was watching my classmates interview, and then giving feedback on their interview and often asking the patient questions myself if I had any.

No, I was not in the UIC GPPA program.

 

[Goro]

I was in a BA/MD program for my first year of college and had a class called Fundamentals of Medicine, which included both a lecture component (focused on geriatric health and bioethics) and a hands-on, clinical component.

For the clinical component, I spent 50 hours with a cardiologist and 30 hours with a psychiatrist throughout the school year. I learned how to take an HPI very early on, and our standard class session consisted of me interviewing patients (usually in pairs), meeting with my group, and presenting my patient. The psychiatrist led his course in a similar way; a different one of the students interviewed a patient each week, and we all offered help as we saw fit/asked the patient additional questions/regrouped and discussed after the interview. Both physicians gave detailed feedback after our presentations.

I had initially planned on putting this down as shadowing, but then realized that I actually held an active role every week after learning how to take an HPI/conduct a patient interview. What should this be labeled as?

Also, as a follow-up question, would it be poor form to label this as one of my most meaningful experiences, as the hour count is relatively low, and I'm no longer in the BA/MD program? This was my favorite course while I was there, and I can speak at length about how much I learned and loved it.

More shadowing than patient contact experience.

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

More shadowing than patient contact experience.

Makes sense. I assume it'd be better to devote my most meaningful experiences to something more direct and involved then?

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

More shadowing than patient contact experience.

Out of curiosity, why would you say it was more shadowing than patient contact experience? I would think the only shadowing I did was the first two times I watched my physician interview a patient. After that, I interviewed and presented weekly.

 

[Goro]

Makes sense. I assume it'd be better to devote my most meaningful experiences to something more direct and involved then?

I have a little trouble believing that this is your most meaningful experience.

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

I have a little trouble believing that this is your most meaningful experience.

I viewed it as quite meaningful because even though I work with, and serve patients, in my other clinical roles, this was one of the few where I was able to talk to a patient at length. I was purely a student rather than an employee trying to get a job done, so I was able to slow down, perfect my interviewing skills, develop rapport with the patients, and evaluate how other factors (like social ones) contributed to their health. It also fueled my interest in narrative medicine. I also found it meaningful because of the feedback I got from my supervising physicians -- I got a lot of great feedback on using a patient's social history to inform my thoughts, for example.

I think we get three most meaningful experiences total, so I've got a few others lined up if this one doesn't quite cut it. I work as a caretaker for a developmentally disabled client and was planning on writing about that as well.

Also, I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the follow-up question I asked above.

 

[Goro]

I viewed it as quite meaningful because even though I work with, and serve patients, in my other clinical roles, this was one of the few where I was able to talk to a patient at length. I was purely a student rather than an employee trying to get a job done, so I was able to slow down, perfect my interviewing skills, develop rapport with the patients, and evaluate how other factors (like social ones) contributed to their health. It also fueled my interest in narrative medicine. I also found it meaningful because of the feedback I got from my supervising physicians -- I got a lot of great feedback on using a patient's social history to inform my thoughts, for example.

I think we get three most meaningful experiences total, so I've got a few others lined up if this one doesn't quite cut it. I work as a caretaker for a developmentally disabled client and was planning on writing about that as well.

Also, I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the follow-up question I asked above.

You should get other patient contact experiences in the future (after COVID passes) and these will give you even better experiences.

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

You should get other patient contact experiences in the future (after COVID passes) and these will give you even better experiences.

That sounds like a plan, thank you. So to confirm, this would be best categorized as shadowing?

 

[Goro]

That sounds like a plan, thank you. So to confirm, this would be best categorized as shadowing?

Shadowing > patient contact. It's not absolute. Did you learn what a doctor's day was like?

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

Shadowing > patient contact. It's not absolute. Did you learn what a doctor's day was like?

Kind of. I learned about their patient populations and how they conduct interviews. I never saw the physicians formulating any sort of treatment plans or facilitating care/procedures.

 

[Goro]

Kind of. I learned about their patient populations and how they conduct interviews. I never saw the physicians formulating any sort of treatment plans or facilitating care/procedures.

Still, you answered my question. Shadowing!

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

Still, you answered my question. Shadowing!

Sounds good. I’ll stick with my original plan, thank you!

 

[LizzyM]

I would not call this shadowing as you did not really see a physician practicing medicine, you were being taught in a class how to do some of the basic tasks of a health care provider. Label it "other", describe it as a class with opportunities for hands on training in obtaining an H&P. Call it most meaningful if it was (the most meaningful need not be the item with the most hours but with the most meaning).

I've seen similar listings for courses in sociology, etc where students spend some assigned time in a homeless shelter or other venue where they work with a specific population to see what things look like in the world rather than being confined to a classroom for their lessons. It can certainly be meaningful.

 

[brockhamptonfanacct]

I would not call this shadowing as you did not really see a physician practicing medicine, you were being taught in a class how to do some of the basic tasks of a health care provider. Label it "other", describe it as a class with opportunities for hands on training in obtaining an H&P. Call it most meaningful if it was (the most meaningful need not be the item with the most hours but with the most meaning).

I've seen similar listings for courses in sociology, etc where students spend some assigned time in a homeless shelter or other venue where they work with a specific population to see what things look like in the world rather than being confined to a classroom for their lessons. It can certainly be meaningful.

Thank you for the example, that’s helpful! I was debating what it would be categorized as if not shadowing.