Poker face when speaking/near patients

[Abi123]

Hi Guys,

I seem to a have problem with keeping a "poker face" around patients. I tend to laugh during stressful/awkward times and doing that when a patient is talking about their troubles is clearly inappropriate.

Any tips for dealing with this issue?

Thanks!

From,
Abi

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[AZFutureDoc]

Hi Guys,

I seem to a have problem with keeping a "poker face" around patients. I tend to smile/laugh during stressful/awkward times and doing that when a patient is suffering and/or talking about their troubles is clearly inappropriate.

Anyone else suffer from this problem? Any tips for dealing with this issue?

Thanks!

From,
Abi

This seems very strange. Do you have any other social issues? You could have a legitimate disorder...

 

[Abi123]

This seems very strange. Do you have any other social issues? You could have a legitimate disorder...

Ok, I made it sound way worse than it really is... its mostly the way people go on and describe something that gets me.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

This seems very strange. Do you have any other social issues? You could have a legitimate disorder...

A lot of people do this. I know I do it, and I know many people do it when I look them in the eyes for a long period of time. I personally smirk or smile, never usually go so far as to laugh.

 

[Bacchus]

Eh, you're just uncomfortable. Patients will reveal a lot of personal information and many times its not necessary or appropriate for the physician-patient relationship. You'll learn quickly how to control your reactions. You're just nervous.

 

[Hastur]

Well, does your undergrad institution (or city community center) offer beginning acting classes?

I'm not kidding, actually. Acting classes usually have, among other things, exercises where people put you in weird/uncomfortable/funny situations and you have to avoid laughing. They're useful for getting a handle on that kind of thing.

 

[Disinence2]

There are some situations where it is impossible to keep a straight face, the key is to just get out of the line of sight of the patient. Do what you've got to do to keep from cracking up, but its bound to happen eventually if your human.

Psychiatrists are absolutely amazing at this, I don't know how they do it.

 

[Morsetlis]

Practice the thousand-yard stare.

Count the dots on the hospital gown.

 

[45408]

Cough. When a little old lady really lets one rip right as you're talking to her or examining her, it's a little hard not to giggle. As an M4, I stifled a laugh, the GI fellow coughed, and the colorectal surgeon didn't flinch. Now, I'd cough.

Once in a while, you have to "answer a page" and go laugh hysterically in the hallway. Some of the stuff that patients say and do is just that hilarious.

 

[CodeBlu]

Cough. When a little old lady really lets one rip right as you're talking to her or examining her, it's a little hard not to giggle. As an M4, I stifled a laugh, the GI fellow coughed, and the colorectal surgeon didn't flinch. Now, I'd cough.

Once in a while, you have to "answer a page" and go laugh hysterically in the hallway. Some of the stuff that patients say and do is just that hilarious.

Logical progression. 👍

I was a standardized patient actor back in the day... so I had a lot of stuff that I needed to portray... I got very close with most of the medical students. To the point where I was hanging out with them after their exams etc.

So when it came time for their OSCEs, and I had to do a schizophrenic case, or start crying because they had to tell me my mom/dad/brother/sister died... let's just say some of them were either taken aback... or stifled laughs cuz it's hard to see a guy you went out drinking with, start balling. Hahaha

 

[45408]

let's just say some of them were either taken aback... or stifled laughs cuz it's hard to see a guy you went out drinking with, start balling. Hahaha

Wow, I didn't think that balling was possible on a standardized patient's salary, although I did hear the breast/pelvic exam patients got paid a lot.

 

[tiedyeddog]

Wow, I didn't think that balling was possible on a standardized patient's salary, although I did hear the breast/pelvic exam patients got paid a lot.

lol

 

[CodeBlu]

Wow, I didn't think that balling was possible on a standardized patient's salary, although I did hear the breast/pelvic exam patients got paid a lot.

Ha ha ha ha ha

I meant crying obviously.


But my SP gig wasn't salaried, I got paid $30 an hour. I once did the male genital teaching, because one of the guys cancelled. That was also a hefty lump of cash for that.

But my favorite was exam days, OSCEs etc... those paid really well.

 

[45408]

Ha ha ha ha ha

I meant crying obviously.


But my SP gig wasn't salaried, I got paid $30 an hour. I once did the male genital teaching, because one of the guys cancelled. That was also a hefty lump of cash for that.

But my favorite was exam days, OSCEs etc... those paid really well.

Details on how much a "hefty lump of cash" is?

 

[CodeBlu]

Details on how much a "hefty lump of cash" is?

$400 for 8 hours of work.

Not an MD salary... but not bad for college student.

 

[willen101383]

$400 for 8 hours of work.

Not an MD salary... but not bad for college student.

DRE?

 

[CodeBlu]

DRE?

Only did it once. 🙂

 

[willen101383]

Only did it once. 🙂

I dont judge.

 

[CodeBlu]

I dont judge.

The $400 days were for M2 OSCEs... the DRE **** (literally) went down at the end of M1.

 

[willen101383]

Thats interesting...we do pelvics and rectals M2...I just did my pelvic about a month ago.

 

[Bacchus]

Thats interesting...we do pelvics and rectals M2...I just did my pelvic about a month ago.

Oh that lady is a treat. :x

 

[GrendizerDDS]

Don't ever laugh, especially since you're just a premed there to shadow, or whatever it is you're doing. If you're not the doc, then don't laugh. Just step out the room. It's better to do that than look like a fool in front of the doc and embarrass the patient. You'll see so many random things as a doctor. Its very common for patients to come in for silly cases. It's just better not to laugh, you never know if you'd be disrespecting the patient.

 

[willen101383]

Oh that lady is a treat. :x

lmao. I had 4 CMA kids in my group. This one kid was a bit rough (obv it had been quite some time since he had been around a vag bc he was shaking) and she looks right up at him and goes "you need to learn to respect the pu$$y."

You should have seen the look on the CMAers faces...I just burst out laughing I couldnt stop myself haha.

 

[CodeBlu]

lmao. I had 4 CMA kids in my group. This one kid was a bit rough (obv it had been quite some time since he had been around a vag bc he was shaking) and she looks right up at him and goes "you need to learn to respect the pu$$y."

You should have seen the look on the CMAers faces...I just burst out laughing I couldnt stop myself haha.

I would have keeled over and howled like a wolf from laughter.

 

[Noah Capurso]

Believe it or not, this is a common problem. I agree that the best thing to do is to just step out of the room or at least turn around if you are not the one interviewing the patient. If you are the one talking to the patient, the only advice I could give is to keep talking to patients and it will get better with time. As a psychiatry resident, I've heard patients say some pretty bizarre things, but I've been able to keep a straight face (so far anyway). It will get better during your clinical years of med school when you will be seeing lots of patients.

 

[45408]

Oh that lady is a treat. :x

I saw my SP for the pelvic exam outside of my school once at her day job. Awkward...

 

[Longshanks]

Well, does your undergrad institution (or city community center) offer beginning acting classes?

I'm not kidding, actually. Acting classes usually have, among other things, exercises where people put you in weird/uncomfortable/funny situations and you have to avoid laughing. They're useful for getting a handle on that kind of thing.

Maybe Jimmy Fallon should have took those classes at your undergrad.

Ha ha ha ha ha

I meant crying obviously.

Hehe, for future reference, it's "bawling" when referring to crying. Nice one, Prowler. 😀

lmao. I had 4 CMA kids in my group. This one kid was a bit rough (obv it had been quite some time since he had been around a vag bc he was shaking) and she looks right up at him and goes "you need to learn to respect the pu$$y."

You should have seen the look on the CMAers faces...I just burst out laughing I couldnt stop myself haha.

[youtube]EOnwMY8YmpU[/youtube]

 

[jcruiser]

If you're listening to the patient, bite your tongue hard. It works wonders.

 

[Neurosis]

That's gotta be awkward.

 

[Yaphet]

how can you laugh in those situations...thats weird

 

[haloschief]

I find myself in the same situation at times. I do work in psychiatry and initially, I found it very hard to keep a straight face with schizophrenic/manic patients that come in. But after a while, I got to use to their oddities and prepped myself for the laughs