Physician Shadowing advice

[goatface13]

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I just got an approval to shadow two homecare physicians that specialize in family medicine. How should I behave (well obviously not obnoxiously and rudely), but what should I expect? Feel free to share your experiences 🙂

 

[EnergyDrink]

Don't "chime in" when the physician is having a conversation with the patient, a resident, or another doctor.

Enjoy it though... shadowing has been fun for me.

 

[Ironmandoc]

Act like a good child. Don't speak unless spoken to lol

 

[Praefectus]

Wear something decent (i.e. a button down, not a tank top or some other ridiculous article of clothing).

 

[Desp]

I really enjoyed my primary care shadowing but I think a lot of that was due to the great doc I shadowed.. As others have suggested I would stand back but don't lean on the wall. Just stand there.

I would imagine you'll have ample alone time with the patient when he/she is charting or doing other doctery stuff, and I would save my questions for those times when the patient isn't around. Others may think differently however.

Remember to ask questions about the physicians past and what brought them to medicine/family practice. These types of questions are great to start off with so you can break the ice.

Hope that helps cowboy

 

[911 Turbo]

1) you are there to learn, but always ask questions after you leave the patients room

2) use hand sanitizer before and after you go into the room, if they have it

3) when you are actually observing, watch from a distance unless the doctor tells you other wise. Don't speak unless spoken to.

4) don't try to be witty or funny or knowledgeable if the patient talks to you. Be courteous.

5) for the love of god, don't introduce yourself as doctor to patients (heard of this happening before)

6) don't ask for/wear a doctors coat. Khakis and a nice polo are fine

 

[Disinence2]

Home care physician? Does this mean your going to be entering others homes??

**** Do not sit on anything *****
***** wear pants you are willing to destroy ****
**** Destroy clothes before entering your home ****


Do NOT get bed bugs!!!!

 

[09ine]

I suggest watching this video for advice:

http://youtu.be/JKhRgpHwknI

 

[Xenops]

1. Wear something nice--slacks/ button-up shirt for guys, slacks or skirt with hose for girls and button-up shirt. Like you would for an interview.

2. DO NOT QUESTION THE DOCTOR'S METHODS IN FRONT OF THE PATIENT. When I watched a family practitioner surgically removed a mole, I commented on his using tap water. This was a mistake as it gave the patient reason to doubt him. When in doubt, ask after the patient leaves.

The ortho surgeon and the FP that I shadowed were both good about explaining what they were doing, and often let me assist them with basic things.

 

[EnergyDrink]

Wear comfortable shoes. They told me this before I shadowed and I didn't listen. Don't make this mistake.

 

[UTsksk]

I just got an approval to shadow two homecare physicians that specialize in family medicine. How should I behave (well obviously not obnoxiously and rudely), but what should I expect? Feel free to share your experiences 🙂

It really depends on the personality of the doctor. I have shadowed 2 docs that were very different personality wise. For the one that was very calm and respectful, I minded what I said and paid attention to everything he was doing since he would ask me questions. It was a great experience since when we would talk about other stuff besides medicine he was a cool guy. The second one was alot more vocal and made more jokes. At first I was taken back because I wasn't sure if I should involve myself because I didn't know the limitations of the doctor-student relationship. After a while, I got more comfortable w/ him and told a few of my own and essentially we kinda hung out. Lol I remember this one surgery where during the procedure we see that the patient has a nazi symbol on his shoulder and the entire time we were pretending to be nazis and speaking incoherent german to the nurses.

Basically, go by the personality of the doctor and know your limits.