vacation time

[Samanta]

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I was just wandering how much vacation time you can actually take per year during your residency? Most programs have 2-4 weeks(often at the discretion of the department) but some of them disourage of taking more than a week at once. I think I would feel uncomforable taking 3 one-week vacations in a year since you might look like a slacker; on the other hand I do like my vacations and can't work all the time.
Please let me know your experience with that. thanks 😎

 

[deschutes]

Dude. This isn't school any more. Look at it this way - this is the ONLY time you're going to get off from work. And you're going to be working long, hard, and on weekends. Take a day off a month, take a week off to go to Puerto Rico: however you want to do it, residents are human - those 2 to 4 weeks are your God-given right (just make sure you get all the appropriate approvals as per your residency manual). You probably had more vacation than that in med school. You had even more, before med school. 🙂

I can't say I know anyone who gives up their vacation time in order to "not look like a slacker". I can easily imagine the huge stinks raised if vacation time was eaten into.

I've used up my two weeks for 2005-2006. Thank heavens for CP.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Residency is a job. And you should take advantage of your vacations or you run the risk of burning out. We're all human and we need our breaks. I recently took a 2 week long vacation and I totally needed it. I totally felt recharged and even the busiest days now don't phase me much.

 

[yaah]

Don't worry about taking vacations. That is why they are there. Path is a bit tough because unless you are on an elective rotation, technically you will be skipping out on something. So it can be hard to decide when to do it. In general I have done a week or less at a time but coming up this year I will be taking 2 straight weeks off.

Most programs work it as if you are requesting vacation at a time when you are on a service that requires your attention, you have to find someone to cover your work. But if not, just let them know ahead of time.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Most programs work it as if you are requesting vacation at a time when you are on a service that requires your attention, you have to find someone to cover your work. But if not, just let them know ahead of time.

Wait...so residents take vacation while they are scheduled to do service work? Well, actually, that probably makes sense since you do rotations by months right?

Here, we do specific rotations on a weekly basis so we have no service responsibilities or do we have to find people to cover us when we are scheduled for vacation.

 

[Samanta]

Thanks a lot guys for your input. One more question - do you usually schedule all your vacation time before the year starts? As far as I know the schedules are made before the year starts but I am not sure yet when I want to travel in 2007. I was told that when you are on some tough rotation like surg path it is difficult to get time off. Is it OK to look at your schedule and plan then?

Don't worry about taking vacations. That is why they are there. Path is a bit tough because unless you are on an elective rotation, technically you will be skipping out on something. So it can be hard to decide when to do it. In general I have done a week or less at a time but coming up this year I will be taking 2 straight weeks off.

Most programs work it as if you are requesting vacation at a time when you are on a service that requires your attention, you have to find someone to cover your work. But if not, just let them know ahead of time.

 

[JaneDough]

😕 I am getting married next year- should I request the dates I need now, or is it premature?

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Thanks a lot guys for your input. One more question - do you usually schedule all your vacation time before the year starts? As far as I know the schedules are made before the year starts but I am not sure yet when I want to travel in 2007. I was told that when you are on some tough rotation like surg path it is difficult to get time off. Is it OK to look at your schedule and plan then?

We get 4 weeks of vacation and we tell the chief resident what weeks we want off. Then he/she makes the schedule such that we are on a light rotation the week before our vacation and that we don't have any service responsibilities that we are missing when we are actually on vacation.

Now, of course, emergencies do happen and usually the schedule can be modified as the year progresses...residents can trade certain weeks or call nights in the schedule if given enough advance notice.

But different programs likely will schedule things differently.

 

[yaah]

We are asked before the yearly schedule is made what months we want a flexible schedule on so that we can take vacation. Thus, if I am planning a vacation in september, I would request september. Once the schedule is made, you just tell whoever is in charge of the rotation about your vacation. For many rotations it doesn't matter. For some, there needs to be one resident on at least at a time. Our call schedule is made later, a few weeks before the month starts, so we don't have to know these requests months ahead of time.

 

[deschutes]

😕 I am getting married next year- should I request the dates I need now, or is it premature?

I would certainly write to your program coordinator about it, if it was in the first half of next year. They would be able to put you in touch with whoever puts the schedule together - usually the chief residents.

Congratulations in advance 🙂

 

[djmd]

😕 I am getting married next year- should I request the dates I need now, or is it premature?

Definately contact the chief residents.
(it is not in July or august is it? those are the training months)

Anything else should not be too much of a problem. But I would get a hold of one of the cheifs.

(if you don't have a way to do that PM me, and I can tell you how)


(Yeah I remember that you are going to CCF, I have the chiefs' emails)

 

[JaneDough]

Congratulations in advance 🙂

Thanks!

We're not getting married until February, but I think I will try to contact the chief now.

 

[Cesar]

I was just wandering how much vacation time you can actually take per year during your residency? Most programs have 2-4 weeks(often at the discretion of the department) but some of them disourage of taking more than a week at once. I think I would feel uncomforable taking 3 one-week vacations in a year since you might look like a slacker; on the other hand I do like my vacations and can't work all the time.
Please let me know your experience with that. thanks 😎

The CP years are like one long vacation.

Its AWESOME