Physican Shadowing question

[artaxerxes]

Hi, can anyone share their experiences with shadow in terms of how they obtained it and what kind of format/timeframe they used.

Also, is it inapropriate to shadow/request to shadow your own primary care physician? or is that perfectly fine

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[doctortobe2012]

i shadowed 2 different docs. here's what i did:

for doc #1: one of the hospitals nearby had email addresses of all of the docs. i emailed a ton (probably about 10-15) in a specialty that i was interested in. i was only able to shadow her for one day.

for doc #2: i called a ton of local private/group practices in the area. i explained that i was a pre-med student looking to gain more exposure in the medical field. i asked to speak directly with the physician, if available. i called about 25 different places, but i was only able to speak with one doc. thankfully, that doc let me shadow him. this doc, i've been shadowing him the whole day once a week.

 

[artaxerxes]

thanks for the info, might have to do the cold call method

I was thinking about asking my pcp, but I think she's still in residency, which might not be a good idea.

 

[doctortobe2012]

you might want to ask your doc if she knows anybody you can shadow. there's nothing wrong with shadowing a resident, but i've heard that you generally don't want to ask your own doc to shadow them.

 

[PreMed4Dummies]

also you can check with your premed advisor or with the education departments at any hospitals nearby. some hospitals have formal shadowing programs for students interested in medicine

 

[artaxerxes]

unfortunately hospitals around me don't really have structured programs. As a poster above mentioned, it might not be appropriate to ask your own PCP for shadowing, I'm wondering if thats because of a precieved conflict of interest, poor ettiquote, or something else?

oh, and ttt!

 

[Bacchus]

unfortunately hospitals around me don't really have structured programs. As a poster above mentioned, it might not be appropriate to ask your own PCP for shadowing, I'm wondering if thats because of a precieved conflict of interest, poor ettiquote, or something else?

oh, and ttt!

I shadowed my "PCP." The reason I use quotes I shadowed at the home office but another doctor in the practice is my PCP. I honestly don't see it mattering because the doctor it is not going to alter his or her practice to suit you. I fell into your category as far as hospitals go so I understand. The one hospital that does offer educational programs wants participants to jump through hoops to do it. (They wanted more paperwork/tests than I needed to volunteer) I don't think it will be an application killer. I also did it because I am applying via AAMCS and AACOMAS and osteopathic schools like to see a DO LOR. There aren't many in my area (not Philly, at home) so I really didn't have a choice.

 

[monkeymeg2]

If you are having trouble finding a doctor to work with, something to think about is shadowing a PA or nurse practitioner in a field that interests you. I also shadowed doctors, but most of my hours shadowing came from a well respected NP who works as part of a physician group within a department of the medical school near my house. I actually considered my clinical experience with the NP way more valuable than any of my other experiences. I learned SO much because she could be a bit more attentive to me than I have noticed many physicians are with students. I was able to observe many patient procedures, listen to chest sounds (and learned to identify a few murmurs), go through the charts/labs and aks questions, and really got to interact with the patients...overall I felt really welcome and it was a great experience. My interviewers were all impressed with my level of clinical exposure, so I don't think shadowing a PA or NP over a physician will look bad as long as you are getting something out of the experience.

 

[monkeymeg2]

sorry just realized you also wanted to know how we got the opportunities and I forgot to mention that. I was volunteering at a nursing home that the physician group I mentioned visits weekly. Essentially, its a geriatrics/gerontology group that sees patients at various nursing homes and assisted living centers around the region (a different one each day of the week). I got to know the NP really well while working at the one nursing home and asked if I could get involved with the group and shadow her at the different sites. I was able to attend weekly lectures for medical students and physicians during the summers and did clinical shadowing for about 25 hrs/week for about 2 years during all academic breaks.

 

[artaxerxes]

wow, 25hr/wk, thats some intense shadowing
thanks for all the replies